As the days grow colder, nothing satisfies quite like a hearty bowl of pasta. Accanto, a cozy trattoria on Southeast Belmont, pleases patrons with an assortment of handmade Italian noodle dishes. Although the menu changes according to the availability of seasonal and local ingredients, pasta is always served. This winter the restaurant offers a $10…
Eat your vegetables! A plea to young children, a demand to teenagers, who would skip straight to dessert if allowed, and a reminder to all of us that a steady stream of vegetables in our diet is just a darn good idea. I love to begin a meal with a fresh and tasty salad. Plain…
Nehama Leibowitz – Morah/Teacher (1905-1997) That is the inscription on the tombstone of Nehama Leibowitz, a master Torah scholar and teacher. Nehama, as she was commonly referred to, was born in Riga, Latvia, in 1905 to Orthodox/Zionist parents who spoke Hebrew to their children. Learning was extremely important in the Leibowitz family, and private tutors…
First and foremost, J Street founder and President Jeremy Ben-Ami wants everyone to know that “We believe in the right of the Jewish people to a national homeland in Israel, in the Jewish and democratic values on which Israel was founded, and in the necessity of a two-state solution.” Ben-Ami and Carmi Gillon, the former…
My mother-in-law, Tamar, was born in Shiraz, Iran. Along with her parents and siblings, she made the long and dangerous journey to Israel in 1951, arriving at the age of 12. Although she rarely has the opportunity to speak her native Farsi, she is still fluent and follows Iranian events closely, both in the mainstream…
Israel is in mourning. On Nov. 26 Arik Einstein died at the age of 74. And I honestly think Israel has died a little too. Arik Einstein was part of my reason for coming here and making Aliyah. He was a nuanced symbol of the Israel I so loved in the early ’70s. I didn’t…
A Portland teen’s d’var Torah on marriage freedom has gone viral, getting more than 100,000 hits in its first two weeks online. Duncan McAlpine Sennett, who became a bar mitzvah at Congregation Beth Israel on Nov. 9, delivered his d’var Torah about parashat Vayetzei, which details Jacob’s marriage to Leah and Rachel. Duncan notes that…
Congressman John Lewis, representing Georgia’s 5th District, will be the featured guest speaker at Congregation Beth Israel’s annual MLK Shabbat service, at 6 pm, Jan. 17. Since 2007 Beth Israel has collaborated with local African American communities to present this lecture and Shabbat service honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The son of Alabama sharecroppers,…
Solomon Olshin’s bar mitzvah project started in the kitchen almost a year ago. “SoupSac is something my dad and I made up,” Solomon explains. His personal project has turned into a series of Congregation Beth Israel events, beginning with serving more than 300 meals on Martin Luther King Day 2013. While he will become a…
We know that language directly influences our culture, how we think and what we believe. It can even shape our perceptions and influence the way we view the world as a reflection of our experiences and values. However, today’s Yiddish revival offers even more benefits. Yiddish can provide a link to parents, grandparents, hearts and…
