Rabbi Shaul Rappeport was introduced to the Lido Beach Congregation Friday evening amid the warmth and excitement of a buzzing record crowd. Born in Perth, Australia, and with smicha awarded in Israel by way of yeshivot in South Africa, Rabbi Rappeport comes to Lido after three years in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. more

Gleason’s Gym has been an integral part of Jewish boxer Yuri Foreman’s life for more than a decade. It is the place where he trained and prepared for his championship bouts, where he met his wife, where he celebrated his wedding, and where he returned to heal after a career-threatening injury. more

When recent rabbinical school graduate Rabbi Benjamin Frankel began a part-time clerical position in 1923 working with students at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, little could he have imagined that within less than a century, the small Jewish student program would balloon into a national and international organization with a presence at 550 colleges and universities. Hillel: The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life is celebrating its 90th anniversary in November, the organization confirmed. more

In a complex journey that can start as simply as children asking their parents what their family name means, younger Jews in the Former Soviet Union (FSU) are discovering the sometimes long-held secret of their religious background—a discovery that often initiates a search for Jewish identity. more

Judy Joszef is off this week, so we’re rerunning one of our many favorite Joszef columns. We were heading out to a wedding dear friends were making and I wanted to leave enough time to get there since we always get lost somehow or stuck in horrendous traffic. I hadn’t eaten all day and was looking forward to the shmorg. Lucky for me there was no traffic and we got off the highway in record time. Only problem was, the road we were supposed to merge onto was nowhere in sight. Jerry assured me it must be up ahead.“ more

With the annual observance of Veterans Day this coming Monday, my column this week will be devoted to a review of a very special essay that appeared in a very special high quality halacha journal, Hakirah, entitled, “Jewish GIs and Their Dog-Tags” by Rabbi Akiva Males of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. more

One of the most irritating aspects of the international efforts to deal with Iran’s nuclear program lies in the unrealistic expectations that negotiations create, even among those—like the American Jewish advocacy groups who met with the White House Oct. 29 to discuss the nuclear issue—who have every reason to be cynical. more

It’s been an awful week for the President and his signature legislation. Between revelations that, back in 2009, the administration discussed whether Obama should make his “you can keep your health care, period” promise, leaked memos of warnings about the introduction of the Obamacare website, and attacks on a cancer victim who complained about losing her plan, the administration seems to be out of touch with the public. more

When I was in Officer’s course, we had a Battalion Commander named Eyal, who made an indelible impression on me. A kibbutznik from the Golan, he was rather short, of slight build, not exactly the image of the mighty war hero. But he was one of those men who had been there; he was a veteran of the Yom Kippur war, and during the first week of the course he told us a story that came with a challenge. more

The first Pirates of the Caribbean film spent a few moments discussing the “honesty” of pirates. The lead character cheats in a duel and is thus accused, “You cheated!” He responds, “Pirate!” as if to say, “I don’t follow conventional rules.” One of the more memorable moments is when the female protagonist demands, in exchange for a precious medallion, that the pirates who are currently attacking Port Royal “leave and never come back.” When they agree, they begin to set sail with her on board, leading her to exclaim, “Wait! You have to take me to shore.” And she is told, “Your return to shore was not part of our negotiations nor our agreement so I must do nothing…” more