Before Oct. 7, actor and comedian Michael Rapaport referred to himself as a “lox and bagels Jew” — proud of his heritage, though not very involved. But after Hamas’ deadly attack on Israel last year, Rapaport — best known for his roles on the...

The brightly colored “Sukkot boxes” offered up on Amazon boasted the colors of spring, not fall; had no ostensible use for the Jewish holiday; and contained a Hebrew misspelling that bordered on obscene. Reader, I bought them. And it wasn’t...

I’ll be the first to admit—I don’t typically spend my evenings watching rom-coms. After bingeing six seasons of "Vikings" and diving into the Menendez brothers' biopic, rom-coms just aren’t my go-to. However, when my wife, the lovely Leigh, suggested...

Yom Kippur, which begins at sundown Oct. 11, is the Day of Atonement when we ask God to forgive us for our sins. We just celebrated Rosh Hashanah 5785, the Jewish New Year, and released our tashlich, casting off the sins of 5784. We are supposed to reflect...

By Samuel Eli ShepherdSeptember 27, 2024 This story was originally published in the Forward. Click here to get the Forward's free email newsletters delivered to your inbox. Saturday Night Live, or SNL, premiered the first episode of its 50th season...

One of the best things about being Jewish is celebrating holidays. There are the standard American and Hallmark ones like Valentine’s Day and Thanksgiving. Jews get so many extra holidays, including our gift of having two New Year’s celebrations.  When...

As a gender historian and scholar of intermarriage, I binge-watched the new Netflix series “Nobody Wants This” with a combination of foreboding and optimism. Depictions of romances between Jewish men and Christian women have been ubiquitous in...

“Nobody Wants This,” a rom-com Netflix series starring Adam Brody as a charming Los Angeles rabbi who falls for a blond, agnostic sex and dating podcaster played by Kristen Bell, is based on a true story — kind of. Erin Foster, the creator of...

Since joining the Jewish Light I’ve reflected on my own Jewish experience growing up and part of that was the Yiddish my grandparents would use, particularly my maternal grandparents whom I affectionately named Mama and Baba. Both would use Yiddish...

This story was originally published in the Forward. Click here to get the Forward's free email newsletters delivered to your inbox. As far back as he can remember, Noah Rinsky dreamed of becoming an Old Jewish Man — but it wasn’t always a good dream. Growing...

In my last column I mentioned an advice book I wanted to write for my older son, Davis, titled, “Quantity Over Quality: The College Years.”  It’s a guide to navigating your years in higher education, featuring practical advice about dating, partying...

It’s been said that God gives her toughest battles to her strongest soldiers. Parents sending their kids off to college are training in boot camp, prepping to march on the front lines of an emotional combat zone. We need the strength of a full platoon...