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A nonprofit, independent news source to inform, inspire, educate and connect the St. Louis Jewish community.

St. Louis Jewish Light

A nonprofit, independent news source to inform, inspire, educate and connect the St. Louis Jewish community.

St. Louis Jewish Light

A nonprofit, independent news source to inform, inspire, educate and connect the St. Louis Jewish community.

St. Louis Jewish Light

Jewish Pop Culture

USPS honors Jewish poet Shel Silverstein with ‘The Giving Tree’ stamps

USPS honors Jewish poet Shel Silverstein with ‘The Giving Tree’ stamps

Published April 11, 2022

(JTA) — The United States Postal Service released a new series of Forever stamps Friday in honor of Shel Silverstein, the Jewish author and illustrator who died in 1999. The stamps commemorate what is perhaps Silverstein’s most famous book, “The...

Why Mayim Bialik's 'As They Made Us' is one of 2022's best films

Why Mayim Bialik’s ‘As They Made Us’ is one of 2022’s best films

Dan Buffa, Special For The Jewish LightPublished April 9, 2022

The fascinating thing about life is that you hopefully get to know your parents twice: first as a kid and then as an adult. The passage of time eventually allows adults to merge the two people into one complete entity, but the process can be tricky if...

Danielle Finn, faces first fan voting Sunday night on American Idol

Danielle Finn, faces first fan voting Sunday night on American Idol

Alan Zeitlin, JNSPublished April 8, 2022

(JNS) -- If Danielle Finn had to choose between her faith and her dreams, it would have been a bummer. In her initial tryout on Zoom, the 17-year-old senior at Shalhevet High School in Los Angeles told producers of “American Idol” that she observes...

(L) Susannah Heschel, who created the ritual of putting on orange on the seder plate in the 1980s. Photo courtesy of Susannah Heschel. (R) Janice Stieber Rous' seder plate. Photo courtesy of Janice Stieber Rous.

The real story behind the orange on the seder plate

Jordan Palmer, Chief Digital Content OfficerPublished April 8, 2022

(JWA) -- Hard-boiled egg—check. Greens—check. Charoset, maror, shank bone—check. These are the traditional seder plate items that represent the themes of Passover. Many people have also adopted the feminist tradition of including an orange... but...

Jewish actor Gyllenhaal's new movie is a non-stop, adrenaline ride!

Jewish actor Gyllenhaal’s new movie is a non-stop, adrenaline ride!

Dan Buffa & Jordan PalmerPublished April 8, 2022

Jewish actor and producer Jake Gyllenhaal has what they call in Hollywood, range. We first got a glimpse of the rising star when he played Billy Crystal’s son in City Slickers at age 11. Since then, Gyllenhaal has played a teenage rocket engineer in...

Simcha Marom at Eshkolot Farm near Mitzpeh Ramon. Photo by Judith Sudilovsky

The woman who nurtures a biblical farm in the Negev Desert

JUDITH SUDILOVSKY, Israel21c.orgPublished April 7, 2022

Not far from Yeruham, at Ruhot Junction in southern Israel, you will find Eshkolot Farm, founded in 2009 by Simcha and Roni Marom. They moved to this area near Mitzpeh Ramon following Roni’s retirement from the army, and established their farm based...

Why handmade Israeli guitars are conquering the music world?

Why handmade Israeli guitars are conquering the music world?

Naama Barak, Israel21cPublished April 6, 2022
Two childhood friends in Israel create award-winning handmade boutique guitars that are slowly but surely garnering worldwide acclaim.
Dr. Richard Lazaroff is the author of "Some Assembly Required, A Guide to Savvy Parenting."

What role should schools play in sex, gender education — and when?

DR. RICHARD LAZAROFFPublished April 6, 2022

Lately, the news media has been full of coverage on whether schools should “teach” children about sexual orientation and gender. Like so many issues in front of the country right now, it has become politically charged where nuance is rarely heard....

Doni Zasloff and Eric Lindberg combine Jewish lyrical themes with a pure bluegrass sound as the group Nefesh Mountain. (Courtesy BAM Photography)

Jewish song of the week: ‘Dayeinu’ by Nefesh Mountain

Published April 6, 2022

“Dayeinu” by Nefesh Mountain (JKids Radio) "Pesach time is almost here! If you haven’t heard “Dayeinu” sung bluegrass-style before, then buckle up — Nefesh Mountain is about to rock your Passover! Re-imagining ways to sing the songs and tell...

How comic books played a major role in Cold War propaganda

How comic books played a major role in Cold War propaganda

Robert A. Cohn, Editor-in-Chief EmeritusPublished April 6, 2022

In this vivid, lurid new book, Paul S.  Hirsch, a visiting history scholar at the University of Texas, compellingly explores the surprising extent to which the once lowly comic book industry was exploited by both sides of the Iron Curtain during the...

Are you ready to say goodbye to Julia Garner's "Ruth" in "Ozark?

Are you ready to say goodbye to Julia Garner’s “Ruth” in “Ozark?

Jordan Palmer, Chief Digital Content OfficerPublished April 5, 2022

No Jewish actress on earth is more popular right now than Julia Garner. Garner has become a darling of Jewish fans of the Netflix show "Ozark" and her role as Anna Delvey in "Inventing Anna" catapulted the young actress into the stratosphere. This...

Season 2 of ‘Russian Doll’ promises to be even more Jewish

Season 2 of ‘Russian Doll’ promises to be even more Jewish

Published April 5, 2022

This article first appeared on Alma. In a few short weeks, the excruciating, pandemic-prolonged wait will be over: Season two of “Russian Doll” is finally dropping on Netflix on April 20, 2022. According to some new and exciting teasers, it...

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