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

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Spencer Platt • Published July 4, 2018

The June 12, 2014 abduction of three Israeli yeshiva boys in the West Bank, Gil-ad Shaer, Naftali Fraenkel, and Eyal Yifrach, sparked rallies in Jewish communities worldwide calling for their safe return. Their murdered bodies were found on June 30, 2014....

Abbas’ No-State Solution

JEWISH LIGHT EDITORIAL • Published May 10, 2018

Anyone who favors the sensible but elusive two-state solution in the Middle East couldn’t help but be disappointed by recent comments by Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas. But they should not be surprised, either. In a speech to the Palestinian National...

David Ben-Gurion (First Prime Minister of Israel) publicly pronouncing the Declaration of the State of Israel, May 14 1948 in Tel Aviv, beneath a large portrait of Theodor Herzl, founder of modern political Zionism, in the old Tel Aviv Museum of Art. Photo: Rudi Weissenstein/Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Israel at 70: Looking back and looking forward

By Andrew Rehfeld • Published May 10, 2018

The 70th Anniversary of the founding of the State of Israel is an ideal time to reflect on the remarkable nature of Israel’s birth and what it means for the Jewish People in the years ahead.   The following essay reflects on the conditions that made...

Anti-BDS legislation stalls in Senate

By Eric Berger, Staff Writer • Published May 9, 2018

The Democratic state senator who sponsored a bill that seeks to combat the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel said last week that it does not look as though the measure is “moving forward.”According to the sponsor, that’s...

Unity walk, Yom Ha’atzmaut celebration planned for April 22

BY ERIC BERGER, STAFF WRITER • Published April 11, 2018

Linda Spitzer Gavatin’s motivation for helping organize a celebration marking the 70-year anniversary of Israel’s founding comes from her love for the Jewish State.And that love comes in part from something that occurred 50 years ago this summer.That’s...

Members of the junior division USA hockey team took home the gold medal at the Maccabiah Games in Israel, which ended last week.

That’s a winner! USA Junior Hockey team takes home gold at Israel Maccabiah

By David Baugher, Special to the Jewish Light • Published July 26, 2017

St. Louisans who made the trip to represent Team USA at this year’s Maccabiah Games in Israel were guaranteed to come away with great memories but some also carried home top honors.“We did really well. We went undefeated 5-0 and won the gold medal,”...

Israel dismantles another settlement, gets no credit

By Stephen M. Flatow • Published April 13, 2017

You didn’t read about it in the New York Times or hear about it on “CBS Evening News.” The European Union didn’t praise it, and the United Nations didn’t acknowledge it. But last week, Israel dismantled yet another Jewish settlement.Of course,...

Israelis Ido (left) and Eden shared stories about their army service and life afterwards with a largely Christian audience in Ellisville. Photo: Eric Berger

St. Louis evangelical Christians stand with Israel, too

By Eric Berger, Staff Writer • Published February 15, 2017

It wasn’t the sort of question you typically hear at an Israel advocacy event in the United States. But many of the more than 130 Christians gathered Sunday in Ellisville applauded when an audience member asked two Israeli speakers: Do the “Jewish...

Former St. Louisan Leah Soibel founded Fuente Latina (‘Latin Source’), a nonprofit based in Israel that works to educate Spanish speakers about Israel and the Middle East. 

Bringing Israel to Spanish speakers worldwide

By Carol Wolf Solomon, Special to the Jewish Light • Published February 15, 2017

So what was a nice Jewish girl from St. Louis doing traveling the Arab world dressed in a hijab, armed with a notebook and tape recorder?  If you were Leah Soibel in 2001, it was to learn how public opinion is formed and shaped on Israel, the Middle...

Rabbis and other leaders in the Jewish community encourage students to take a gap year in Israel. They believe that waiting one year in between high school and college will allow for growth.  Photo courtesy of Avi Rubin.

Seniors prepare for gap year in Israel

By Harrison Friedman, Senior, Fasman Yeshiva High School • Published January 11, 2017

The idea of taking a gap year between high school and college has long been common in places such as Europe, but it has not been very popular in America until recently. Religious gap year programs, however, have been around for many years, and Jewish...

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