If you are reading this site, the chances that you have seen many of the articles I am going to link to below is quite high. However, I do know that many of you are not fielding emails from rabid fans telling you what you “need” to write about, I can’t be sure that everyone is fully informed of all the different Jewish articles of recent note.
Unless you’re living under a rock, you must have heard about the Pew Study on American Jewry that came out this past week. You need to read the actual study, but it’s not too shocking, but still an interesting read.
Noah Feldman who is a professor at Harvard wrote an interesting piece about Lakewood and it’s not really all that damning, except for that part about how they received 10.6 million to build a new library.
Not sure where Eliyahu Federman came from, but he’s been slamming out controversial pieces every other week and this one is about when religion turns into a cult, a lot of sounds like Ultra Orthodox Judaism.
Don’t go off the derech in New Square, they won’t bury you there. Ha’aretz has a good write up of the Deb Tambor tragedy.
Chaverim of Monsey can now be checked off your list as one of the charitable organizations not to give money to. Not sure about you, but anyone who welcomes home a registered sex offender with a melave malka is a bit off. Now if only we had a list of organizations that did this sort of thing.
On some of the frum news sites, the attack on Open Orthodoxy or YCT, is ongoing. This piece is actually quite good, but in the end liberal orthodoxy is such a small segment of orthodoxy that won’t go to far because as we have seen liberal minded religious Jews tend to leave Judaism.
As always you can search all your favorite Jewish stuff on 4torah.com
Chaverim: “Now if only we had a list of organizations that did this sort of thing.”
That would be nice but there is a more pervasive problem re Jewish charities: disclosure. It’s impossible to find out financial information on too many of these organizations. Some are registered as churches and don’t have to file 990s so you don’t know who is getting paid what and how effective your contribution is. (Of course, even if there is disclosure you never know if you are dealing with a William Rapfogel scumbag.) Others send their donations on to Israel where it is even harder to find out info.
I no longer give tzedakah to any organization if their financials aren’t available through their website, or Charity Navigator, Guide Star, etc. And they help me weed out places like our local federation who just pass money on to other organizations – some of whom I wouldn’t support anyway – after taking out solid 6-figure salaries to multiple employees for 1/2 time work.
I do not live under a rock, but no one told me about any Pew Study.
Well, you just made my day, because that means that this post wasn’t for nothing. I hesitate to do posts like this because they are kind of a pain in the neck, but if someone actually utilizes it and tells me so, then I’m glad.
Yeah, hadn’t heard of the study either, thx.