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Israel has so much to see

photo - Light projections on the internal walls of the Tower of David, in Jerusalem, part of the Night Spectacular

Light projections on the internal walls of the Tower of David, in Jerusalem, part of the Night Spectacular. (photo by Pat Johnson) Tourism to Israel plummeted after Oct. 7, 2023. For example, January 2024 saw an 80% drop in visitors…

אייר קנדה חוזרת לטוס לישראל בחודש מאי הקרוב

חברת התעופה הלאומית של קנדה, אייר קנדה, תחזור לטוס לישראל במהלך חודש מאי הקרוב. זאת, בכפוף למצב הביטחוני שישרור באזור הנחשב לאחד המסוכנים העולם. ואם המלחמה תסתיים סוף סוף ולא צפויים משברים נוספים קרובים במקור הייתה אמורה אייר קנדה לחזור…

Family fun with City Birds

photo - Tamar Eisenman, left, and Sagit Shir bring their children’s music project, City Birds, to Vancouver for a March 23 concert at the Rothstein Theatre, as part of Chutzpah! Plus

Tamar Eisenman, left, and Sagit Shir bring their children’s music project, City Birds, to Vancouver for a March 23 concert at the Rothstein Theatre, as part of Chutzpah! Plus. (photo by Javier Ortega) Looking for fun, positive music for your…

Coping with loss, grief

photo - The creative team of Bema Productions’ staging of Rite of Passage, with director Zelda Dean

The creative team of Bema Productions’ staging of Rite of Passage, with director Zelda Dean (centre). (photo from Bema Productions) Victoria’s Bema Productions is staging Rite of Passage, a story of family, grief and coming of age by Los Angeles-based…

Watching with concern

There has been a great deal of handwringing about antisemitism on campuses in North America in recent years. Since Oct. 7, 2023, with protests against Israel, some of which have turned violent and many of which have been condemned for…

Searching for hope in future

photo - Belle Spirale’s dance double-bill, Universus, is at the Vancouver Playhouse March 21-22, as part of the Chutzpah! Plus Spring Edition

Belle Spirale’s dance double-bill, Universus, is at the Vancouver Playhouse March 21-22, as part of the Chutzpah! Plus Spring Edition. (photo © Michael Slobodian) “As I think many of us are right now, I am feeling sense of trepidation, endangerment…

O Canada! tote bag line

photo - Tikun Olam Gogos’ O Canada! bags proclaim dedication to the ethic of improving the world in friendship with other nations, raising much-needed funds for grandmothers in sub-Saharan Africa who are raising their grandchildren due to the HIV & AIDS pandemic

Tikun Olam Gogos’ O Canada! bags proclaim dedication to the ethic of improving the world in friendship with other nations, raising much-needed funds for grandmothers in sub-Saharan Africa who are raising their grandchildren due to the HIV & AIDS pandemic.…

Na’amat – 100 years of service

photo - From 1925 to today, Na’amat volunteers across Canada and the United States continue to empower women and children in Israel and abroad

From 1925 to today, Na’amat volunteers across Canada and the United States continue to empower women and children in Israel and abroad. (photo from Na’amat Canada) At a time when charities are fighting to survive, an organization that’s been helping…

Flights to Israel resume

photo - Air Canada Boeing 778 Lifting off Runway 23, Toronto-Pearson YYZ

With Air Canada’s announcement of the resumption of flights from Toronto and Montreal to Tel Aviv, it will be much faster for Canadians to fly to Israel. But will it be cheaper? The Canadian national carrier is set to resume…

Hebron key to conflict

The White Rock/South Surrey Jewish Community Centre hosted Yardena Schwartz, author of Ghosts of a Holy War: The 1929 Massacre in Palestine that Ignited the Arab-Israeli Conflict, on Feb. 23. At the event, held in partnership with the Jewish Federation…

Determined to help others 

photo - Photos from the book include Joy Karp speaking to a group of people at a Terry Fox Run in Whitehorse

Photos from the book include Joy Karp speaking to a group of people at a Terry Fox Run in Whitehorse. (photo from Rick Karp) Creating a Lasting Impact: The Amazing Life of Joy Esther Karp was recently published. Written by…

The people’s army of Israel

photo - Volunteers with Sar-El in Israel last March

Volunteers with Sar-El in Israel last March. (photo from Marina Sonkina) Last year, about this time, I was in Israel, volunteering with Sar-El, an organization that connects the Israel Defence Forces with volunteers from more than 30 countries, who provide…

Welcoming guests again

photo - There may not be magic at hand to prepare dinner or clean up afterwards, but the Weasleys’ home in the Harry Potter series, the Burrow, is a good model for how to welcome guests, with Mrs. Weasley’s always sharing her love, food, home, and even her motherly reprimands with others

There may not be magic at hand to prepare dinner or clean up afterwards, but the Weasleys’ home in the Harry Potter series, the Burrow, is a good model for how to welcome guests, with Mrs. Weasley’s always sharing her…

Popeye and peanut butter

photo - The teeny size of these peanut butter banana bites makes you think you’re not eating much, so be careful

The teeny size of these peanut butter banana bites makes you think you’re not eating much, so be careful. (photo from adasheofmegnut.com) I’m long overdue to share a new recipe or two. With our recent move to a new condo,…

What your tchotchkes think

Ever wondered what your leather-bound journal thinks about you? Your menorah? The bowl you made in a pottery class? What astrological sign your keepsakes might be? How they’d like to be handled, cared for? Where they’d like to be in…

The courage of Esther

image - “Queen Esther with Mordechai,” a Venetian glass mosaic triptych, 64” x 64”, by Vancouver artist Lilian Broca

“Queen Esther with Mordechai,” a Venetian glass mosaic triptych, 64” x 64”, by Vancouver artist Lilian Broca.  “This triptych mosaic image depicts a scene in the harem of King Ahasuerus and Queen Esther’s Palace in Susa,” writes Lilian Broca on…

Unique Cochin rituals

photo - Cochin Jews at the 450th year celebration of the Paradesi synagogue, December 2017

Cochin Jews at the 450th year celebration of the Paradesi synagogue, December 2017. (photo by Shalva Weil) A study on the Purim traditions of the Cochin Jewish community by Prof. Shalva Weil of Hebrew University was published in the Journal of Modern…

בורחים מטראמפ ועוברים לקנדה

מספר האמריקאים שעוזבים את ארה”ב ועוברים למדינה השכנה מצפון – קנדה – הולך וגדל. זאת, בעיקר עקב בחירתו המחודשת של דונלד טראמפ לנשיא המדינה קרוב למאה אלף אמריקאים חצו את הגבול בעשר השנים האחרונות והפכו לתושבי קבע או אזרחים, לפי…

The roots of antisemitism

For decades, conversations about antisemitism and racism have been running on separate tracks, Prof. Magda Teter told the Independent. But there is a connection, she said, and, in her March 4 talk at Congregation Beth Israel, she will explain that…

Sharing parts of their lives

photo - Iris Bahr opens the Chutzpah! Plus Spring Edition on March 19 with Stories from the Brink: My Festive Near-Death Adventures

Iris Bahr opens the Chutzpah! Plus Spring Edition on March 19 with Stories from the Brink: My Festive Near-Death Adventures. (photo from Chutzpah! Festival) The Chutzpah! Plus Spring Edition kicks off with comedy, though the laughs will mix with thoughtful…

Interesting time to live

It is said that a week is a lifetime in politics and – well, would you look at that? – it is almost exactly a week before the Liberal Party of Canada selects its new leader to replace Prime Minister…

Growth and change is Torah

In middle school, we studied the 1920s in English and social studies. It was a period ripe with new slang. I remember the long list of phrases we had to learn and interpret. The surprise was that I knew some…

Helping house community

photo - Anat Gogo, executive director of Tikva Housing Society, speaks at the opening of Susana Cogan Place, Sept. 13, 2023

Anat Gogo, executive director of Tikva Housing Society, speaks at the opening of Susana Cogan Place, Sept. 13, 2023.  (photo by Alina Ilyasova) Tikva Housing Society’s annual fundraising campaign starts March 3 and runs to March 9. While the society…

Tikva provides shelter

photo - The Al and Lola Roadburg Residences – a place to call home

The Al and Lola Roadburg Residences – a place to call home. (photo by David J. Litvak) Since moving to Vancouver from Winnipeg in 1991, I have moved approximately 30 times. Most of these moves have not been made by…

Light as a metaphor for life

photo - Itai Erdal, with his mom, Mery Erdal, z”l, on screen, in How to Disappear Completely, which opens at the Historic Theatre in Vancouver March 15

Itai Erdal, with his mom, Mery Erdal, z”l, on screen, in How to Disappear Completely, which opens at the Historic Theatre in Vancouver March 15. (photo from The Chop Theatre) Itai Erdal’s award-winning How to Disappear Completely, which has toured…

JSA revamps advocacy

Jewish Seniors Alliance of British Columbia’s Margot Beauchamp, left, and Jeff Moss, right, with advocate for seniors’ rights Howard Glick and Parliamentary Secretary for Seniors’ Care and Long-Term Care Susie Chant. (photo from JSA) Jewish Seniors Alliance, whose mission is…

Leaving a legacy of wellness

photo - Vancouver Talmud Torah students in the new Hildy Barnett Wellness Centre

Vancouver Talmud Torah students in the new Hildy Barnett Wellness Centre. (photo from VTT) “It was a dream that came true,” said Jeffrey Barnett of the new Hildy Barnett Wellness Centre at Vancouver Talmud Torah. The centre, named in honour…

Reviving civil discourse

Heterodox Academy is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting viewpoint diversity, open inquiry and constructive debate in higher education. It works to counter ideological conformity on campuses by providing research, resources and programming that foster an environment where diverse perspectives…

Adaptability important

Canada’s westernmost Reform rabbis, Dan Moskovitz of Vancouver’s Temple Sholom, and Lynn Greenhough of Victoria’s Kolot Mayim, sat down for a discussion (and celebration) of the resilience of the Jewish people during a Zoom webinar on Feb. 2. Greenhough, who…