Peter Beinart asks: What is a Jewish state? [Daily Beast] Jewish mothers and phone sex. [Forward] A rabbinical league of their own. [Tablet] Republican Jews speak out. [Tablet] One rabbi says Christianity has changed drastically in the 20th century. [Jewish Week] Jewish Federations respond to Hurricane Isaac. [JUF News] …More

Every Friday, Jspace News partners with the America Israel Cultural Foundation to bring you an interview with one of the many Israeli artists they support throughout the world. Gilad Cohen was praised by the 2010 Israeli Prime Minister Award Committee (IPMA) for “creating a personal language fusion [in music] that has a unique dimension,” and is “fascinating, vibrant and drawing the ear as well as the heart." The Israeli composer is an active composer, performer, and conductor in different …More

Israel’s embassy in Chile is “profoundly concerned” over “offensive statements” by a local Palestinian activist. Last week, the president of Chile’s Palestine Federation, Mauricio Abu Ghosh, told the radio station Cooperativa that “the Nazis were small fry compared to today’s Zionists, who make up the State of Israel.” He also said, “There were never warm relations between Chilean Jews and Palestinians living in Chile.” The embassy stated its …More

While sleeping, the brain can strengthen information it previously processed, according to a new study conducted by researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science. Subjects who participated in the study were able to associate tones with smells when awake after being exposed to both simultaneously during sleep. As a participant slept, a tone was played and then an odor was presented. An unpleasant odor was given with one noise, while a pleasant one was presented with another. The subject's breathing patterns …More

Eighteen-year-old Ben Lang has designed a mapping site where Israeli startups and job seekers can connect. While most teenage boys his age were spending their time playing video games, worrying about girls, or preparing for college, Lang was tracking new companies and building a map to garner publicity and support for Israel's powerful tech scene. He completed the map, called Mapped in Israel, in just one day. Poking fun at the small size of the country, Lang added the tagline, "One map. Smaller than New …More

Security issues may prevent Israeli Environmental Protection Minister Gilad Erdan from attending the United Nation’s conference on climate change. Officials from Qatar, where the summit will take place in November, have agreed to allow Erdan into the country, but have refused to allow his security detail. A similar security scuffle occurred in January 2010, when Energy and Water Minister Uzi Landau visited United Arab Emirates to attend the International Renewable Energy Agency conference. While Shin Bet, …More

For teens in Israel, it a given that coming of age means serving in the IDF. It’s a part of the fabric of Israeli society that young men and women dedicate a part of their youth to defending and bettering the state. However, for Sgt. Gali Niv, who grew up in Livingston, New Jersey, such a choice was hardly natural. Immediately after high school, Gali moved away from her family, friends, and a budding career in gymnastics to move to Israel. Gali, a two-time New Jersey state gymnastics champion, embraced her …More

The US chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff armed forces does not want to be “complicit” in an Israeli attack on Iran. Gen. Martin Dempsey made the comment when speaking with reporters ahead of the Paralympic Games opening in London yesterday. He stated that an Israeli preemptive attack would "clearly delay but probably not destroy Iran's nuclear program," adding, "I don't want to be complicit if they choose to do it." Israel has long claimed that a preemptive strike on Iran’s nuclear …More

A 24-year-old Jewish student is taking the lead in the youth protests rocking Chile. Noam Titelman, who was born in Israel, has emerged as the face of the student movement, with police clashes this weekend in Santiago that led to the arrest of 140 and left many wounded. The students are angry at an educational system they claim serves only the rich, and are demanding free tuition and better funding for public universities, which currently fall below the standards set by the expensive, private schools that cater …More

Rob Lattin is Jspace News' Foreign Affairs Correspondent. In addition to covering foreign affairs for Jspace, Rob is a blogger on Israeli and Middle Eastern foreign policy for the Foreign Policy Association, as well as a freelance writer. He can be reached by email at rob@jspacecorp.com. I recently had the opportunity to catch up with Israeli Brigadier General (res.) Eliezer Hemeli, who spent a large portion of his life on the battlefield in Lebanon and Syria. I asked him a few questions on his views toward the …More

Of all the unknowns being discussed as Hurricane Isaac approached New Orleans, members of Congregation Shir Chadash knew one thing for certain. “Nobody wanted to be the person that said, ‘Oh let’s not move the Torahs this time,'” said Rabbi Ethan Linden. “We sort of went into our hurricane action mode and did the best we could.” One of the iconic photographs of Hurricane Katrina, which struck the region exactly seven years ago, was of men waist deep in flood waters carrying …More

Moving to a foreign country entails a number of worries and concerns—packing, finances, putting a roof over the family’s head. Outside the physical needs that must be met, how does one ensure spiritual needs are fulfilled after landing in a faraway place? That’s the problem Jodi Samuels was looking to meet, when she founded Jewish International Connection, JICNY. The New York-based group offers new US residents a place to gather and connect through their Jewish roots. It’s a situation that …More