An Orthodox Jewish woman is suing the Lancome cosmetics firm, claiming that its 24-hour makeup does not last as long as advertised and thus prevents her from looking good for the entirety of Shabbat. Rorie Weisberg of Monsey, NY, in her lawsuit said Lancome's Teint Idole Ultra 24H foundation does not last 24 hours and that the company is practicing false advertising, a violation of New York State business law, the New York Post reported Wednesday. Weisberg's lawsuit explains that her son is having a bar mitzvah …More

The filming schedule of “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” has been changed in response to a request made by a haredi Orthodox community in Brooklyn. The second installment of the Hollywood franchise was supposed to be shot at the Marcy Avenue Armory, a building located in the mostly Yiddish-speaking part of Williamsburg, during the holiday of Passover. Now the producers have agreed to reduce the presence of vehicles in the neighborhood for the duration of Passover. Plans to close a local intersection were …More

Cigarette in one hand and cup of tea in the other, Matisyahu sat down with JTA in his closet-sized dressing room during his European tour to talk about his life, his music, how he's raising his kids, and the recent changes in his religious outlook and physical appearance. The beatboxing reggae star once known for his signature beard and hasidic garb has left his yarmulke by the wayside, dyed his hair blond and moved to Los Angeles from the hasidic stronghold of Crown Heights, Brooklyn. Matisyahu (aka Matthew …More

Two of the most significant rabbis in the history of Orthodox Judaism share the same birthday in the Hebrew calendar: the 18th day of Elul. Both the Baal Shem Tov, the founder of Hasidism, and Rabbi Shneur Zalman, who started the Chabad Lubavitch Hasidic movement, were born on the same date 47 years apart. Now, more than 300 years since the Baal Shem Tov’s birth and over 200 years since Shneur Zalman’s death, the movements they created are the fastest-growing branches of Judaism, reshaping Jewish life …More

Beren Academy, an Orthodox Jewish school, drew national attention when the Texas school organization to which it belonged initially refused to reschedule a semifinal basketball game that conflicted with the Sabbath. Now the Jewish school is back in the state semi-finals. Beren was in the midst of a similar conflict last year when the school was scheduled to play at 9 p.m. on a Friday at the Texas Association of Private and Parochial School’s 2A Boy’s Basketball Tournament. At first, TAPPS would not …More

Parents and administrators at Haredi schools in the United States want leafy vegetables off the school lunch menu. The greens raise concerns because the vegetables may contain insects, which are forbidden under strict rules of kashrut. “The problem of insect infestation has been confirmed by numerous rabbinical authorities and kosher certification agencies, and many schools have raised this problem,” Rabbi Abba Cohen, Agudath Israel’s Washington director, wrote in a statement. Under the new …More

The US Senate confirmed Jacob Lew as Secretary of the Treasury Wednesday, affirming President Barack Obama’s nomination. The move makes Lew the highest-ranking Orthodox Jew in US history. In a statement issued after the vote, Obama said, "At this critical time for our economy and our country, there is no one more qualified for this position than Jack... His reputation as a master of fiscal issues who can work with leaders on both sides of the aisle has already helped him succeed in some of the toughest jobs …More

The British MP who suggested that “the Jews” had not learned the lessons of the Holocaust on the eve of International Holocaust Remembrance Day has been forced by his party to work with a pro-Israel group. [Jerusalem Post] A collection of Judaica is on display at a pre-auction show organized by Sotheby’s at the Jewish Museum and Tolerance Center in Moscow. [Haaretz] A Dutch appeals court has upheld a $90 fine levied against an Orthodox Jew who refused to show police an identity card, citing …More

Perhaps no other author has had as much influence on Israel as writer Shmuel Yosef Agnon, the Jewish State’s first Nobel Prize winner, who died 43 years ago this Sunday. Israel was only 18 years old when, in 1966, the diminutive Agnon, well into his 70s, won literature’s highest honor. For a country in its infancy, soon to become embroiled in the Six Day War, Agnon’s award was more than a personal victory. It was a triumph for the revived Hebrew language. The prize gave legitimacy to a young …More

Shoshana Weiner of Long Island, New York, has been a volunteer firefighter for 12 years. In addition to firefighting, Weiner’s day job includes working as a nurse practitioner at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, and as a paramedic instructor at St. John’s University in Queens. Tazpit News Agency caught up (literally) with Weiner during her vacation in Israel, where she took the time to volunteer with the Petah Tikvah fire department, answering some brush fires and dealing with hazardous …More

He brought unprecedented attention to the plight of Soviet Jewry. He stood up to the KGB. He survived nine years in Siberia. He served in Israel’s fractious government. Now, Natan Sharansky is facing his next challenge: finding a solution to the growing battle over women’s prayer restrictions at the Western Wall, Judaism’s holiest site. In recent months, Diaspora Jewish activists have grown increasingly incensed by the arrests and detention of women seeking to pray publicly at the site in …More

Boxer Dmitri Salita and basketball player Tamir Goodman made an All-Star list compiled by Orthodox Jewish website Jew in the City this month. The list, introduced by video, consists of successful Orthodox Jews that stand out in their chosen profession, which may not be associated with the faith that dictates many aspects of their lives. The chosen All-stars have had in a wide spectrum of careers, athletes like Salita and Goodman, to Sen. Joe Lieberman, the first Orthodox Jew in Congress, and Award-Winning HBO …More