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ECHOD

July 11, 2008

by Hugh Fox

 

Feeling Friday after noon begin to run down into holiness, aiming the laser beam on her cornea, goofy disease, presumably the reaction of the body to a fungus generated by leaves, earth, dog-stuff...so that the eye began to devour itself. She was lucky, if the lesion had ruptured and bled into the eye, at least at the present state of the art, she would have gone blind.

 

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Features

A Renewable Light Unto the Nations

 

July 23, 2008

by Yosef Israel Abramowitz 

 

The convenient truth about the Jewish people is that when we put our minds and capital to work, we can make miracles happen. There is no more noble cause than saving humanity itself, ensuring that God’s covenant not to wipe out the planet with rising waters will be — in some small measure — because of our actions.

 

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Editorial

A Third Temple?

July 9, 2008

by Daniel E. Levenson

 

I have always been curious about the role of the idea of the temple in a modern Jewish context. Clearly we derive many of our customs and religious practices from the days when the temples stood, both from actual practices conducted in the temple service, and from the larger Jewish culture that existed at the time, so I was particularly interested to read an article in Haaretz about a group of people who are not only eagerly anticipating the building of a third temple, but are hard at work creating (or recreating) all of the physical trappings of priestly culture, from incense burners to custom tailored robes for those who claim familial descent from the kohanim.

 

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Arts & Letters

Brandeis Hosts Exhibition of “Post-Jewish” Art

June 26, 2008 

by Daniel E. Levenson

 

Jewish artists have always found different ways to express not only Jewish ideas, but their own personal relationship to those ideas. In songs, poems, paintings and other art forms, each generation must wrestle anew with the rich and complex cultural and theological traditions of Judaism, and the one which was born in the 1960’s and 1970’s is no exception. This is clearly evident in “The New Authentics: Artists of the Post-Jewish Generation,” an exhibit currently at the Rose Art Museum at Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. The exhibit is on loan from the Spertus Museum in Chicago, where it was created by Senior Curator Staci Boris.

 

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Fiction

The King and His Leg

(A Parable)

by Zohar Atkins

April 23, 2008

 

THERE was a king who lived in a splendid castle far from the rest of the kingdom.  One day, the king’s toe became infected.  For a long time, the king did not notice the infection.  The king, as it happens, was a giant, and it took years for his toe’s sense receptor to send signals to his brain.  By the time the king looked down at his toe, the infection had moved all the way up his leg.

 

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An Excerpt from the Novel Who by Fire, Who by Blood

April 21, 2008

by Jon Papernick

 

      The sun was setting as Stone and Gabby arrived at the Fulton Landing, just in time to see a tense wedding party dressed stiffly in full regalia, mock smile, and pose at the photographers insistent commands, shrilly barked with all the decorum of a middle-school gym teacher. The party looked miserable. Gabby quipped, “And they wonder why I’m not married.”

 

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Poetry  

You and Me

  

-Daniel E. Levenson  

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The Rabbi’s Backyard Garden after my Grandfather’s Funeral

 

-Sara Kaplan

 

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Jewish Boston

Jewish Community Relations Council honors Deputy Director Alan S. Ronkin at Annual Meeting

 

June 12, 2008

by Daniel E. Levenson

 

On Wednesday, June 11th the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Boston held its annual meeting at the Sheraton Hotel in Boston. The theme of the gathering was "The Power of One," which was supposed to connect with the main address by Rabbi Irving "Yitz" Greenberg, who was unfortunately unable to attend because his flight was delayed due to bad weather. The event went on, however, with many local dignitaries and leaders of the Boston Jewish community in attendance to celebrate the work of the JCRC and honor this year's recipient of the Warren B. Kohn Award,  JCRC Deputy Director Alan S. Ronkin.

 

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DANIEL E. LEVENSON

Editor in Chief

 

At the root of faith is a question or many questions perhaps, about the nature of the universe and the meaning of life.

 

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Internship Opportunity
 
The New Vilna Review is looking for editorial interns for the fall of 2008. If you are a college or graduate student (or recent grad) with strong writing, research and editing skills and an interest in exploring themes of modern Jewish identity the New Vilna Review wants to hear from you. Interns will gain experience in all aspects of editorial production and have the opportunity to cover events in the Boston Jewish community as well as develop their own ideas for feature stories.
 
Interns must live in the Boston area and be able to attend editorial meetings on a regular basis from September to December. This is an unpaid position, and a car while helpful, is not required.
 
To apply, please send a CV, two writing samples and two references (from people who are familiar with your writing and/or research experience) to: editor@newvilnareview.com