It was a cool, windy, early-January Friday night in Jerusalem, where several members of Temple Emanu-El took part in a unique Shabbat service at one of Judaism’s most holy sites: the Western Wall. more

Ice sculptor Mark Mckenzie had never before carved a menorah larger than 10 feet, but the one he made for Temple Israel of South Merrick went to 11. more

Temple Israel of Lawrence, a reform Jewish synagogue, will partner with the Russell Sage First Presbyterian Church of Far Rockaway for the 96th interfaith Thanksgiving service tonight at 7 p.m. more

Despite Democratic losses in Congress on Tuesday, local Dems fared well in the House of Representatives, retaining the 3rd, 4th and 5th Congressional seats. Incumbent Gregory Meeks handily won re-election in the 5th C.D., capturing 92 percent of the vote, while incumbent Steve Israel hung on with 54 percent. Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice won election to the 4th Congressional District seat now held by Democrat Carolyn McCarthy, who is retiring. She defeated Republican Bruce Blakeman, a former presiding officer of the Nassau County Legislature. more

Last month, many readers of The New York Times were outraged to learn that columnist David Brooks’s son is serving with the Israel Defense Forces. more

The warning siren suddenly blared, and Rabbi Charles Klein, spiritual leader of the Merrick Jewish Centre, knew precisely what to do. Run. The siren, he said, “gave us 20 seconds to find a shelter.” Five seconds earlier, a Hamas rocket had pierced Israel’s Iron Dome air defense system, which is capable of shooting down 90 percent of the rockets fired from Gaza into Israel. Ten percent of Hamas rockets, however, make it through, as one did in late August, while Klein was touring Ashkelon, a city of 117,000 eight miles north of Gaza. Klein found shelter and survived the attack unscathed, but that moment of terror, he said, will remain with him for life. more

Area synagogues are getting ready for the high holy days. These holidays, which celebrate the Jewish New Year, start with Rosh Hashanah on the night of Sept. 24 and end with Yom Kippur on Oct. 4. more

In the summer of 2013, Jesse Winter had just graduated from SUNY Cortland where he enjoyed a remarkable basketball career, and had plans of taking his talents to Israel in pursuit of a professional career. more

It’s summertime and the living should be easy, but we are being tossed by a tsunami of big-time bad news. more

New York’s governmental leaders took a quick trip to Israel last week to show that the state stands with Israel in its current conflict with Hamas. more