Charity makes us who we areSource: Guardian Unlimited
"Thankfully, the citizens of Tel Aviv are not as callous as national leaders when it comes to practising one tenet of the Jewish faith"
This is a great article that demonstrates the distinguishes Israeli citizens from their government.
Writing Jews out of Jerusalem's historySource: Guardian Unlimited
Aside from the agitation is the disturbing notion that Jews seeking to visit, or even pray at, their holiest place of worship (the Temple Mount and not merely the Western Wall) should be seen as provocation, desecration or in any other way unacceptable.

It's getting near "holiday" time again, and we are likely to hear more of the same fights about religion. We have to hear the same old complaints that someone dared to wish them Happy Holidays (go figure). However, this is not the only source of problems.

The Hidden Threads of Crypto-History
A Multi-Part Exploration of Alternative Theories of the Human Experience
Instalment 18: Moses, Monotheism and Magic (click here for the previous part of this instalment, and click here to go to the beginning of the series).

I've recently watched the movie "Baraka" on Blu Ray and I must say that I've never experienced anything like it. It is literally beyond words. This amazing film was shot in more than 100 locations in 24 countries detailing "the thread of life" in all its majestic forms.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the President of Iran, is a JewSource: riverscrap.typepad.com
Oy! You spend your whole life trying to distance yourself from the Jewish faith. You give speech after speech calling for the abolition of that cursed Zionist state. You truly aspire to be the best anti-Semite you can be.
Glenn Beck Loves Judaism to Pieces! -- Politics DailySource: Politics Daily
Poor Glenn Beck. The pitchfork pundit from Fox News is used to getting into trouble for talking about what he hates. But now he's even getting hammered for what he loves -- in this case, Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement.

Can we learn from each other's religious culture?

Why wasn't the shofar, or ram's horn, blown this year for the start of Rosh Hashana? Why is honeycake eaten this time of year? Get these and other answers at several informative sites on the High Holy Days.
The synagogue that doubles as a mosqueSource: New Statesman Contents
On Friday afternoons, the people coming to pray at this building take off their shoes, unfurl rugs to kneel on and pray in Arabic. The ones that come Friday evenings put on yarmulkes, light candles and pray in Hebrew.
Blood Libel and Peace: A Bad Middle Eastern MixSource: Pajamas Media
Muslim governments are taking advantage of the Ramadan TV season to broadcast anti-Israel and anti-Semitic propaganda, some of it reminiscent of the Nazi propaganda that preceded the Holocaust.
Pope to renegades: Respect Judaism, other religions Source: JTA: Jewish Life
Respect for Judaism and other religions is mandatory for readmission into the mainstream Catholic fold, Pope Benedict XVI will tell a renegade traditionalist Catholic group.
In a weekend interview with a newspaper in Passau, Germany, Vienna Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn said doc …
Clergy Hits On 1 in 33 Women ChurchgoersSource: The Washington Post
One in every 33 women who attend worship services regularly has been the target of sexual advances by a religious leader, a survey released Wednesday says.
Archaeologists find early menorah depiction - Yahoo! NewsSource: Yahoo! News
Israeli archaeologists have uncovered one of the earliest depictions of a menorah, the seven-branched candelabra that has come to symbolize Judaism, the Israel Antiquities Authority said Friday.
The menorah was engraved in stone around 2,000 years ago and found in a synagogue re …
The 4 Yorkshire Ex BelieversSource: crispian-jago.blogspot.com
The Scene:
Four well-dressed men are sitting together at a vacation resort.
'Farewell to Thee' is played in the background on Hawaiian guitar.
EX-JEWISH YORKSHIREMAN:
Aye, very passable, that, very passable book on gene centric evolution.