Contributions by:

Joseph Chuman

Longing for Simpler Times

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I suspect this essay will not win me any friends. Nor will it attract much approbation. I am past 75 years old and consciously moving into a new phase of life — and I need to conclude my last. This stark reality has presented me with questions of how I wish to spend the rest…

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The Resurgence of Antisemitism: A Personal Reflection

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There’s a large synagogue in my area that always keeps its doors locked. People seeking entry need to be buzzed in. I suspect that this requirement is true of virtually all synagogues. We usually think of houses of worship as open, welcoming places. Yet the need for surveillance and safety at Jewish institutions is warranted…

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Review Essay: Reflecting On Evil

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Evil is a concept with a hazy definition. Admittedly I use the term without having a confident grasp of what behavior constitutes evil. Does evil mean very or extremely bad behavior? Yes, but not precisely because evil, I conclude, connotes conduct that is not relative to other behaviors. It goes beyond them and touches the…

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Review Essay: Magda Teter’s Christian Supremacy: Reckoning with the Roots of Antisemitism and Racism

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The Black Lives Matter movement, which began in 2013 to protest anti-Black racism, especially the killing of Blacks at the hands of the police, was arguably the largest protest movement in the history of the United States. It created a tectonic shift in the understanding of the systemic character of racism in American society and…

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The Rise and Fall of Church-State Separation and the Need to Reclaim It

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The separation of church and state is on its deathbed. The encroachment of religion into the public square over the past several decades is a threat to democratic norms and sensibilities. It is commensurate with the merger of religion and the state, and we should be very concerned. Among the darkest forces in human history has been…

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