Monthly Archives: March 2014

Rabbi Aesthetics Outside Aprhrodite’s Bathhouse (Rachel Neis)

Shai Secunda and Yitz Landes kindly invited me to review for Talmud Blog Rachel Neis’s The Sense of Sight in Rabbinic Culture: Jewish Ways of Seeing in Late Antiquity. It was a great pleasure to write for Shai and Yitz about … Continue reading

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Erasing Jews (Badiou & Zizek) (Response to Sarah Hammerschlag)

(Gerhard Richter, Abstract Painting (Grey) (880-3), 2002 In her essay “Bad Jews, Authentic Jews, Figural Jews” for the volume Judaism, Liberalism, and Political Theology, Sarah Hammerschlag quotes Slavoj Zizek who writes about “the Jews.” If Jews, according to Zizek, are not … Continue reading

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Careful What You Sow — BDS At Vassar Gets Ugly

I would have been skeptical about the little bit of reporting I’ve seen about this episode in more rightwing news media,  except that it was confirmed by Mondoweiss, who was there. Jill Schneiderman, a professor of Earth Sciences at Vassar College … Continue reading

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Jewish Philosophy & Political Theology (Liberal-All-Too-Liberal)

Stepping back from Judaism, Liberalism & Political Theology, edited by Randi Rashkover and Martin Kavka has me convinced that, yes, after all, Jewish philosophy is liberal-all-too-liberal. Randi and Martin have put together a remarkable volume, representing  a first and overdue … Continue reading

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Jewish State Nakba – A One Narrative Solution

Palestinians today say that they cannot recognize Israel as a Jewish State because it would violate their own national narrative, just as most Israelis are as jealous as to the coherence of their own narrative. One would think that after … Continue reading

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New Deal Architecture Monumental (1938) (Hunter College)

This too is liberal, an example of New Deal architecture from the 1930s –big stone blocks and unadorned window panes pressed flat along the surface of the building, bold script carved onto the side of the structure, an architectural monument to … Continue reading

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Synagogue Part of the Street (Anschei Chesed)

Unlike in the suburbs, urban synagogues and churches are more integrated into their environment. Anschei Chesed at 100th St is nestled and blends into and alongside the apartment buildings up and down West End Avenue. The high arched doors and … Continue reading

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Deconstructing Zionism Liquidating Heidegger (Vattimo, Butler, Ellis, et.al)

On a lark I picked up Deconstructing Zionism: A Critique of Political Metaphysics. It looks pretty much like you would think such a thing would look like. Perhaps the least interesting point about the book is the most obvious one, … Continue reading

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Palestine Pleasures (Photographs) (Tanya Habjouqa)

“Palestinian Pleasures” is a project by Tanya Habjouqa,  a founding member of Rawiya — a collective of Arab women photographers. Photos and an essay describing the project appear at the New York Times. The photographs are lovely, but what about politics? The photographs … Continue reading

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Neo Medieval Southern Baptist Church (New York)

Neo-medieval Southern Baptist church on a quiet street, 108th near Manhattan Avenue, just off Central Park West. The bold red doors and bright white modern crucifix sign are stand out features.

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