Pre-Shabbat Jewish Literary Links

Photo Credit: Reut Miryam Cohen

Every Friday morning My Machberet presents an assortment of Jewish-interest links, primarily of the literary variety. This week, we’re on a bit of a hiatus. The links will return next Friday. Thank you for your patience, and Shabbat Shalom.

Words of the Week, V

More current-events items culled from the news (& the blogosphere).

John Ging, UN

From Terrence McCoy, “Why Hamas Stores Its Weapons Inside Hospitals, Mosques, and Schools,” in The Washington Post:
“During one short-lived lull in rocket fire, The Washington Post’s William Booth saw a ‘group of men’ at a mosque in northern Gaza. They said they had returned to clean up glass from shattered windows. ‘But they could be seen moving small rockets into the mosque,’ Booth wrote. He also reported that Shifa Hospital in Gaza City had ‘become a de facto headquarters for Hamas leaders, who can be seen in the hallways and offices.

Wall Street Journal reporter Nick Casey tweeted an image of a Hamas spokesman giving an interview at a Gaza hospital. With the shelling, ‘You have to wonder … how patients at Shifa hospital feel as Hamas uses it as a safe place to see media.’ The tweet was later deleted.” (more…)

Words of the Week, III

From Chloe Valdary, “To the Students for Justice in Palestine, a Letter From an Angry Black Woman,” Tablet magazine:
“You do not get to pretend as though you and Rosa Parks would have been great buddies in the 1960s. Rosa Parks was a real Freedom Fighter. Rosa Parks was a Zionist.”

From Ilan Ben Zion, “Rockets Found in U.N. School, for Third Time,” The Times of Israel:
“A UN aid agency for Palestinian refugees said Tuesday that a stockpile of Hamas rockets was found in one of UNRWA’s Gaza schools — for the third time since the onset of Operation Protective Edge.

The incident, however, was not publicized by UNRWA on its website or official Twitter feed, or that of its spokesperson.” (more…)

Words of the Week, II

It’s beginning to look as though I should rename this feature “words of the day.” I’m going to try to remain optimistic, though, and hope that current events will become sufficiently peaceful to allow for less frequent postings–and the end of compilations.

From Nick Dyrenfurth, “Gaza and Israel: Why I Will Not Be Silent,” The Age
“Enough is enough. Ignore the sirens calls of hate. If so inclined, donate to the International Red Cross’ Israel and Gaza Appeal. Get informed. Read and share Shavit’s meditation on his country’s condition. Read and share Izzeldin Abuelaish’s heartfelt plea for peace. This is a Palestinian man who lost his three daughters during the 2008-09 Israeli-Gaza war. Stand up and reject the extremists on both sides. Don’t fall silent when you see the hashtag #HitlerWasRight pop up in your Twitter feed, or when all Palestinians are tarred with the brush of Hamas. Support moderates committed to a two-state solution. As Abuelaish implores, ‘This is a moment in history that must be captured.’ (more…)