Not in Heaven

All shepherd, no flock: With congregation numbers declining, freelance rabbis are on the rise

For Jews in the pews, the wail of the shofar is the signal sound of the Jewish New Year. But for congregational rabbis, it’s like the crack of a starting pistol, setting

Conservative Judaism cracked open the door to interfaith families. Critics say it should go further

Eight months after the Conservative movement issued a public apology to interfaith families for historically treating them as a threat to Jewish survival, the Committee o

High Steaks: With kosher meat prices soaring, should Jews eat less of it?

The prospect of summer grilling season might bring a tear to the eye of any patriotic Canadian, but it’s the eye-watering prices in the meat aisle that are stirring up th

Hoax or Hasid: Why stay in a religious community after you’ve stopped believing?

As darkness fell last night, Jews around the world sat on synagogue floors and listened to the chanting of Eicha, the Book of Lamentations, marking the beginning of Tisha

Do you need to feel hate to commit a hate crime?

How much does motive matter when it comes to hate crimes? In recent years, Canadian Jews have been rocked by a series of attacks on their community institutions, includi

Is enthusiasm for flags in synagogues flying at half-mast?

Canada Day and the Fourth of July are coming up, which means flags are popping up across North America like summer flowers. But Jewish Canadians — and Jewish Americans —

Turns out Jews also live outside major cities

Too often, when people talk about Jewish life in Canada, they are really talking about Jewish life in Toronto and Montreal. But the truth is more than a quarter of Jewish

Don't rain on my pro-Israel parade

Two weekends, two parades, two attendance-taking exercises. On each of the past two Sundays, the United States and Canada each held their largest annual gatherings and ce

Gett Naked: A revealing campaign about community accountability

Adina Sash, known online to over 100,000 followers as Flatbush Girl, is an American Jewish social media influencer and activist based out of Brooklyn. Originally, her con

Do AI Rabbis Dream of Electric Herring?

On Monday, Pope Leo XIV (an unusual place for us to start, but bear with us) released “Magnifica Humanitas,” or “Magnificent Humanity,” a letter to the world’s 1.4 billio

Jewish communities must face an uncomfortable question: Who is a Jew?

Ask most Jews what their favourite holiday is and you’ll hear Hannukah, Passover, Purim, Sukkot—maybe even Yom Kippur for some diehards. But despite being one of the big

Smartphone, dumbphone, kosherphone, anglophone, francophone: How Canadian Jews are trying to find a healthy relationship with their devices

Most parents share concerns about rising rates of depression, anxiety, and social disconnection among younger generations, especially how those issues intersect with incr

Up in arms: Why Jewish interest in gun ownership is surging

Sitting on a bus surrounded by Jews carrying rifles was once an exotic quirk of visiting Israel. But that may be changing. Last month, the American National Rifle Associ

Is there a future for Jewish life in secularist Quebec?

This month, the province of Quebec passed Bill 9, a law that bans employees at publicly subsidized daycares from wearing religious symbols—including kippot, tzitzit, hija

Cities are shying away from foreign flag raisings. But is it really a victory for Canadian Jews?

Yom ha-Atzmaut is in the air: circle dancing, falafels, inexplicable inflatable squeaky plastic hammers and, of course, Israeli flags galore. But this year’s Israeli Ind

Holocaust education isn’t coming to save us

What moral lessons should we take from the Holocaust? In 1998, the late Israeli Holocaust historian Yehuda Bauer told the Bundestag about the three additional commandment

The fifth annual Great Canadian Seder

For some reason, the number "five" feels particularly weighty—and so it's with great pride that we bring you the fifth annual Great Canadian Seder. For those new to this

Boys, men, and Kiddush clubs: The state of Jewish masculinity

Outside of orthodox communities, there’s a trend of boys and men increasingly disengaging from Jewish institutional life. A new article in the winter 2026 Sapir Journal c

Synagogues under fire: What solutions can actually keep the Jewish community safe?

Last week, three Toronto synagogues were hit with gunfire in overnight shootings. Shocked and exasperated, the city’s Jewish community demanded that action must be taken

The power and perils of blurring an ancient and modern day Purim

The story of Purim is well known: in ancient Persia, a wicked royal vizier plots to wipe out the Jewish people — but he didn't count on Queen Esther, a courageous Jewish