by Matthew Friedman | Apr 24, 2022 | Commentary, Jewish Life, Politics
The shabby old man was a “loathsome reptile, engendered in the slime and darkness through which he moved.” And he drew the boy, “a young friend of mine” he said, deeper into his clutches. He ensured that the innocent child “was seldom left alone; but was placed in...
by Matthew Friedman | Apr 15, 2022 | Essays, Features, Jewish Life
Beth Cole had not yet decided whether or not she would make a brisket for the Passover Seder this week. “I was going to bring the brisket, but I think I’m going to do a roast chicken, because I have to cook for, like, ten people,” she says. Besides, it isn’t her...
by Matthew Friedman | Jan 27, 2022 | Commentary, Jewish Life
I spent much of the day rereading Art Spiegelman’s brilliant graphic novel Maus. It felt like the right thing to do after the Mcminn County, TN schoolboard voted unanimously to remove it from the eighth-grade curriculum. “There is some rough, objectionable language in...
by Matthew Friedman | Jan 23, 2022 | Commentary, Jewish Life
President Biden was absolutely clear in his comments following the hostage-taking incident at the Beth Israel synagogue in Colleyville, TX last weekend. “We will stand against anti-Semitism and against the rise of extremism in this country,” he said. “That is who we...
by Matthew Friedman | Dec 24, 2021 | Fiction, Jewish Life, Short Story
Daylight had already begun to fade in Bailey’s Falls as Mina Fuchs arrived home from her school Christmas party. The winter sun reflected off the lake, and the sky glowed in shades of copper and pink in a bright band squeezed beneath a bank of clouds. Christmas Eve...
by Matthew Friedman | Dec 5, 2021 | Essays, History, Jewish Life
This is the second part of a two-part series. Read part one here. I. The Chanukiah I post a photo of my chanukiah in social media each night of the Festival of Lights, before joyfully scrolling through my feed to look at all the pictures my friends had posted of their...