The people, places, phenomena, episodes, and news that have characterized 5776
GAME CHANGERS From Bernie to Pollard Jihad to the Ozone Brexit to Zika this Jewish year has run the gamut of game-changing events and phenomena
Looking back at some of the key people places phenomena episodes and news that have characterized a tumultuous 5776 we look forward to good news in 5777.
NOT QUITE HOME FREE Jonathan Pollard won his release from prison in November after serving 30 years for spying for Israel but his fight for real freedom is still being litigated in court. Pollard’s attorneys are appealing to end the onerous parole provisions that keep him under virtual house arrest in hisManhattan apartment from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. and force him to wear a GPS tracking device that inhibits his ability to observe Shabbos.
NEWPORT BESTS NEW YORK Location is normally the critical factor in real estate but that didn’t deter aNew York congregation from staking its claim to the Touro Synagogue inNewportRhode IslandAmerica’s oldest Jewish house of worship. In May after a four-year legal battle a federal judge awarded custody to the Newport-based group. Touro was dedicated on Chanukah eve 1763 by some 30 Jewish families mainly fromSpain andPortugal. George Washington visited there in 1790 exchanging letters with community leaders and giving his blessings toAmerica’s Jewish community.
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