April 17, 2025 The New Mexico Jewish Journal is pleased to share a group letter penned by a group of 14 of New Mexico's rabbis, "because we want New Mexicans to know that leaders in our Jewish community oppose the Trump Administration’s detention of international students,
With this issue, we are celebrating our 1st birthday, and the beginning of our second year! We have a full range of articles - explore! Be sure to return to keep reading! And, of course, you can go directly to the website home page here. Not a paid subscriber yet?
by Norma Libman It seems an unusual path, but when you look at it closely it all makes sense. Born and raised in Geneva, Switzerland, to a Jewish American mother and a Catholic French father, how did Celia Surget find her way to the rabbinate and Congregation Albert in Albuquerque,
By Judith Fein Photographs by Paul Ross It started a few weeks ago in Santa Fe. The passport line snaked out the door of the post office and almost everyone on it was Latino or Hispanic and was accompanied by children. The people didn’t necessarily know each other but
by Diane Joy Schmidt Another month has passed and the fear of the assault on American democracy has spilled over us while edicts issued from the Oval office a month ago seem like a year ago. Is the coalescence of governing forces today pushing the United States toward rule by
The Jews of Rome perceive themselves as “the people of the artichoke, not just of the Shoah,” according to their Chief Rabbi, Riccardo Di Segni. I came upon this quote shortly after my husband and I returned from a two-week trip to Italy in December, when we indulged in fried
by Rabbi Min Kantrowitz Each edition of NMJJ highlights one of the many Jewish values that guide our lives. Each of these values underlies our Jewish community, regardless of any individuals’ religious observances or practices. These values form the ethical structure of the community. They are not presented in order
by Diane Joy Schmidt March 28, 2025 With our Spring 2025 issue, the independent, state-wide New Mexico Jewish Journal marks its one-year anniversary. We have made remarkable strides. Since our first Spring Issue published online March 18th, 2024 we have been warmly embraced by the Jewish community and the larger
March 28, 2025 I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Juan Dircie recently, the new Director of the Jewish Community Relations Coalition of New Mexico and quickly realized that he brings a rich background of experience in Jewish community non-profit work. His engaging personality and quick smile immediately puts one
By Dan Pava, Santa Fe March 28, 2025 Readers of the New Mexico Jewish Journal may not be aware of an important election that affects Israel and Judaism and is happening now. While New Mexican Jews are preparing for Passover, the holiday celebrating our redemption and freedom, there is a
By Didi Rosenthal March 28, 2025 I remember when I asked my mother about whether she ever felt resentful about the German citizenry not protesting the attacks on Jews during the rise of Hitler and the Holocaust. She responded that she really didn’t blame others because they and their
From Gershon the Winkler I have some free time coming up next weekend. And in all honesty, I have been feeling quite guilty not having participated in any demonstrations over the years on behalf of human rights and the such, being too busy studying Talmud and watching Netflix. So, I
Antisemitism
Joshua Shanes, College of Charleston As part of Harvard University’s agreement in response to two federal lawsuits filed by Jewish students alleging antisemitic discrimination, it will adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, or IHRA, “working definition” of antisemitism. This is a definition favored by many Jewish community leaders and
Community News
by Jim Winnerman March 28, 2025 When Rabbi Shavit-Lonstein was a first-year student at Washington University in 1984, he never expected he would be a rabbi conducting Bar and Bat mitzvah ceremonies for a congregation of 340 families with no building, and which only practices Judaism outdoors. “It was Rabbi
Awards
by Diane Joy Schmidt April 5, 2025 Tonight the New Mexico Jewish Journal won six awards in the highly competitive Society of Professional Journalists Top of the Rockies 2025 awards, in the small newsrooms division, with 80 publications and 20 freelancers entering 1850 entries from Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and
News
February 23, 2025 By Bonnie Ellinger In the aftermath of October 7th, one place that symbolizes the agony, grief and torment of the massacre is Kibbutz Nir Oz. Twenty-five percent of its 400 members/residents were either brutally murdered or taken hostage, and much of the kibbutz was burned to
News
By Joanna Colangelo February 23, 2025 In January, the Jewish Community Foundation of New Mexico (JCFNM) named Sarah Winger as the new Executive Director, assuming the role in March after the retirement of founding Executive Director, Erika Rimson. Sarah joins the JCFNM from UNM Hospital where she was the Director
Op-ed
by Diane Joy Schmidt April 13, 2024 The dangers of a conflagration engulfing the Middle East are high. A thoughtful approach to the annual Passover Seder is critical now. The first night of Passover this year is April 22nd, when the first Seder is held. The Passover Seder retells the
Community News
February 23, 2025 by Ron Duncan Hart Kudos to Opera Southwest and the National Institute of Flamenco for their remarkable production and World Premiere of Adam Del Monte’s Llantos 1492: A Flamenco Opera! Now, that’s a delightful twist—an opera sung in both Spanish and Hebrew about the
February 23, 2025 To our subscribers: The New Mexico Jewish Journal stands in support of the Associated Press, which has been banned from covering events at the White House and from boarding Airforce One, because they chose not to change the name "Gulf of Mexico" to the "
News Analysis
by Ron Duncan Hart February 4, 2025 Over the last twenty years my wife Gloria Abella Ballen and I have spent months on end at the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge in conversations with faculty members and doing research in their vast libraries. The Bodleian Library at Oxford has an
Jewish Holiday
By Diane Joy Schmidt February 4, 2025 In 2025 Tu B'Shvat begins on the full moon, Feb. 12th. On Tu B'Shvat, some years ago... A marriage ceremony took place between a Navajo groom and a Jewish bride on Friday evening. It was not only Valentine’s
Jewish Values
by Rabbi Min Kantrowitz February, 2025 Starting with this issue, each new edition of NMJJ will highlight one of the many Jewish values that guide our lives. Each of these values underlies our Jewish community, regardless of any individuals’ religious observances or practices. These values form the ethical structure of
Lists
This is a page to return to again and again. What to think? We really do need to read from various sources before we can form a balanced opinion and think for ourselves. Scan the headlines, stop at the occasional item. Don’t get overloaded, and take a regular break