In a newly published study that draws on the first comprehensive data set of US-based Jewish philanthropic organizations, Hanna Shaul Bar Nissim and Mathew Brookner show that such organizations gave more than $46 billion in grants in the period between 2000–2015. Beyond what it reveals about the amount of money American Jews invest in philanthropy, the data is full of yet-to-be-tapped insights into the nature of American Jewish life today, including the importance of foundations in setting the Jewish communal agenda.*

Last week, current fellow Chen Bram (Hebrew University) sat down at Penn Hillel with a group of students interested in multiculturalism in Israel. In a ninety-minute discussion he offered them a taste of the graduate course he teaches in Jerusalem on the city’s complex intergroup relations. Inviting the students to comment and raise concerns as he spoke, Bram joked that as an Israeli he is more comfortable with direct confrontation than passive silence.

We are delighted to announce the gift by Laurence Salzmann and Ayşe Gürsan-Salzmann of the Laurence Salzmann Photography Collection.

This week, the Katz Center welcomed a cohort of rabbis to begin a year-long collaboration. They are participating in the LEAP program, a partnership now in its fourth productive year with Clal, the National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership. This remarkable, interdenominational group will visit the Center three times this year and learn from a variety of fellows and colleagues to explore the depth of research being carried out in the area of our current fellowship theme, Jewish culture in modern Islamic contexts. 

Just in time for Thanksgiving, JQR 108.4 is now available, online* and in print. This issue features essays on Roman and rabbinic law, the Cairo genizah, and Solomon Schechter, plus a cornucopia of short-form scholarship. Read up now, and have something fascinating to talk about around the holiday table.

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