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Andrew Mandel, 45, innovator and spiritual leader
Andrew Mandel, 45, is the spiritual leader of the Neighborhood, Central Synagogue’s virtual Jewish community, which has emerged as a major force in the world of online Judaism — an area that has continued to thrive post-pandemic. He is also the founder of Tzedek Box, a new Jewish ritual for those who seek to improve our world. As an innovator in Jewish communal life, Mandel, who lives in Long Island City, Queens, was selected as one of the New York Jewish Week’s 36 to Watch.
For the full list of this year’s “36ers” — which honors leaders, entrepreneurs and changemakers who are making a difference in New York’s Jewish community — click here.
What’s a fun/surprising fact about you?
A number of years ago, I decided that I didn’t know enough about the city I love, so I bought one of those hefty “Blue Guide” books about the five boroughs and spent weekends going to different sections of the city. After about a year, I took the New York City tour guide exam just to see what I had learned, and I ended up using my license to give a few tours. I have loved guiding around the Lower East Side, where I’ve used an Ancestry account to find out where people’s immigrant relatives may have lived and orient my tour around those addresses.
Who is your New York Jewish hero?
Ruth Messinger. She is the exemplar of a locally-rooted, global citizen driven by Jewish values. She was our Manhattan Borough President in the 1990s, outspoken and tough in all the right ways. She was the president of the American Jewish World Service, leading campaigns against genocide in Darfur and raising hundreds of millions for non-profit organizations in developing countries. Now in her 80s, riding her bicycle around the city, she continues to advise Jewish justice organizations and leaders every day. She’s a living legend.
How does your Jewish identity or experience influence your work?
For me, Judaism is a primary lens for living. My day begins with [the prayer] “Modeh Ani,” a simple statement that expresses both gratitude and a sense of responsibility for the gift of life. I love that it ends with “Raba Emunatecha,” that there is a great faith in us and what we might do in this world. For all of the smallness I can perceive in my own existence, I am quite moved by the idea that all that is Eternal has faith in us. The question becomes: What will we do with that faith?
Was there a formative Jewish experience that influenced your life path?
I spent a year taking in Abraham Joshua Heschel’s “God in Search of Man” chapter by chapter each Shabbat. It helped me awaken to the wonder of the universe, which became a foundation for cultivating an attitude of amazement every day.
Do you have a favorite inspiring quote?
“Pursue justice, love mercy and walk humbly with God,” from Micah 6:8.
What is your favorite place to eat Jewish food in New York?
A waitress once ladled me matzah ball soup at the Second Avenue Deli while saying (in a fantastic New York accent): “I’ll be the pourer so you’ll be the richer.” I was hooked.
What is your favorite book about New York?
I love “Time and Again” by Jack Finney. Time travel through New York, plus a genius ending.
In one sentence, what was your best experience as a Jewish New Yorker?
The most meaningful Jewish experience I have had in New York was standing in the rain, protesting the Muslim ban with hundreds of other Jews at the tip of Battery Park within eyeshot of the Statue of Liberty, living our values in the public square. I felt that our ancestors would have been proud.
What are three spots in NYC that all Jewish New Yorkers should visit?
Join us on Friday night at Central Synagogue. Make your way to one of our botanical gardens for a Shabbos stroll. Then, find the time to volunteer at Rikers Island to witness what needs to change for us to live up to the motto “The Greatest City in the World.”
Anything else you’d like us and our readers to know about you?
I’m proud that I was born in Manhattan, my mom is from Queens (where my partner and I now live), my dad is from Brooklyn (where my brother and his family now live), my first job was in the Bronx, and my favorite restaurant, Enoteca Maria, is on Staten Island. At Enoteca, a different grandmother is the chef every night. Tell Joe I sent you.
How can people follow you online?
@centralsynagogue and @tzedekbox on Instagram
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The post Andrew Mandel, 45, innovator and spiritual leader appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Iran to Completely Close Hormuz if Trump Executes Threats on Iranian Energy, Revolutionary Guards Say
FILE PHOTO: A map showing the Strait of Hormuz is seen in this illustration taken June 22, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration//File Photo
Iran will completely shut the strategic Strait of Hormuz if US President Donald Trump executes threats to target Iranian energy facilities, the country’s Revolutionary Guards said in a statement on Sunday.
Trump on Saturday threatened to “obliterate” Iran’s power plants if Tehran did not fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48-hours, suggesting a significant escalation barely a day after he talked about “winding down” the war, now in its fourth week.
In their Sunday statement Iran’s Revolutionary Guards also said companies with US shares will be “completely destroyed,” if Iranian energy facilities were targeted by Washington and energy facilities in countries that host US bases will be ‘lawful’ targets.
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Netanyahu in Arad: Iran Has ‘Capacity to Reach Deep into Europe’
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a press conference at the Prime Minister’s office in Jerusalem, Aug. 10, 2025. Photo: ABIR SULTAN/Pool via REUTERS
i24 News – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaking Sunday at the site of a missile strike in Arad, said recent Iranian attacks demonstrate that Tehran poses a threat not only to Israel but to global security, urging stronger international action against the Islamic Republic.
“If you want proof that Iran endangers the entire world, the last 48 hours have given it,” Netanyahu said, referring to recent missile fire on Israeli civilian areas. He said the intent behind the strikes was “to murder civilians,” adding that the lack of fatalities in Arad was “due to luck, not their intention.”
Netanyahu also cited Iran’s missile launch toward Jerusalem late last week. The missile landed near major religious sites, including the Western Wall, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and the Al-Aqsa Mosque. He described the incident as evidence of indiscriminate targeting of symbolic and civilian areas.
In addition, he referenced reports of a long-range missile launch toward Diego Garcia, a British territory in the Indian Ocean, saying it demonstrated Iran’s expanding capabilities. He also claimed Iran had previously targeted European territory, including Cyprus, and warned that such developments place multiple regions at risk.
“They have now the capacity to reach deep into Europe,” Netanyahu said. “They are putting everyone in their sights.”
He further accused Iran of threatening international maritime routes and energy supply lines, saying Tehran was attempting to “blackmail the entire world.”
Calling for coordinated international pressure, Netanyahu said Israel and the United States were acting together and urged other countries to follow.
“The call is not only for the security of America and Israel, but for the security of the entire world,” he said, adding that more global involvement was needed.
Responding to reporters, Netanyahu said Israel’s military response is focused on Iranian leadership and infrastructure rather than civilians. “We’re going after the regime… the IRGC, their leaders, their installations, their economic assets,” he said.
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Iran Threatens to Retaliate Against Gulf Energy and Water After Trump Ultimatum
Symbolic mock-ups of Iranian missiles are displayed on a street, amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Tehran, Iran, March 22, 2026. Photo: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
Iran said on Sunday it would strike the energy and water systems of its Gulf neighbors in retaliation if US President Donald Trump follows through with a threat to hit Iran’s electricity grid in 48 hours, escalating the three-week-old war.
The prospect of tit-for-tat strikes on civilian infrastructure could deepen the regional crisis and rattle global markets when they reopen on Monday morning.
Air raid sirens sounded across Israel from the early hours of Sunday, warning of incoming missiles from Iran, after scores of people were hurt overnight in two separate attacks in the southern Israeli towns of Arad and Dimona.
The Israeli military said hours later that it was striking Tehran in response.
Trump threatened overnight to “obliterate” Iran’s power plants if Tehran did not fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours, barely a day after he talked about “winding down” the war. He made the new threat as US Marines and heavy landing craft are heading to the region.
But while attacks on electricity could hurt Iran, they would be potentially catastrophic for its Gulf neighbors, which consume around five times as much power per capita. Electricity makes their gleaming desert cities habitable, and most of them produce nearly all of their drinking water by purifying it from the sea.
Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf wrote on X that critical infrastructure and energy facilities in the Middle East could be “irreversibly destroyed” should Iranian power plants be attacked.
Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guards said it would also mean the shipping lane where a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas normally transits along Iran’s southern coast would remain shut.
“The Strait of Hormuz will be completely closed and will not be opened until our destroyed power plants are rebuilt,” the Guards said in a statement.
More than 2,000 people have been killed during the war the US and Israel launched on February 28, which has upended markets, spiked fuel costs, fueled global inflation fears and convulsed the postwar Western alliance.
‘TICKING TIME BOMB OF ELEVATED UNCERTAINTY’
“President Trump’s threat has now placed a 48-hour ticking time bomb of elevated uncertainty over markets,” said IG market analyst Tony Sycamore, who expects stock markets to fall when they reopen on Monday.
Oil prices jumped on Friday, ending the day at their highest in nearly four years.
Markets already under severe strain from blockaded shipping were further rattled last week when Israel attacked a major gas field in Iran, and Tehran responded with strikes on neighbors Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait, raising the prospect of damage hindering energy output even if tankers resume sailing.
Iranian attacks have effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, causing the worst oil crisis since the 1970s. Its near-closure sent European gas prices surging as much as 35% last week.
“If Iran doesn’t FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!” Trump posted on social media around 7:45 p.m. EDT (2345 GMT) on Saturday.
Iranian media quoted the country’s representative to the International Maritime Organization as saying the strait remains open to all shipping except vessels linked to “Iran’s enemies.”
Ali Mousavi said passage through the waterway was possible by coordinating security and safety arrangements with Tehran.
Ship-tracking data shows some vessels, such as Indian-flagged ships and a Pakistani oil tanker, have negotiated safe passage through the strait. But the vast majority of ships have remained holed up inside.
Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya military command headquarters said on Sunday if the US hit Iran’s fuel and energy infrastructure, Iran would attack all US energy, information technology and desalination infrastructure in the region.
Striking major Iranian power plants could trigger blackouts, crippling everything from pumps and refineries to export terminals and military command centers.
IRAN EXPANDS RISKS WITH LONG-RANGE MISSILES
The United States and Israel say they have seriously degraded Iran’s ability to project force beyond its borders with their three weeks of intensive air strikes.
But Tehran fired its first known long-range ballistic missiles with a range of 4,000 km (2,500 miles) on Friday towards a US-British Indian Ocean military base, expanding the risk of attacks beyond the Middle East.
An Iranian strike also landed near Israel’s secretive nuclear reactor about 13 km (8 miles) southeast of the city of Dimona.
The war has been taking place alongside a confrontation on a separate front between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah, backed by Iran, with Israel saying on Sunday its troops had raided a number of the armed group’s sites in southern Lebanon.
Hezbollah said it had attacked several border areas in northern Israel. Israeli emergency services said one person was killed in a kibbutz near the border, the first fatality in Israel killed by fire from Lebanon since the escalation began.
Hezbollah has fired hundreds of rockets at Israel since it entered the regional war on March 2, prompting an Israeli offensive that has killed more than 1,000 people in Lebanon.
Israel said it had instructed the military to accelerate the demolition of Lebanese homes in “frontline villages” to end threats to Israelis, and to destroy all bridges over Lebanon’s Litani River which it said were used for “terrorist activity”.
Pope Leo appealed for an end to the conflict. “The death and suffering caused by this war are a scandal to the whole human family,” he said.
A Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted last week found 59% of Americans disapprove of US strikes against Iran, while 37% approved. The war has become a major political liability for Trump ahead of November elections for Congress.