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Why Jews are flocking to Loop, a new dating app where users do the matchmaking
(New York Jewish Week) — When Lea Herzfeld went on her first date with a guy she met on Loop — a new dating app that relies on its users to do the matchmaking — she wasn’t nervous, for a change.
“I felt more comfortable going into it knowing that he wasn’t a complete stranger,” the 23-year-old Modern Orthodox Murray Hill resident told the New York Jewish Week. Herzfeld and her date had a handful of mutual friends — in fact, five of them suggested, via Loop, that the pair would make a good match.
Herzfeld and her date met up for coffee and walked around Rockefeller Center. And while the connection didn’t go any further, it’s an example of how Loop works: Instead of an algorithm or matching based on proximity, Loop relies upon users’ personal networks to help set them up. This means when a potential couple meets up IRL, they know they have at least one point of connection between them, plus the reassurance that someone they know thought they would make a good couple.
“Loop is bringing traditional Jewish wisdom to the world at large,” Loop co-founder Lian Zucker told the New York Jewish Week, referring to the time-honored Jewish tradition of using matchmakers. “We’re bringing this 1,000-plus year-old tradition and giving it a digital facelift.”
Zucker, 32, her co-founder, Moriya Blumenfeld, 35 — who both live in New York City — and Zucker’s younger brother Adam, 28, who lives in California, launched Loop in May. The app has grown to 13,000 users and has had over 2,100 set-ups, most of which have been in the New York area, according to Zucker.
Though the app isn’t explicitly Jewish — anyone can join — it does have a Jewish concept running through its veins: that of the “shidduch,” the Yiddish word for matchmaking. And within the Jewish community, especially in more observant circles, Loop has swiftly become the dating app of choice for those looking to meet their bashert, the Yiddish word for soul mate.
“A lot of the time you have people who come from religious backgrounds look at a ‘secular’ app like Hinge and immediately say, ‘Oh, that’s not for me. I can’t do that.’ It’s like throwing darts at a wall — even if you set your profile to ‘Jewish,’ that could mean anything,” said a 24-year-old Modern Orthodox man in Manhattan who wished to remain anonymous. “With Loop, if all your frum friends are on it, and your married friends can set you up with people they know or offer a personal connection, it’s a lot easier to want to join and use.”
As it happens, the founders of Loop got together — professionally — by a mutual friend who set them up.
Zucker and Blumenfeld were introduced via a man they both dated, whom they refer to as the “OG Matchmaker.” Zucker met the man in 2020 via Bumble. Their date was over Facetime due to the pandemic, and the two spoke about her career in startups. Zucker said her next idea was for a dating app, but she wanted to work with another founder to get it off the ground.
The OG Matchmaker recalled a Tinder date he had gone on five years earlier with Blumenfeld, who had similar goals and ideas. He connected Zucker and Blumenfeld, and the rest, they say, is history.
“We were essentially match made through these failed romantic connections on two separate dating apps,” Zucker said, who added that the OG Matchmaker has remained a good friend.
It is setups like these that inspired Zucker and Blumenfeld to start Loop. After all, so many successful or promising relationships are the ones made within a person’s own network — either their friends, or friends of friends, or even one more degree outwards.
On Loop, users make a typical dating profile. But unlike other apps, they are not given a slew of random options to swipe through. Instead, users make a “Loop” by connecting with anyone from their contact list who is also on the app. They then have access to those connections’ “Loops” — their friends and contacts — after which they can scroll through their friends’ friends.
If they find someone they are interested in, they can request that the mutual friend set them up for a conversation and take it from there.
Unlike other dating apps, non-singles can also make profiles and participate — because the app relies on set-ups, it encourages both non-singles and singles to set their friends up. The matched-up parties both need to accept the match in order for the conversation to move forward.
That means parents and others in the community can also get involved. “There’s all these parents who want to set people up but don’t really have a modern way of doing it,” Herzfeld said, adding that her father is on the app. “Some will ask for resumes or bios, but a lot of people our age don’t really have those. So sharing your dating profile on an app like this is a better way for them to get involved.”
The 24-year-old Manhattanite said that, within his Loops, many users he has seen put their “shidduch resumes” — a standard tool in Orthodox dating circles — in their profiles. Potential matchmakers can use the information to start setting them up with others who have the same observance level, life goals and preferred backgrounds.
“All three of us come from a Jewish background and it’s a huge part of our identity,” Zucker said when asked whether Loop had a Jewish origin story. “We knew full well about the tradition of matchmaking and shadchans [matchmakers] in Judaism and the saying that as a matchmaker if you set up three couples successfully, you will go to heaven.”
However, Zucker added that she and her co-founders have learned that matchmaking is prominent in Indian, Persian, Korean and other Asian and South Asian cultures, as well as in other religious communities like Mormons.
”We really believe that Loop has universal appeal,” Zucker said. “We are not building for any type of specific demographic, whether that’s religious or cultural, or for a specific gender orientation, or really anything else.”
Still, it means a lot to them that the app is popular among young Jews. “It’s been our absolute honor — from a very emotional place, too — that it has gotten a lot of early traction in the Jewish community,” she said. “Quite frankly, regardless of which community, none of us expected this kind of explosive traction.”
“There’s this whole nature of setting your friends up,” said Herzfeld, who uses the app as both a matchmaker and for her own matches. “It’s something that I was already doing, and I think it’s like a big part of the Modern Orthodox Jewish world. So it was a no-brainer for me to download it and send it to all the friends of mine who had been saying, “Oh, do you know anyone to set me up?’ It really helps because you see all of your friends in one place that you might have not thought of.”
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The post Why Jews are flocking to Loop, a new dating app where users do the matchmaking appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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‘Your Nazism Knows No Bounds’: Popular LA Restaurant Draws Backlash After Denying Service to Jewish Man
Protesters outside of Mauro’s Cafe in Los Angeles after a patron wearing a kippah said he was denied a cup of coffee. Photo: Screenshot
A popular restaurant in West Hollywood, California drew protests and widespread backlash online after it allegedly denied service to a Jewish man wearing a kippah.
Mauro Cafe is a small Italian restaurant and cafe in Los Angeles County often frequented by celebrities. On Sunday, a man wearing a kippah said he attempted to order a cup of coffee from the restaurant but was refused.
Video of the man walking into the restaurant before coming out and saying he was denied service because he looked Jewish went viral on social media this week.
West Hollywood cafe owner throws out Jewish customer and REFUSES to serve him after seeing he was wearing a kippah.
Mauro Cafe in Melrose refused to allow the man to buy coffee with one waitress telling him to “get off the property.”
@growthfactororg pic.twitter.com/BXDqPpSBYP
— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) July 2, 2024
“The owner, she says I cannot buy a coffee,” the man said in the video after walking out. When asked why he was refused service, he responded, “Because I look like I am Jewish.”
Although the owner of the restaurant, who has been identified as Evelyne Joan, appeared to turn the patron away, employees of the restaurant later bought him a coffee, according to the video.
The incident sparked backlash among Los Angels’ Jewish community, prompting some to protest against antisemitism and discrimination more broadly outside of Mauro Cafe.
Jewish Americans protest outside a cafe in West Hollywood after the owner REFUSED to serve a Jewish customer and threw him out because he was wearing a Kippah.
The owner of Mauro Cafe stood outside as Jews protested against her antisemitic business chanting “Shame.”
@idan_bg pic.twitter.com/6P0ExiWcVE
— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) July 2, 2024
“Your Nazism knows no bounds,” one protester yelled.
“The owner of Mauro Cafe, Evelyn [Joan], does not demonstrate for any of the atrocities committed within walking distance of Israel!” another demonstrator said, calling out Joan for only protesting against the Jewish state.
“Apologize!” the activists demanded.
Social media users quickly noted that Joan has a history of protesting against Israel and Jewish sites. The nonprofit organization Jew Hate Database revealed that she participated in the violent anti-Israel demonstration outside of Adas Torah synagogue in the heavily-Jewish Pico-Robertson area of Los Angeles late last month.
In video posted to social media, Joan can be seen holding a microphone while preventing Jews from accessing the synagogue and shouting “Free Palestine” and “Shame on you!”
Demonstrators swarmed the synagogue to protest the sale of Israeli real estate taking place inside the building. The protests quickly descended into violence as anti-Israel protesters were caught on video shoving, punching, and screaming at those attempting to defend the synagogue.
The violence received widespread condemnation. US President Joe Biden slammed the protests as “antisemitic and un-American.”
Outside of Mauro Cafe, activists chastised Joan for her participation in the protest. “When it comes to Jews she runs and blocks their place of worship!” they said, referring to the anti-Israel demonstrators who waved Palestine flags and donned keffiyehs while blocking entry into the Adas Torah synagogue.
Prominent figures on social media decried the restaurant’s apparent anti-Jewish discrimination this past weekend. “Imagine if a white business didn’t serve a black customer. Lead story of every single news program. Mauro Cafe. Run by racist dirtbags,” tweeted conservative political commentator Dave Rubin.
The incident came almost three months after the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) released a report showing antisemitic incidents in the US rose 140 percent last year, reaching a record high. Most of the outrages occurred after Hamas’ Oct. 7 atrocities in southern Israel, during the ensuing Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
The post ‘Your Nazism Knows No Bounds’: Popular LA Restaurant Draws Backlash After Denying Service to Jewish Man first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Jews Today Cannot Wait for Miracles
Pro-Hamas activists gather in Washington Square Park for a rally following a protest march held in response to an NYPD sweep of an anti-Israel encampment at New York University in Manhattan, May 3, 2024. Photo: Matthew Rodier/Sipa USA via Reuters Connect
One of the amazing features of the Torah is the way that it conveys human nature with all its greatness and pettiness, triumphs and failures.
This week, we look at the Korach rebellion, in which there are three different groups of protesters each with their own agenda.
Korach and the other Levites were fighting for a religious position and power. On Ben Pelet’s group represented the tribe of Ruben’s political fear of being replaced by the tribe of Judah. And Datan and Aviram were only concerned with their own physical and material interests.
This serious rebellion against the established authority of Moses and Aaron reflects precisely the sorts of conflicts of opinion and commitment that divide the Jewish people to this very day — those who do not identify with the nation, those animated by religious power and authority, and those whose values are the same material values as the secular Western world. Of course, my comparison is fanciful. But I hope it makes a valid point.
The children of Israel faced a crisis of self-image coming out of slavery and subjugation in Egypt. Nevertheless, they escaped from Egypt, arrived at Sinai, and had the national revelation. But almost immediately, they fall back into an idolatrous mindset. And when it came to proceeding to the land of Canaan and not relying on everything to be provided for them, the facade of unity collapsed.
It was clear that the nation was simply not ready to take upon itself the burden of responsibility of running their own affairs within a land of their own. The result was that they were sent back into the wilderness for another generation to prepare themselves psychologically and physically for what would happen 40 years later.
When Moses was faced with this rebellion, his first reaction was to “fall on his face” both in resignation and in supplication to God. God’s response was to give him the confidence to stand up to them.
Moses tries first to reason with them. When this fails, the miracles of the earth opening up — the fire that consumed the Levites who brought the censors, and the staffs that flowered and produced almonds — finally ended the revolt and restored order.
In those days, miracles were visible — and solved the problem. But now both in the Diaspora and in Israel, we are faced as never before with our internal divisions and the increasing tsunami of hatred and denial of our rights (and lives) across the world.
The picture looks so bleak from almost every point of view, so it is not surprising that more and more of us are looking for miracles. And because we can see no rational and logical fair resolution, we turn to prayer.
Prayer is a wonderful tool both of self-validation and connecting with spiritual energy beyond the physical world. But it’s not a tool that can guarantee anything. Similarly, the dream of a Messiah may give us a sense of hope, but we have no guarantees. Besides as the Talmud says, “Ein Somchin Al HaNes” — we cannot and should not rely on miracles
It is up to us to be proactive in our lives ,and take the steps necessary for our self-defense and well-being.
Not everyone is suited or equipped to deal with every threat, whether it is physical, political, or cyber. But we must all be prepared to rise to the challenge and do whatever we can to play our part, no matter how small. We never know how things are going to work out, and we may be surprised by turns of events that we didn’t expect.
Yes, I hope for miracles — but I know one cannot rely on them.
The author is a writer and rabbi, currently based in New York.
The post Jews Today Cannot Wait for Miracles first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Why Will The New Republic Not Take Action Against Inciteful New Hire?
A scene from the anti-Israel protest that took place outside the exhibit “Nova: Oct. 7 6:29 AM, The Moment Music Stood Still” in New York City on June 10, 2024. Photo: Screenshot
Some journalists report what they see and hear on the ground, while others report what they want to see or hear. It’s unfortunate when that happens, and it is especially prevalent in today’s media.
Talia Jane (or Talia Ben-Ora) belongs in the latter category.
Jane (who identifies with the pronouns they/them) is an associate writer for The New Republic; their work for the publication is labeled as “breaking news.”
Only much of this content is not necessarily breaking news, and it’s not written as such. With headlines that are sarcastic and distorted from the truth, Jane probably manages to grab eyes, but irresponsibly misleads readers.
Jane continuously steps out of bounds as a journalist, backing vile anti-Israel activity (and behavior towards Jews), and passing it off as valid resistance to the Israeli “occupation.”
Earlier in June, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch published an in-depth article on Jane — exposing that The New Republic’s latest hire is a raging anti-Zionist. It appears that Jane also has Jewish heritage.
Deutch’s article centered around this heinous piece Jane wrote for The New Republic on June 14, which defended the recent anti-Israel protest outside the Nova Exhibit in New York. The “breaking news” writer claimed that the protest was not antisemitic in nature.
Here are some clips from said protest.
Appalling antisemitism in NYC — protesting an exhibit commemorating the victims of the massacre at the Nova music festival. The only logical conclusion one can make when you show up to protest against people who were murdered by Hamas, is that you support Hamas and the murder of… pic.twitter.com/c3eyZwRXvV
— Adam Milstein (@AdamMilstein) June 12, 2024
Today the almost daily anti-Israel protests that have besieged NYC since Oct 7th converged on the Nova Exhibit. Those who went to commemorate the slaughter of 100s of innocent Israelis at a music festival were met with chants of “intifada revolution” pic.twitter.com/6mT8FpLfp5
— daniela (@daniela127) June 11, 2024
The TNR journalist also refuses to accept the actual definition of Zionism as the right to self-determination of the Jewish people in their ancestral homeland. Jane has defended this since-expelled Columbia student, who led anti-Israel protests on its campus:
In April, Jane called it ‘insane’ for the White House to criticize a Columbia student who said on social media that Zionists deserve to die, because ‘Zionism is synonymous with ethnonationalist supremacy and *not* Judaism.’
Since Deutch’s article was published on June 20, Jane’s behavior has not changed; this “journalist” and activist continues to share despicable comments and reposts on X (formerly Twitter). This, despite TNR magazine editor Michael Tomasky’s assurance, quoted in the article, that the publication is “working to address the situation.”
Jane took to X to defend anti-Israel protesters, while there is a clear presence of a Hamas flag in the frame:
Just a reminder that NYPD fully and illegally kettled the anti-genocide demo outside a Biden campaign event in Manhattan, then made arrests because the group they prevented from moving…didn’t move. https://t.co/FhcPtXzof0
— Talia Jane (@taliaotg) June 29, 2024
Jane also reposted a donation link from the Hamas-run Gaza Municipality’s X account.
Our damages amount to approximately 1 billion dollars. Please help us raise the first million. Your support is crucial for us to continue our efforts in #Gaza City.
Donation link: https://t.co/DR0P9iVohK
— بلدية غزة – Municipality of Gaza (@munigaza) June 26, 2024
It is a wonder, that after intense backlash over Jane’s piece more than two weeks ago, TNR’s chief editors have allowed this journalist to remain on their staff. The most they appeared to muster up was a disclaimer at the top of said piece.
Although Jane’s articles are currently more US politics-focused in recent weeks, that does not detract from still occurring behavior online. Does TNR approve of this kind of rhetoric and biased, unprofessional behavior to define their reputation?
The author is a contributor to HonestReporting, a Jerusalem-based media watchdog with a focus on antisemitism and anti-Israel bias — where a version of this article first appeared.
The post Why Will The New Republic Not Take Action Against Inciteful New Hire? first appeared on Algemeiner.com.