WASHINGTON (JTA) – The expected nomination of former Senator Chuck Hagel as the next defense secretary has sparked an outcry from some pro-Israel community segments.

Noah Samuel Pozner /JNS/Connecticut Jewish Ledger

FAIRFIELD, Conn. (JTA) – It was a eulogy for a life that had only just begun.

Veronique Pozner remembered her son Noah as a rambunctious, video-game-loving “little man,” a boy with a perpetual smile and twinkly blue eyes who dreamed of becoming a doctor, a soldier and a manager of a factory that makes tacos – his favorite food.

U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein /OFFICE SEN. FEINSTEINWASHINGTON (JTA) – In the wake of the shooting rampage in Newtown, Conn., Jewish groups are looking to build alliances and back legislation to strengthen gun control laws.

Rabbi Katz takes the Torah to show it to some of Beth Elohim’s youngest members. /Congregation Beth Elohim

PROVIDENCE – Marc Katz wanted to be a rabbi from a very early age.

Calling Rabbi James Rosenberg, rabbi emeritus of Temple Habonim in Barrington, his inspiration, he said, “I think I was attracted to what he was and who he was. As a first-grader, I understood that a rabbi leads prayers and is an important part of the community.”