ORA means “light” in Hebrew, and that’s exactly what Publisher & Editor-in-Chief Elina Furman is putting into the world.

With its recent launch in January, ORA Magazine is Elina’s response to October 7th. She explains, “I never thought that being Jewish would require courage. It felt like a bat signal in the sky, calling on many of us all at once.” While some chose to be silent or hide their identity in this moment, Elina went in the other direction. She felt compelled “to build something that would make our pride visible, elevated, and undeniable. That is how ORA was born.”

ORA Magazine is described as “180 pages of pure Jewish excellence,” and I have to agree. The magazine’s heft alone feels quite impressive, clocking in at nearly a pound and a half (yes, I weighed it). But this isn’t one of those publications supplemented with endless ads—on the contrary, it’s packed to the brim with quality and substance in a gorgeous print presentation that’s intended to be kept.

An instant favorite is “The ORA 18,” a snapshot of trailblazers who are making their mark—“the brightest lights in a world that cannot look away.” And with countless in-depth interviews highlighting Jewish creatives and entrepreneurs across food, fashion, culture, music, art, style, and travel, my only complaint is that my jewelry wishlist has now grown exponentially (I’m lookin’ at you, Adina Reyter).

Every inch of the magazine feels elevated and high-end, but not in a way that sacrifices approachability. I finished the first issue and felt incredibly proud of our community’s representation within those 180 pages.

Teaming up with Elina as ORA Magazine’s Editor-at-Large is the multi-talented Jonah Platt (advocate and podcast host of Being Jewish with Jonah Platt, among many other titles). I was thrilled to check in with both of them to learn more about the inspiration behind ORA and what readers can expect to see next.

Leah Grossman: Hi, Elina! I loved learning about ORA’s origin story in your first “Letter From The Editor.” You say, “My deepest hope is that ORA helps you feel more proud, more grounded, more seen. That it nudges you toward shining your light a little more brightly, in whatever way feels right for you.” To what do you attribute your conviction to live loud and proud in this moment? Did you have a clear vision that creating a magazine was the path you would take to do so?

Elina Furman:........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)