Chanukah and Divine Order
Chanukah always overlaps with at least one Shabbat (if not two), and since Chanukah begins on the 25th of Kislev and lasts for eight days, the holiday always coincides with the…
An Extraordinary Run
When Harold Maurice Abrahams was born on December 15, 1899, movies were short, silent and black-and-white. It would have been impossible to imagine that this newborn baby boy would one…
Mikeitz 5781-2020
“A Dysfunctional Family Becomes Functional” (updated and revised from Mikeitz 5762-2001) by, Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Mikeitz, the soap opera, (just…
A Chanukah Heroine
Who is Yehudit (Judith), the daughter of Yochanan the High Priest, who saved her city, Bethulia, from destruction at the hands of the Syrian-Greek general Holofernes? As the Jews in the…
They Made a Difference
Appreciate the Jewish heroes and heroines throughout history who, despite the many trials and tribulations that befell the Jewish people, managed to step forward and transform some of the…
Joseph, Son of Jacob
The story of Jacob’s eleventh son is a tale of epic proportion. The firstborn of Rachel, Joseph was his father’s favorite child, and Jacob never hesitated to display his feelings of…
Vayeishev 5781-2020
“Judah, The Paradigm for Jewish Future” (Updated and revised from Vayeishev 5762-2001) by, Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This week’s parasha, parashat Vayeishev, is one of the most…
A Day that will Live in Infamy
In one of the 20th century's most memorable and impactful speeches, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt called December 7, 1941, “A day that will live in infamy,” due to the deadly…
The Oldest Book of Diplomacy
In the beginning of Parashat Vayishlach, Jacob is informed that his estranged brother, Esau, is approaching with an army of 400 men under his command. Prior to this meeting, the last time…
Give A Little A Lot
Making the decision about to whom and how much tzedakah (charity) one should distribute can be extremely difficult. The pressure of this decision is made even greater by both a constant…