How to Unify the Nation
This Shabbat we read in the Torah both parashat Vayakhel and the special Torah portion for parashat Shekalim, that describes the half shekel donation given in Temple times to the Temple…
Hotline
Legendary Jewish comedian Mort Sahl shared the following anecdote during an appearance on the Merv Griffin show: Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin, while meeting with President Ronald…
A Pleasant Song Composed
The liturgy of the synagogue has developed over the span of Jewish history. Some parts of the service – such as the Shema, which is a recitation of Biblical text - originate from…
Ahhh…Cholent
The highlight of many Shabbat lunch tables is cholent, a hot stew which simmers overnight in a crockpot, on the stove or in the oven. Known also as chamim by many…
Communicating with God
There is an old joke in which the President of the United States receives an exorbitant phone bill after calling God, while the Prime Minister of Israel gets to call God as a free local…
Publishing A Solution
While Theodor Herzl is generally credited as the father of modern Zionism, he was not the first to call for the modern, political rebirth of a Jewish nation. Only in 1895 did Herzl come…
A King, a Ghost and a Witch
Across the Western world, children are reveling in the realm of the un-dead, an off-shoot of a distinctly non-Jewish holiday (Halloween). Yet the underlying interest in ghosts, goblins…
Chuppah
Nothing symbolizes a Jewish wedding more than a chuppah, which we today call a “wedding canopy.” The chuppah-bridal canopy of today is meant to represent the home of the groom into which…
Ah’nay’noo / Answer Us
On public fast days, the following prayer asking for communal forgiveness is added by the prayer leader to the repetition of the Amidah during morning and afternoon services. An…
Ahh…Cholent!
The highlight of many Shabbat lunch tables is cholent, a hot stew which simmers overnight in a crockpot, on the stove or in the oven. Known also as chamim by many Sephardim, cholent is…