Heroine of the Old City
When the official U.N. Partition Plan went into effect in May 1948, the 1,700 residents of the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem’s Old City were cut off from the rest of Jewish Jerusalem. Their…
Konrad Zegota – Saving Lives
Have you heard of Konrad Zegota, responsible for saving thousands of Jewish lives during the Holocaust. Not a who?, but a what?, Konrad Zegota was the code name for The Council for Aid to…
One! Two! Three! Feel The Burn!
Some people love to exercise, others hate it, but everyone knows that it is a vital component of properly maintaining one’s physical health. While the Torah does not…
Traditional Jewish Views on Birth Control
Judith, the wife of Rabbi Chiya, having suffered in consequence [of pregnancy] agonizing pains of childbirth, changed her clothes [in disguise, in order to get an unbiased answer] and…
A Gift For Life
Did you know that Jewish law frowns upon elective surgery? After all, as any doctor will tell you (or all those release forms will make you realize), there is no surgery that is totally…
Serpent and Staff
The Rod of Asclepius, a serpent wrapped around a staff that is associated with the Greek god of medicine, is commonly used as a symbol for medical centers. Centuries before ancient…
The Hopeful Doctor- Doktoro Esperanto
Chu vi sciis, ke la iniciatoro de Esperanto estas judo? Don’t worry, your daily Jewish Treats hasn’t switched languages. Did you know that the initiator of Esperanto was Jewish? Perhaps,…
Shabbat Heroics
Question: What does a Sabbath-observant doctor do when a friend or neighbor needs emergency medical assistance on Shabbat? The answer: Everything necessary. Call an ambulance, cut a…
Answering The Appeals
There they sit, the pile of unopened solicitations and appeals. Direct marketing charity drives are the modern replacement for the communal tzedakah (charity) appeals of the past. Food…
What’s In The Book: Joshua
The Book of Joshua (Yehoshua) is the first of the ten books known as Nevi'im, the Books of the Prophets. It begins after Moses’ death, when Joshua bin Nun assumed the leadership of the…