Do you Shukle?
If you’ve ever watched a traditional prayer minyan (quorum), or even just the prayers of a traditional Jew, you might wonder what all the motion and body movement is about. Forward-back,…
Study and Grow
Emulate the great Sephardi Torah scholar, Rabbi Ezra Attiyah, and always set aside time for serious Torah study. For those exploring Jewish study who feel overwhelmed by the breath of…
Behar 5782-2022
“Understanding Hebrew and Canaanite Servitude” (updated and revised from Behar 5763-2003) by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Behar, we learn of the laws of the…
The Second Passover
On the first anniversary of the Exodus from Egypt, the Children of Israel prepared to celebrate their first Passover as free people. God decreed that they should eat matzah and maror…
War Reparations
Consider the moral dilemma faced by the State of Israel and its citizens whether to accept war reparations from Germany. Given what transpired during World War II in Germany, there was…
Kedoshim 5782-2022
“Giving Proper Reproof” (updated and revised from Kedoshim 5763-2003) by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Kedoshim, we encounter the well-known Biblical dictum,…
Acharei Mot 5782-2022
“The Jewish Method of Achieving Moral Perfection” (Updated and revised from Acharei Mot 5763-2003) by, Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Acharei Mot, we read one…
Passover II 5782-2022
Passover II 5782-2022 “Counting the Omer” (Revised and updated from Passover II 5768-2008) by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In parashat Emor, we learn of the mitzvah of counting the Omer. In…
Metzorah 5782-2022
“The Nidah--Affirming the Infinite Value of Human Life” (updated and revised from Metzorah 5763-2003) by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald Toward the end of this week’s parasha, parashat…
Mordecai Manuel Noah
While one of the founding principles of the United States of America is freedom of religion, any historian would agree that in the early days of the United States, this was often more…