Weekly Message,Vayigash

Vayigash 5782-2021

“The Virtues of Assimilation” (updated and revised from Vayigash 5762-2001) by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Vayigash, the dramatic story of Joseph and his…

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Jewish Treats

This Tomato Was Grown Where?

The view of Judaism is that humankind has the unique ability to synthesize the physical and the spiritual elements of life. Hence, Jewish law requires a person to recite a blessing over…

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Jewish Treats

This is Chanukah

Tonight, is the eighth and final night of Chanukah. After the flames die down, many households will pack up their menorah and think little of the holiday again until next year. However,…

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Jewish Treats

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…

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Jewish Treats

A Special Shabbat

Welcome Chanukah, Shabbat and Rosh Chodesh Tevet this afternoon and appreciate the special opportunity we have been given to celebrate our wonderful Jewish heritage. To appreciate the…

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Jewish Treats

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…

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Jewish Treats

Al Hanisim, For The Miracles

Most Jewish holidays are marked not only by feasting and celebrations, but also by special prayers. On Biblical holidays, such as Passover and Rosh Hashana, these special prayers include…

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Jewish Treats

These Lights We Kindle

While the mitzvah of lighting the menorah is an outward-focused mitzvah – which is why the menorah is lit in a window or doorway – it is also an opportunity for personal reflection on the…

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Jewish Treats

On the 25th of Kislev

It is not uncommon to find that significant events in Jewish history occurred in different years but on the same day on the Jewish calendar. For instance, Tisha b’Av (9th of Av), the day…

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Jewish Treats

Get Inspired

Let the holiday of Chanukah be an inspiration to dedicate yourself to include more Jewish learning in your daily life.

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