Time to Make Amends

Use the current month of Elul as an opportunity to seek out those you may have wronged, to ask for forgiveness. While observing someone we know acting inappropriately, rather than presume…

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And Now Let Us Say Amen

The word “Amen” seems to be one of those words associated with prayer throughout the Judeo-Christian culture, but what does it mean? The response “Amen” at the end of an oath or a prayer…

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Minsk, Pinsk and Dvinsk?

Dvinsk, also known as Daugavpils or Duenaburg, is Latvia’s second largest city, situated 140 miles southeast of Riga, Latvia’s capital (Dvinsk is the city’s Russian name). Dvinsk became a…

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The Five Prohibitions of Yom Kippur

“…on the tenth of the month, you shall afflict your souls and do no work at all…for on that day God will forgive you and cleanse you, that you may be clean from all your sins before God”…

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Whoever Is Wise

“Return, O Israel, for you have stumbled in your sin” (Hosea 14:2). Let’s face it, none of us really want to hear a fire-and-brimstone reproof of all of the things we’ve done wrong and…

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Noah 5784-2023

Urgent message: Given the most challenging situation in Israel at this time, I urge all to pray for the bereaved families, the hostages, the missing and the many casualties. Please try…

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Original Vegetarianism: Where’s The Beef?

Adam and Eve were vegetarians. When God placed Adam in the Garden of Eden, the Torah tells us that God said: “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat…” (Genesis 2:16). While God…

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American Appreciation

Take a moment to appreciate the privilege of living in a Malchut Shel Chesed, a kingdom of kindness, that is America, where Jews can live Jewishly and support Jewish causes as we choose.…

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Albania and the Jews

Albania, which today marks its Independence Day, is a small Balkan country with an almost minute Jewish population. While it was never a country with a large Jewish population, there have…

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