Jewish Treats

“If These Walls Could Talk”

The cryptic spiritual dermatological disease of tza’ra’at differs from a medical malady in that Jewish tradition teaches that one becomes infected via sin, not pathogens, and one goes to…

Read More

Jewish Treats

Biblical Twins

Twins have long been a source of great fascination for many, as demonstrated by the vast number of studies and stories that have used twins as their subject. Twins, however, do not seem…

Read More

Jewish Treats

The Crown of Israel’s Jezreel Valley

Today the city of Afula, with a population of 49,000, sits as the crown and virtual capital of the Jezreel Valley in north-central Israel. Many identify modern day Afula with the…

Read More

Jewish Treats

Who Was Hagar?

Stating simply that Hagar was the second wife of Abraham and the mother of Ishmael simplifies an incredibly complex character whose emotions and motivations are fleshed out in the Oral…

Read More

Jewish Treats

The Poles of the Ark

The second half of the book of Exodus commences with parashat Terumah. Nachmanides suggests that while the first half of the Book describes the physical redemption of the Children of…

Read More

Jewish Treats

No Strings Attached

Deuteronomy 16:18 states: "...You shall not take a bribe, for bribery blinds the eyes of the wise and perverts just words." Although this statement of Jewish law is written in…

Read More

Jewish Treats

The Don’s Commentary

Don Isaac Abrabanel (1437-1508) was one of the greatest statesmen of his time (the second half of the 15th century). He was a financial genius who served in the royal courts of Portugal,…

Read More

Jewish Treats

Leap Year

The Gregorian solar calendar used by the Western world, is based on the cycle of the sun. The tropical (solar) year is 365 days, 5 hours, 49 minutes and 16 seconds. Thus every four years…

Read More

Jewish Treats

The Great Hoshana (Hoshana Rabbah)

Rosh Hashana is known as the Day of Judgment (Yom Hadin), the day on which God judges the world. Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is the day on which God finalizes His verdict on the…

Read More

Jewish Treats

Fire and Ice

A news story in June, 2017, reported that a combination of ice and fire doomed the Titanic and caused its sinking on April 14, 1912. Photos of the ship prior to its departure from Belfast…

Read More