Good Neighbors
When considering a move to a new home, be sure to do your due diligence and inquire whether your prospective neighbors are upstanding individuals. Never underestimate the critical…
Jabotinsky
When Vladimir Yevgenyevich Zhabotinsky was born on October 18, 1880, in Odessa, it was virtually inconceivable that he would become a staunch advocate for the resettlement of the Jewish…
The Book Of Jonah
The Book of Jonah is one of the best-known stories in the Bible and is read during Mincha (the afternoon service) on Yom Kippur because of its powerful message of repentance. God…
Symbolic Foods
Since Rosh Hashana is the Day of Judgment, it is customary to eat simanim*, foods with symbolic meanings that invoke God’s blessing. We also recite a short prayer before eating them.…
People of the Book
Instill within your family a sense of the importance for Jewish education not only during one's formative years but throughout one's life. In the beginning of the sixth chapter of Pirkei…
Labor, Technology and the Torah
Labor celebrations have taken place throughout North America since the 1880s, and in 1894, Labor Day became an official U.S. holiday. As students of history are well aware, in the decades…
Happy Bow Tie Day
Today is Bow Tie Day, which is celebrated annually on August 28th. The bow tie originated in the 17th century with Croatian soldiers who wore them as part of their uniforms in the…
The Book of Lamentations
On Tisha b’Av, the ninth of Av, one of the ways that the Jewish people demonstrate their mourning over the loss of both Holy Temples is by refraining from Torah study that brings pleasure…
Study the Book of Lamentations
To better appreciate the impact of the destruction of the Temple upon the Jewish people, click here to read the text of the Book of Eicha.
The Truth About Mitzvot
It is recorded in the Midrash Rabbah that Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai was once confronted by a man who challenged him about the purifying ritual of the Red Heifer (click here for details)…