Mikeitz-Chanukah 5782-2021
“What is Chanukah Really About?” (updated and revised from Mikeitz 5761-2000) by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This week’s parasha, parashat Mikeitz, continues the magnificent saga of…
The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, which is famous for its month-long resistance struggle against the Germans in April/May of 1943, actually began with an initial uprising on 12 Shevat 5703…
Dancing on Ice
Competing for artistic and athletic mastery on ice has been part of the fun of winter long before the Winter Olympics, and Jews have often taken part in the joy of ice skating. In fact,…
Israel’s Memorial Day
The State of Israel’s independence, as well as its continued survival, is a modern-day miracle. But it has come at great cost in human lives and to its citizens. Therefore, before Israel…
The Most Popular Non-Holiday Event on Jewish Calendars
This Friday night is the 26th annual Shabbat Across America and Canada. Jewish Treats is proud to present a history of NJOP’s SHABBAT ACROSS AMERICA AND CANADA. Since many people are…
Bows and Arrows
Today, Lag Ba’Omer, the 33rd day of the counting of the Omer, is a minor holiday on the Jewish calendar. Its observance commemorates the end of a tragic plague that took the lives of all…
Grandmaster R
When Samuel Reshevsky (born Szmul Rzeszewski, 1911-1992) was five years old, his father showed him how to play chess. Three years later, the boy was a recognized child prodigy who gained…
Is It Good To Be The King?
Parashat Shoftim, this week’s Torah portion, addresses many issues, among them the Jewish jurisprudential system, false prophets, and the Arei Miklat, cities of refuge. The guidelines for…
The Jews of Panama
The history of the Jews in Panama is similar to Jewish history in other South and Central American countries. Conversos (Jews who publicly recanted the Jewish faith and adopted…
Jews in the Land of Lincoln
The first known Jewish resident of what is now the state of Illinois was John Hays, a grandson of a New York Jew, who moved west to Cahokia, IL in 1793. Hays was a farmer and trader who,…