Forever Fashions
When the Children of Israel left Egypt, they did not expect to be in the wilderness for 40 years. (Indeed, 38 years were added to their journey because the generation that left Egypt…
Personal Preparations
The celebration of Shabbat is meant to be the high-point of the week. Indeed, it is considered proper for one to spend time each day preparing for the coming Shabbat. In order to ensure…
On the 15th of Av: What Hoshea Did
How can one action be both praiseworthy and unacceptable at the same time? Such was the conundrum of Hoshea ben Elah, the last King of Israel (the Northern Kingdom of Ten Tribes). After…
Algerian Purims
Previously, Jewish Treats has presented the history of “Minor Purims,” days on which particular communities commemorate being saved from tragedy. (See Purim of…
Cycles of Seasons
While the Jewish calendar is lunar based, meaning that each month is independently calculated by the cycle of the moon, the rabbis of the Talmudic era also used the solar cycle and the…
The Story of Degania
The story of Kibbutz Degania is a testament to the fortitude of the early immigrant pioneers who settled the land of Israel prior to statehood. In honor of Yom…
Who Was Rabbi Akiva?
Akiva ben Yosef was once an ignorant and illiterate shepherd. So poor and downtrodden a figure was Akiva that his extremely wealthy father-in-law disinherited Akiva’s wife, Rachel, for…
The Jewish Major General
Jewish Treats; presents a mini-biography of Major General Julius Klein (1901-1984), who served his country in both World Wars. Born in Chicago, Klein was the descendant of Prussian and…
Cruel and Unusual Punishment
One of the most repeated instructions in the Torah is that judges must do everything possible to provide equitable justice. In Deuteronomy 1, Moses reiterated this point once again,…
Resurrection of the Dead
It is required by Jewish law that the body of one who has passed away be buried as quickly and as completely as possible, meaning that the entire body (or as much of the remains as…