Shoftim 5780-2020
"Security for Citizens and Caring for Guests” (updated and revised from parashat Shoftim 5761-2001) by, Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Shoftim, we encounter…
Connecting the Words
In honor of “Dictionary Day,” Jewish Treats looks at a renowned Jewish dictionary that has served scholars and students since the turn of the 20th century. A Dictionary of Targumim,…
Baba Sali – Praying Father
Although it is not uncommon for Jewish sages to be known by a pseudonym, such names are most often either abbreviations of their full names (e.g. RaMBaM, an acronym for Rabbi Moses ben…
Herzl’s Vision of Haifa
International air travel today can be frustrating, annoying and anxiety-provoking. Because of the extra costs of traveling to and from airports, navigating the heightened security…
People of the (Printed) Book
Johannes Gutenberg (1400-1468), credited as the developer of the printing press, published the Gutenberg Bible in 1445. The printing technology transformed the way people learned.…
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…
Connecting the Words
Jewish Treats looks at a renowned Jewish dictionary that has served scholars and students since the turn of the 20th century. A Dictionary of Targumim, Talmud Bavli, Talmud Yerushalmi and…
Kindness Without Fanfare
There is a fascinating story in the Talmud that demonstrates the importance of being conscientious when doing something for another person: Mar Ukba had a poor man in his neighborhood…
Anger Management
Rabbi Moses Maimonides (Rambam) writes that a person who becomes angry is regarded as if he had worshiped idols and that Gehinnom (where souls are purified) will have dominion over him.…
Tazria 5782-2022
“Tzaraat—The Spiritual-Dermatological Disease” (updated and revised from Tazria 5763-2003) by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This week’s parasha, parashat Tazria, as well as parashat…