Genesis,Weekly Message,Shoftim

Shoftim 5772-2012

"The Haughty Heart" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald Among the many topics discussed in this week’s parasha, parashat Shoftim, are the rules and regulations that apply to a king of Israel.…

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Ellen Lipkis Letter

A Note from Ellen Lipkis Dear Rabbi Buchwald, Thank you for always being there for the Lipkis family. It is not easy for me to express all that I would like to say to you. Words are not…

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Jewish Treats

Watch Your Words

The Mishna Pirkei Avot (Ethics of the Fathers) is filled with wise advice and insightful statements. Among those of the first chapter is a fascinating instruction given by Avtalion, a…

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Jewish Treats

A Scholar and a Playwright

As the epicenter of the Renaissance, Italy was filled with great centers of learning and creativity during the middle centuries of the last millennium. In one of these great centers of…

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Jewish Treats

The Leper’s Leap of Faith

There is a fascinating story in the Second Book of Kings about an enemy general, an Israelite prophet and a greedy servant. The Aramean General Na’aman suffered from the biblical disease…

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Jewish Treats

What Happened in SHUM

While most people know about the horrors of the Crusades, many do not realize that there were, in fact, many Crusades over a period of four hundred years, and that most of these crusades…

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Jewish Treats

A Man of Torah, A Man of Science

Perhaps you’ve heard of Maimonides (Rabbi Moses ben Maimon, Rambam) and Nachmanides (Rabbi Moses ben Nachman, Ramban), two medieval scholars whose works are quoted frequently even today.…

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Jewish Treats

Judah The Prince

Pirkei Avot, Ethics of the Fathers, begins: “Moses received the Torah from Sinai and transmitted it to Joshua; Joshua to the elders; the elders to the prophets; and the prophets handed it…

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Jewish Treats

Moonbeam

December 21, 1968/30 Kislev 5729 was the day on which the world held its breath as American astronauts set out for the moon. On this day, Apollo 8, with its three member crew, was…

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Jewish Treats

The Name Jerusalem

Initially, King David ruled from Hebron, but Hebron was not the ideal location for the seat of government. Not only was Hebron in the southern-most part of the Israelite kingdom, but it…

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