May His Name Be Erased
When a righteous person passes away, it is customary to add the following laudatory phrase after mentioning the deceased’s name: “zecher tzaddik liv'racha” (May the memory of this…
There’s A Key In My Challah!
It's a fact that many people spend much time thinking and even worrying about par'nassah (livelihood). Jewish tradition teaches that different seasons have different spiritual strengths.…
You Are Royalty
Passover is known as the festival of freedom. And who is more free than royalty? At the Seder, all Jews are supposed to consider themselves royalty. Some of the ways we demonstrate this…
Guard and Remember
The observance of Shabbat is the fourth of the Ten Commandments, listed in both Exodus and Deuteronomy. One would expect to find no difference in the wording of the Ten Commandments…
A Modern Sage
Medieval scholars such as Maimonides and Gersonides were famous for both their Torah scholarship as well as their scientific knowledge. While not as famous, there are also modern examples…
In Flows Shevat
Despite what one might expect, Jewish tradition does not dismiss the signs of the zodiac (Click here for a Treat on Jewish Months and the Zodiac). In fact, it is quite interesting to see…
A-Hunting We Won’t Go
Ah, Fall. The crisp air, the beautiful foliage and, for those who live in rural areas, the hunting season! Yes, this is the time of year when, permit in hand, hunters take to the woods…
Do You Have the Right to Have Dessert?
Parents frequently use dessert in the negotiations to get their children to eat or behave at the table. But the question remains, is dessert a natural part of the meal? While the…
Ushpeezin (oo’shpee’zin)
During the festival of Sukkot, the sukkah is intended to be our second home. For example, since one would normally dine in the house, on Sukkot one dines in the sukkah. Because the sukkah…
Zodiac
Horoscopes are fun to read, especially when they tell you that you are about to get rich or find sudden fame. While telling the future through one’s horoscope is not part of Judaism, this…