Symbolic Foods
Since Rosh Hashana is the Day of Judgment, it is customary to eat simanim,* foods with symbolic meanings that invoke God's blessings. We also recite a short prayer before eating them.…
Purim Again
Unique to the Jewish calendar, Purim is actually observed on different days depending on location. The majority of the Jewish people celebrate Purim on the 14th of Adar (today). However,…
Pekudei,Vayakhel,Weekly Message
Vayakhel-Pekudei 5781-2021
“The Original Jewish Renewal Movement” (Updated and revised from Vayakhel-Pekudei 5762-2002) by, Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This Shabbat, two parashiot, Vayakhel and Pekudei, are read,…
Memorial to a Brave Soldier
David Rosenkrantz is one of the many unsung heroes whose lives, cut short by the horrors of war, are honored on Memorial Day. Born in 1916, Staff Sergeant Rosenkrantz joined the army in…
No Holiday as Joyous
Tu b’Av (The Fifteenth of Av) which is tomorrow, is no longer the well-known holiday on the Jewish calendar that it was in ancient times. In fact, the Talmud states that: “There were no…
Re’eh 5781-2021
“The Elusive Blessing of ‘Peace’” (updated and revised from Re’eh 5763-2003) by, Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This week’s Torah portion, parashat Re’eh, contains some of the most exalted…
Why is Jerusalem Not Mentioned in the Torah?
In the first aliyah of parashat Re’eh, the Torah mentions 16 times an unknown place where God will choose to rest His Presence. Now, thousands of years later, we know that place to be the…
Symbolic Foods
Since Rosh Hashana is the Day of Judgment, it is customary to eat simanim*, foods with symbolic meanings that invoke God’s blessing. We also recite a short prayer before eating them.…
Kee Teitzei 5781-2021
“Transforming an Enemy into a Friend” (updated and revised from Kee Teitzei 5762-2002) by, Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald We are now well into the month of אֱלוּל, Elul, the month that leads…
Purim Again
Unique to the Jewish calendar, the festival of Purim is actually observed on different days depending on location. The majority of the Jewish people celebrate Purim on the 14th of Adar…