What’s With The Cheese
There are few types of food with as many variations as cheese. Like all dairy products, only cheese that has been made with the milk of a kosher animal can be kosher. (For those…
Mourning Jerusalem: A Brief History of the First Temple
On Sunday, Jews all over the world will observe the fast of Tisha b’Av. It is on this day that the Jewish people mourn the destruction of both the First and Second Temples. The First…
The Hebrew University
Since its first official overseas program in 1955, the Hebrew University in Jerusalem has attracted hundreds of young Jewish adults from both North America and Europe. Hebrew University…
Know What Is Above You
It is human nature to value privacy. This value, probably dates back as far as Adam and Eve. Once they had eaten from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, they instinctively wished to…
Twenties and Thirties
In the last decade or so, it has become commonplace for the media to note the decline of adulthood--meaning that childhood has been prolonged for so long that young adults are remaining…
The Appeal
“One who studies the Torah and teaches it in a place where there is no wise man is like the myrtle in the wilderness, which is precious” (Rosh Hashanah 23a). Since the 1990s, the internet…
About The In-Laws
An often stated comment by parents of newly married children is that they have “gained a son or a daughter.” And while much has been written about the commandment to honor one’s mother…
The Book(s) of Maccabees
Chanukah is neither directly ordained in the Torah (like Rosh Hashana, Passover, etc.) nor mentioned in any other biblical text (as Purim is in the Book of Esther). The Books of Maccabees…
The Story of Chanukah
Around the year 167 B.C.E., the Syrian-Greek rulers of Judea tried to force the Jews to assimilate into Hellenic culture. They summoned the Jews to the town squares where they were forced…
Biblical Twins
Today is “Twins Day.” Twins have long been a source of great fascination for many, as demonstrated by the vast number of studies and stories that have used twins as their subject. Twins,…