Metzorah 5784-2024
Urgent message: It’s hard to believe that more than six months have passed since the murderous attack on October 7th, and that the most challenging situation in Israel continues, with…
Eden in the Garden State
The first residents of the current state of New Jersey were Dutchmen from New Amsterdam (New York) who settled Jersey City in 1614. Some historians claim that in 1655, some Jews from New…
Jewish Buckeyes
In 1817, when a pioneering watchmaker, Joseph Jonas, settled in Cincinnati, OH, from his native England, a permanent Jewish presence in Ohio was established. The Cincinnati Jewish…
I’m a Poet and I Don’t Know It!
August 21 is annually celebrated as Poet’s Day (not to be confused with Poets Day, which is celebrated weekly, on Fridays in Great Britain, similar to TGIF). Poet’s Day was initiated on…
A Ten-Light Chanukah Menorah?
In a summary of the Chanukah customs of Persian Jewry (Shlomo Tal edition, 1981, pg. 189-190), three options are offered regarding how to kindle the Chanukah lights. First, the common…
Zionism Is Not Racism!
After acquiring control over the territory known as Palestine in the aftermath of its victory in World War I, the British soon realized that there were no simple solutions when two…
People of the (Printed) Book
Johannes Gutenberg, credited as the developer of the printing press, published the Gutenberg Bible in 1445. The printing technology transformed the way people learned. International…
She Brought Them Home
There were many heroes involved in the incredible effort to secretly bring thousands of imperiled Jews from Europe after the war to the Land of Israel despite the BriTisha blockade. More…
The Tragedy of the Idol
Ever since Moses saw the Israelites dancing around the Golden Calf and smashed the two tablets of the law, the 17th of Tammuz has been an inauspicious day for the Jewish people,…
A Memorial in the United States
When the cornerstone for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum was laid in October 1988, there were those who wondered why the country needed a Holocaust museum. Over forty million…