North American Shtetl
The word shtetl, invokes images of the pre-Holocaust Eastern European Jewish community. It might come as a surprise, therefore, that there actually are shtetlach in North America! Here…
Wash and Dry
The miracles of modern science have made us aware of the vast world of micro-organisms that previous generations never knew existed. We now know that there are good bacteria that help us…
Bo 5781-2021
“The Slave Mentality” (updated and revised from Bo 5761–2001) by, Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This week’s parasha, parashat Bo, concludes the Torah’s narrative of parashat Va’eira, of the…
A Day That Will Live in Infamy
In one of the 20th century’s most memorable and impactful speeches, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt called December 7, 1941, “A Day that will live in infamy,” due to the deadly…
Houston Healthcare
Many cities have Jewish hospitals, but only Houston has a Jewish Institute of Medical Research. In the 1950s, Houston’s Jewish community sought to create a medical facility that had a…
Jewish Work in Diabetes
Today is World Diabetes Day. Not so long ago, diabetes was often thought of as a “Jewish disease.” This was before doctors and scientists understood genetics. The idea of diabetes as a…
Tazria 5782-2022
“Tzaraat—The Spiritual-Dermatological Disease” (updated and revised from Tazria 5763-2003) by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This week’s parasha, parashat Tazria, as well as parashat…
A Day That Will Live in Infamy
In one of the 20th century’s most memorable and impactful speeches, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt called December 7, 1941, “A day that will live in infamy,” due to the deadly…
Houston Healthcare
Many cities have Jewish hospitals, but Houston also has a Jewish Institute of Medical Research. In the 1950s, Houston’s Jewish community sought to create a medical facility that had a…
The Origins of Formal Jewish Education in the United States
Today, thankfully, there are hundreds of Jewish elementary schools in the United States that teach both Judaic and general studies. The paradigm for this movement was the founding of…