Frankfurt on the Hudson
Rabbi Joseph Breuer (1882 - 1980) was 57 years old when he and his family arrived in New York City from Europe. It was 1939, and the grandson of Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch immediately…
Duties of the Heart
The concept of “being spiritual” is often assumed to be a fairly recent one, resulting, perhaps, from the enlightenment’s deconstruction of organized religion. The idea of…
Maimonides
The proliferation of buildings and organizations that bear the name Maimonides, the patrinom of Rabbi Moses ben Maimon (also known as the RaMBaM), attests to the incredible impact this…
Judah Touro
Unlike many of the great philanthropists recorded in history, Judah Touro (1775-1854) was neither the scion of old money nor a man famed for his incredible business talents. His…
Nittel Nacht
Jews of the 21st century may comment, or even grumble, about the pervasiveness of Christmas in our society, but, let's be honest, in this day and age, the effects of the holiday season…
It’s Not Really Instant
Ten years ago, the favorite catch phrase of media pundits was the expression "disposable society." Critics of Western society complained, and still do complain, of there being a…
Light One Candle
"Light one candle for the Maccabee children, with thanks that their light didn't die..." Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul and Mary wrote these words in a song that cried out for the pain of…
Logo
When the National Jewish Outreach Program (NJOP) was founded in 1987, we were faced with the tragic and rapidly growing meltdown of American Jewish life. Our solution was to launch a…
For National Novel Writing Month: Laura Z.
Although three of her published novels were structured around a Jewish storyline, Laura Zametkin Hobson did not wish to be perceived as a Jewish American novelist. She saw being a writer…
Fully Present
In Hebrew, one word can say so much. For instance, hineni. This seemingly simple phrase is understood as a powerful statement of a person’s state of mind. Literally, it is translated:…