Sustenance and Beauty

Cosmetics have been a part of civilization since…well, research cannot pinpoint where or when people started using products to paint their faces or subtly alter their appearances, but its…

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B’ha’alot’cha 5783-2023

"Searching for Eldad and Medad" (updated and revised from B'ha'a'lot'cha 5764-2004) by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This week's parasha, parashat B’ha’a’lot’cha, brims with many fascinating…

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The Jews’ Hospital of New York

Healthcare is a topic that is frequently in the news these days and is a major part of the current public discourse. Before it became standard practice for governments to fund public…

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Make it Count!

Use your birthday to set positive goals for the coming year including taking proactive steps to establish a stronger connection to Jewish life. In the sixteenth Mishna of the first…

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First on the Court

Born in 1856, in Louisville, Kentucky, Louis Dembitz Brandeis was the child of European immigrants who maintained a minimal Jewish identity. However, his maternal uncle, Lewis Dembitz,…

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Kissing the Mezuzah

A person might easily think of the mitzvah of mezuzah as a passive mitzvah. Simply recite the blessing before affixing the mezuzah to the doorposts of the house, and it is done. While…

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Naso 5783-2023

“Our Brother, Our Sister--the Proselyte” (updated and revised from Naso 5764-2004)  By, Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Naso, we learn of an intriguing law…

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A 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…

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Remembering American Heroes

Today, on Memorial Day, take a moment to recognize the heroic actions of American soldiers and the Jewish soldiers among them who have valiantly and heroically fought on our behalf to…

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The Feast of Weeks

Shavuot, which we begin celebrating this Thursday night (May 25th), is the only holiday listed in the Torah without the date on which it is to be observed. Rather, the Torah states that…

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