Chukat 5775-2015
“Accepting the Inscrutable” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Chukat, we learn of the statute of the Red Cow, also known as the Red Heifer. The ashes of an…
Yitro 5777-2017
“The Earthen Altar: Reaching up to Heaven" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald At the very end of this week’s parasha, parashat Yitro, immediately following the Ten Commandments, the…
Toledot 5765-2004
"Digging Wells" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week's parasha, parashat Toledot, we read of a famine that once again strikes the land of Canaan, this time during the lifetime of…
Sponsoring Columbus
Queen Isabella of Castile and King Ferdinand of Aragon are, without question, the most famous monarchs in Spanish history. They were the sponsors of Christopher Columbus’ famous journey…
The Great Disputation
Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman (Ramban/Nachmanides c. 1194-1270) was one of the great personages of the Golden Age of Spanish Jewry. He authored commentaries on the Torah and the Talmud and was…
Ishmaelites and Edomites
Judaism, Christianity and Islam are sometimes referred to as the “Abrahamic Faiths,” since Abraham was the forefather of the Jews and Christians through Isaac and the Muslims through…
A Convert of the Inquisition
The first auto-de-fe (live human burning) of the Spanish Inquisition took place in 1481. The Inquisition was not, as many believe, an institution set to destroy the Jewish people, but…
Sponsoring Columbus
Queen Isabella of Castile and King Ferdinand of Aragon are, without question, the most famous monarchs in Spanish history. They were the sponsors of Christopher Columbus’ famous journey…
Sponsoring Columbus
Queen Isabella of Castile and King Ferdinand of Aragon are, without question, the most famous monarchs in Spanish history. They were the sponsors of Christopher Columbus’ famous journey…
A Controversial Prayer
The final prayer recited at all three daily prayer services is Aleinu, a beautiful poem expressing the greatness of God, the only God. The prayer begins with the phrase: “Aleinu…