Controlling Urban Sprawl
Urban sprawl is one of the prominent contemporary environmental concerns. It is, understandably, a modern issue that started at the time of the industrial revolution. Oddly enough,…
Kee Tisah 5784-2024
“Shabbat as a Priority in Jewish Life” (updated and revised from Kee Tisah 5765-2005 by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald Although there are many dramatic moments in the latter parts of parashat…
Kee Tisah 5765-2005
"Shabbat as a Priority in Jewish Life" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald Although there are many dramatic moments in the latter parts of parashat Kee Tisah, the early parts of the parasha…
Defining Accidental
The taking of a human life is always a tragedy, and there is never a way to actually make it alright for the loved ones of the victims. In situations of unnatural death, there are several…
Bereshith 5763-2002
"Being Moral in an Increasingly Immoral Environment" Rabbi Ephraim Buchwald This week's parasha, parashat Bershith, is one of the richest of all the narrative portions of the Torah. One…
Bereshith 5782-2021
“Being Moral in an Increasingly Immoral Environment” (updated and revised from Bereshith 5763-2002) by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This week’s parasha, parashat Bereshith, is one of the…
Behar 5765-2005
"The Torah's Revolutionary Economic System" by Rabbi Ephraim Buchwald This coming week's parasha, parashat Behar is an extraordinarily challenging and revolutionary parasha. The Torah, in…
Sustainable Living
In Rio this week, politicians and activists from around the world are meeting at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development. The Torah has always been concerned with the…
Kee Tisah 5772-2012
"The Preeminence of Shabbat" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week’s parasha, parashat Kee Tisah, we learn, among other things, of the preeminence of Shabbat, the Sabbath Day.…
Jews in the Land of Lincoln
The first known Jewish resident of what is now the state of Illinois was John Hays, a grandson of a New York Jew, who moved west to Cahokia in 1793. Hays was a farmer and trader, who, in…