Personal Pesach Reflections
Nothing beats some preparation to make it a memorable Seder!
Off The Derech (Part III)
It was obvious I was in the wrong place with the wrong people and I needed to get out of there.
A Very Bad Hair Day
Tina was in my kindergarten class last year. Each day Tina’s hair flew all around her. It would tumble into her eyes and she would bat at it periodically throughout the day just to see. Sometimes I’d use whatever hair accessory I had at hand - even just a rubber band - to put Tina’s hair out of her face.
A Siddur For The Halachic Woman: The Korban Minchah
As mentioned, the siddur also included a complete Sefer Tehillim, divided according to the days of the week and month, something which was also considered part of the classical world of Jewish women’s prayer at the time.
The Soul of the Stranger
From elected officials to people in the street, from the highly educated secular upper class to yeshiva students to the working poor, numerous Israelis seem to share a lexicon and intellectual framework which denigrates and dehumanizes Africans, belittles their suffering, and trivialized their plight.
The Ultimate Title Match
Pesach is the time of redemption and salvation, which can often come from the most unexpected sources. Such is the story of a boxing title fight in Yankee Stadium that launched a young boy from Russia on a journey to discover his Jewish heritage in Israel.
National Prayers In Meah Shearim: The Beit Tefilah – Har Tziyon Siddur
As a siddur meant for both religious Zionists and non-Zionist charedim, and much like siddurim of previous generations, the original Beis Tefilah also did not include the national prayers – those said every Shabbat and those said on Israel’s Independence Day, Memorial Day, and Jerusalem Day.
Remembering Hurricane Sandy As We Approach Rosh Hashanah
"Only a Navi or a fool can say why it occurred - and we don't have Neviim any longer."
The Lonely Bride: Four Out Of Four (Part VI)
Even though her dreams for a perfect wedding had been shattered by her brothers’ boycott, she never resented them or their decision.
A Jewish Prayer Encyclopedia: The Minchat Yerushalayim Siddur
The prayers themselves, it should be noted, only appear after no fewer than 100 pages of prior content, and the book’s design is apparently based on the Siddur HaShalem previously published by Eshkol Press.
From Russia To Hebrew Via Yiddish: The Shivchei Ge’ulim Siddur
The different target audiences led to the siddurim being printed in two versions: while the siddurim for olim from the Soviet Union contained the Israeli national prayers, those sent through various clandestine paths to Soviet Jews themselves contained no elements which might anger the Soviet authorities.
Our Yom HaAtzmaut Chassid
his is not the standard look for someone who attends our shul even if just passing through, especially since there are other shuls on the block that may be considered a better fit. I'll be honest that if someone comes in looking like this, it's usually to collect tzedakah.
Yoram Ettinger: Purim Guide for the Perplexed 2012
Purim is the holiday of contradictions and tenacity-driven-optimism: Grief replaced by joy; Esther's concealment replaced by the disclosure of her national/religious identity; Haman's intended genocide of the Jews replaced by redemption; Haman replaced by Mordechai; national and personal pessimism replaced by optimism.
The Rebirth Of The Yerach Ben Yomo: The Ishei Yisrael Siddur
Nowadays, stressing the shva na is an accepted and fairly common element in many siddurim. But when Ishei Yisrael appeared, it wasn’t common at all.
What are the Three Weeks & Tisha B’Av?
The Jewish national period of mourning.
From Sephardic Vienna To Israeli Tel Aviv: Tefilat Bnei Tziyon
The siddur had a number of versions from the outset – one of which was meant for schoolchildren – and at least one of which appears to have had an attached translation into Ladino, all sold in New York stores during WWI.
Cold Soup
If you ask someone coming out of church on a Sunday, "Do you believe in G-d?" the worshipper will be shocked.
"What type of question is that? Of course I do!"
The Religious Connection of the Jewish People to the Land of Israel
Though demography was not an exact science, Jews may have numbered several million in the early Roman Empire. For more than a century before...
Off The Derech (Part II)
Makom, a branch of the organization Jew In The City (JITC), was founded in 2014 by Allison Josephs, to help Jews who feel they no longer want to stay in their community of birth find a new community of choice – instead of leaving Judaism altogether in frustration.
The Teshuva Journey: Four For Four (Part One)
The four Stern children reported that the religious observances felt like just that: observances of a culture with little relevance to their modern lives.
Two Hundred Years Of High Holiday Prayers: The Machzor Rabba and Its Predecessors
This highly popular machzor was so widely accepted that it was even quoted in the writings of major poskim, including the Chasam Sofer.
Like Dominoes: Four Out Of Four (Part III)
“I liked Israel, and felt good being Jewish for the first time in my life.”
An Unorthodox Return To Orthodoxy
They built the community there. Some of their children hung around, but all of their grandchildren disappeared. They were lost to Judaism. You can’t hand down secular Judaism, bagels-and-lox Judaism, Ken said.
From Riches To Rags
Throughout his month in Israel, Kalman realized he had found his home, in the beis medrash and in Eretz Yisrael.
Why Do We Make Kiddush?
All of Shabbos centers around this one, primary idea: that we are enjoined to recall and internalize the fact that Hashem created the world in six days and rested on the seventh.
A Revolutionary Rabbinic Idea For Organ Donations
JERUSALEM – A leading Orthodox rabbi in Israel has a revolutionary proposal for the harvesting of organs from a clinically dead patient. At present, his proposal not only has no support from other rabbis, it is also against Israeli law – but he is not fazed.
The Moroccan Uniform Nusach? The Story of the Nachalat Avot Siddur
The siddur’s opening pages include an introduction by Rabbi Dr. Shlomo Toledano, who describes the uniqueness and ancient character of the Moroccan nusach, while addressing much broader historical processes, which are usually not to be found in conservative siddurim...
A Guide To Help You Daven The Right Way
In Israel, most people are more careful to stress the end of the word (what’s called “mil’ra”), where it usually belongs for Hebrew words.
New Tehillim Aims To Add Meaning To Rote Ritual
“Presentation is very important. Judaism is not necessarily appealing to a lot of people and you want to make it as attractive as possible,” said Rabbi Chaim Miller, founder of the Kol Menachem publishing house.
Back on the Field Again
Shlomo Veingrad has traveled further for his speaking engagements than even during his days in the NFL, crisscrossing America and speaking around the world.