My Personal Shofar Blower
Rosh Hashanah memories take us to our shuls, homes and families. They remind us of promises made about how we would change our lives and rearrange our priorities. There may also be memories of the delicacies we ate when we were children – the chicken soup, gefilte fish and great desserts. And one sound, the sound of the shofar blasting away with its shrill notes of tekiah, shevarim... and finally the long, very last sound – the tekiah gedolah.
Daf Yomi
Appreciating His Infinite Mercy
‘I Am He Before The Person Sins…’
(Rosh Hashanah 17b)
Five Terms Of Endearment – So Why Only Four Cups Of Wine?
The number four seems to play a major role in the Pesach Seder. We have four questions, four sons, four terms of endearment and, of course, one of the major features we soon will be enjoying – the drinking of four cups of wine.
Tricked Into Paying Back (Shulchan Aruch, Choshen Mishpat 79:4)
If he had known that witnesses were present who might subsequently contradict him, he would not have acted in this manner, he says – but he didn’t know.
Saving A Life
Hashem has put me in the right place at the exact time. It was a true miracle.
Transformations
Whether it's cabbage or Kohenic clothing,the recipe of colors Scarlet, Purple, and Turquoise render impressive results.
Shabbos Mevorchim Elul
The summer season we pined for on those dreary, shivery winter days is all but coming to a close. What better way for reality to sink in than the call of the shofar that wrests us from our repose on the first of Elul, reminding us that we have serious work ahead. Luckily we get thirty days to pull ourselves together, so that we have a leg to stand on when we petition Hashem on the Yom HaDin to grant us mechila for our shortcomings of the past year.
Two Days Rosh Hashanah, Eruvin, And Eggs
From this decree on, the two days of Rosh Hashanah – unlike the two days of Pesach, Shavuot, and Sukkot – were no longer celebrated out of doubt but out of certainty.
Purim Is Not Jewish Halloween!
Is the way we celebrate Purim the ideal way to spiritually experience it?
Redeeming Relevance in the Weekly Parsha: Noach
Our intentions are critical in raising children because they mimic everything we parents do & think
Don’t Lose Focus
A tragedy occurred. Jews were targeted and murdered because they were Jews. Our focus should not be who indirectly caused this to transpire.
Let’s Make A Deal
Ramban interprets Korban as self-sacrifice, each Jew should attempt to recreate Akeidas Yitzchak.
What Can A Few Do?
What would you do if you were confronted with a seemingly insoluble problem? Would you give up? Would you say, "Let someone else solve it; it's beyond me?"
The Baggage Weighing Down Our Singles
While Orthodox singles are more insulated from cultural influences, it has had an impact. The questions remain: Why can’t singles get married? What went wrong? Is it 'external influences'?
Q & A: Tu B’Shevat: The Hidden, The Revealed
Question: Why is Tu B’Shevat, known as the New Year for Trees, in the middle of the month and not at the beginning of the month – like all other New Years?
Pesach Bernstein
(Via E-Mail)
Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles): Guide for the Perplexed, 2017
The temporary structure of the Sukkah highlights the historical significance of the permanent Jewish State in the Land of Israel Chag Sameach!
Shema Yisrael
Question: What is the message behind the most famous statement of Jewish faith: “Shema Yisrael”?
Shabbos: A Day With Hashem: Hashem Loves Me
Not only do we accept You as our King, it is our greatest desire that the name of Your Kingdom be spread throughout the entire universe.
Q & A: Bibliographical Oddities Regarding Parshas Parah
The Shulchan Aruch (Hilchos Chanukah, 685:7) writes that some authorities maintain that there is a biblical obligation to read Parshas Zachor and Parshas Parah.
Carrying Both Pain And Faith
Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, is a kind of clarion call, a summons to the Ten Days of Penitence that culminate in the Day of Atonement. The Torah calls it “the day when the horn is sounded,” and its central event is the sounding of the shofar.
Coincidences And Happenings
To this day, this true story makes the hairs on my neck stand up straight. It’s a story whereby too many “coincidences” just “happened.”
Rosh Chodesh: It Isn’t Just For Women
I take umbrage with the perspective that this is a "woman's holiday."