Meir Panim: Lighting Up Life for Israel’s Neediest Residents Across Israel, Meir Panim responds to the growing needs of the country’s 1.75 million impoverished residents through various food and social service programs.
Posted on: August 9th, 2012
Judaism → Columns → Lessons In EmunahI was going crazy. I couldn’t stand it another minute. Yes, I was feeling sorry for myself. I had been blessed, b’li ayin hara, with children very close in age. Surely having one child after the other was a blessing to be grateful for. I knew there were many people who would give a million dollars to have such a “problem.” But still, it was very stressful. But that wasn’t the hardest part, and it wasn’t the main reason for my feelings of despair.
Posted on: August 9th, 2012
Judaism → Rebbetzin's ViewpointThis week I will share some of my own thoughts on the subject.
Posted on: August 9th, 2012
Judaism → ParshaSomething implicit in the Torah from the very beginning becomes explicit in the book of Devarim. God is the God of love. More than we love Him, He loves us. Here, for instance, is the beginning of this week’s parshah: “If you pay attention to these laws and are careful to follow them, then the Lord your God will keep his covenant of love [et ha-brit ve-et ha-chessed] with you, as he swore to your ancestors. He will love you and bless you and increase your numbers” (Deuteronomy 7:12-13).
Parshas VaEschanan: ‘Wholeheartedly’
Posted on: August 3rd, 2012
Judaism → ParshaHarav Matisyahu Salomon, the Lakewood Mashgiach, once related the following personal story: “When I was a young man I was a student in the Gateshead Yeshiva. The yeshiva had a 125 students - not large quantitatively, but qualitatively tremendous. The building was fairly small and the tables were so narrow that the volumes of Gemara overlapped each other. If a student wanted to turn the page he had to ask everyone around him to lift their Gemaras first. Yet despite it all we studied with tremendous diligence.
Posted on: August 3rd, 2012
Judaism → ParshaWe’ve all seen the ads in the papers. Shabbos Nachamu is one of the biggest getaway weekends of the entire “frum” summer. There has long been a long-standing American tradition for people to go up to the mountains for Shabbos Nachamu.
Posted on: August 3rd, 2012
Judaism → Halacha & HashkafaA Hadran On Shas ‘Tam V’nishlam’ (Niddah 73a)
Q & A: Chazzan And Congregation (Part X)
Posted on: August 3rd, 2012
Judaism → Ask the RabbiQuestion: I understand that at a minyan, the chazzan is required to repeat Shemoneh Esreh out loud so that people who may not know how to daven can fulfill their obligation to daven with the chazzan’s repetition. What, however, should the chazzan do when he reaches Kedushah and Modim? I hear some chazzanim say every word of Kedushah out loud and some only say the last part of the middle two phrases out loud. As far as the congregation is concerned, I hear some congregants say every word of Kedushah and some say only the last part. Finally, some chazzanim and congregants say Modim during chazaras hashatz out loud and some say it quietly. What is the source for these various practices? A Devoted Reader (Via E-Mail)
The Proper Times For Reciting Shema
Posted on: August 1st, 2012
Judaism → Halacha & HashkafaThere is a fundamental difference between the times set for reciting the Shema and all other prayers. Whereas our sages linked the times for prayers to the times of the Temple sacrifices, the time for reciting Shema is fixed by the Torah itself – “beshochbechah uvekumechah” – when you lie down and when you get up.
Posted on: August 1st, 2012
Judaism → ParshaNear the end of Parshas Va’etchanan, so inconspicuously that we can sometimes miss it, is a statement with such far-reaching implications that it challenges the impression that has prevailed thus far in the Torah, giving an entirely new complexion to the biblical image of the people Israel:
Posted on: August 1st, 2012
Judaism → Columns → Lessons In EmunahThe day following our oldest daughter’s wedding in Eretz Yisrael was the day we had planned for my husband to return to his job in the U.S. I was staying for another week in Israel with the rest of our children and my dear mother in order to participate in the remaining wedding celebrations.
Posted on: August 1st, 2012
Judaism → ParshaIn this week’s parshah Moshe Rabbeinu recounts ma’mad Har Sinai – the giving of the Torah on Har Sinai. Additionally, the Torah warns us earlier in the parshah not to forget the revelation that we witnessed at Har Sinai, for as the pasuk says: “Only beware for yourself and greatly beware for your soul, lest you forget the things that your eyes have seen and lest you remove them from your heart all the days of your life, and make them known to your children and your children’s children” (Devarim 4:9).
Renewing The Face Of The Earth
Posted on: August 1st, 2012
Judaism → TorahI sleep every Tisha B’Av night on a narrow cushion in front of the Me’aras HaMachpelah in Hebron. I do this because the following chiddush came to me many years ago: When the spies went to Israel, the pasuk says “vayavo ad Chevron” – “and he came until Hebron.” He instead of they. Rashi says only Calev ben Yefuneh went to Hebron, to pray to Avraham Avinu that he not fall for the plan of the spies.
Posted on: August 1st, 2012
Judaism → Rebbetzin's ViewpointMy previous two columns focused on the fragmentation that has affected one frum family. Many readers may consider the story described to be a rare occurrence. I wish this would be the case. To be sure, each family crisis is its own unique tragedy, but the common thread of hatred is always there.
Posted on: July 29th, 2012
Judaism → HolidaysA few years ago, I happened to be in Los Angeles for the fast of Tisha B'Av. Towards the end of the fast, between afternoon and evening prayers, the rabbi of the shul asked if I could say a few words to the congregation to explain the significance of the holy day and the fast.
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Caring For Our Parents: A Child’s Hardest Job
Posted on: July 27th, 2012
Judaism → TorahThey say that one mother can take care of five children, but five children cannot take care of one mother. One of the most challenging situations, and perhaps the most unnatural, is when children need to take care of aging or infirm parents. Why is this so difficult and why do so many of us fail at caring for our parents when they need us most?
Posted on: July 27th, 2012
Judaism → Halacha & HashkafaMr. Blank worked through the summer, so his family stayed in the city. "It would be nice to get away to the country for a weekend," his wife suggested.
When Tisha B’Av Occurs On Shabbat Or Sunday
Posted on: July 26th, 2012
Judaism → Halacha & HashkafaFive tragedies occurred on Tisha B’Av. It was decreed that those who left Egypt would not enter the land of Israel, the first and second Temples were destroyed, the city of Betar was captured with thousands massacred, and Turnus Rufus plowed the site of the razed Temple. Consequently, Tisha B’Av was declared a day of national mourning and a fast day.
Posted on: July 26th, 2012
Judaism → Halacha & HashkafaSorrow And Joy ‘Proclaim Your Troubles So That Your Friends Pray For You’ (Niddah 66a)
Printed from: http://www.jewishpress.com/judaism/jewish-columns/lessons-in-emunah/spiritual-dna-and-the-observance-of-shabbos/2013/08/07/
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Upcoming Changes in the Government, an Insider’s Perspective
