Chanukah: Re-Examining Our Ideological Battle Against the Greeks

Ideally,nthe physical wisdom of the Greeks and Yefes are to reside within the tent of Shem, for science and the wisdom of the world to be in harmony with Torah. The problem occurred when the Greeks tried to destroy the Torah, which contradicted their ideology, and the Jews were forced to fight for their beliefs. This was the battle of Chanukah.

Moral Ambiguity: The Parable Of The Tribes

Who was in the right and who in the wrong are left conspicuously undecided in the text.

Reject The Philosopher In Your Heart

While the non-Jewish world may need to engage in philosophical speculation in order to root out bad ideas, Rebbe Nachman assures us we need not do this.

Striking Gold

Although he felt the town was receptive to greater spiritual influence, Rabbi Gold says that aside from the physical and spiritual considerations, however, was the much greater problem of trying to find money to open a religious school, his first project.

Days To Come

Since last year around the time of Passover, when all the country closed down for the first time, there was a feeling in the air that something big was going to happen. Many thought perhaps the redemption finally came and we will all be redeemed.

Rabbi Soloveitchik and his Paradoxical Influence: An Answer to a Friend

Rabbi Cardozo responds to a letter concerning his article on Rav Soloveitchik (zt"l)

Five Minutes

The fact that I was in a hurry made me think I should just take the card from him and open it for him.

Reach For The Stars

We know that middah tova is meruba – good measure is greater than the measure of evil.

The Rebbe And Hakhel

As a suggestion to our readers, let us visualize that the Rebbe is sitting at a farbrengen in 770 on Parshas Vayakhel 5752. The Rebbe knew what we did not – that this would be the last Shabbos farbrengen for a while – until we meet again.

Believe In God

Bitachon is not measured by your success in climbing over the gate. Bitachon is measured by your response upon seeing the gate – whether you grimace and give up, or whether you appreciate that God has put the gate there for your ultimate benefit.

Friendship Fix

When we finally yet inevitably bit the proverbial bullet and introduced ourselves to one another, we discovered that we had multiple connections in common, including mutual friends and close family members.

Corona Gifts

The day after a wedding is not the best day to get a new air conditioning unit as we were still recovering from all of the wedding expenses, predictable and otherwise.

Prayer: The Priestly Or The Prophetic?

The sedrah of Tetzaveh, in which the name of Moses is missing and the focus is on Aaron, reminds us that our heritage derives from both. Moses is a man of history, of epoch-making events.

Tummy Time

As I was sitting at the computer writing about my dream baby, I suddenly wondered, "Where is she? She is too quiet." So I turned around to see what she was doing. I had left her sitting behind me with toys to keep her busy, and she had been playing nicely. As she was no longer there I went to look for her, and found her happily sitting on the bathroom floor, surrounded by a pile of ripped tissues. Okay, back to my story. Now you might wonder who "they" are. It's those folks who come up to me and say that my baby's feet are cold without socks; her head is baking in the sun without a hat; she's too hot with that blanket over her. Oh, the joys of living in Israel, where we are all family.

The Gates Of Righteousness

We live in a world that is often too cruel and unkind. Living in Israel for the last 30 years, I have attended too many funerals for those whose lives were taken through incomprehensible acts of terror. During the years of the second intifada there were many days that I found it impossible to continue teaching, as a student would burst into my classroom and announce that there had been another terrorist attack. How could I just go on with a regular lesson when lives were lost?

A Humbling Lesson (Part II)

The enormity of Hiram’s accomplishments crazed him and deluded him into self-deification.

Hierarchy And Politics: The Never-Ending Story

Where there is hierarchy, there will be competition as to who is the alpha male.

Self-Sacrifice

Mordechai was all she had – he was her family. And now she must live apart from him forever. Why?

Aah, The Wonders Of Passover

I think there were actually two criminals in my apartment that night, a man and a woman.

How to Give

These stories all have to do with the mitzvah of tzedakah whose source is in this week’s parshah.

Sincerity Counts

When someone loves something or someone, he will feel compelled to do all that he can for that thing or that person, even if it will not actually make a difference.

Love And Pain

The opposite ends of love and joy, to pain and sorrow are great. We tend to live somewhere in the middle between great joy and great pain.

Traveling With Grace

Edy turned around and saw that her sister was trapped underneath the trolley that had rolled on top of her.

Share The Worries Of Your Heart

Worries have been around since the beginning of time. How we react is the only thing that really changes.

Name That Door

I knew the exact address was one of three buildings. I would just look for this unique family name on those three buildings’ entrances and I would find where to go. But just at that moment my mind froze, and I couldn’t think what that unique name was.

Our Beloved Land

We must also stop on this very special day and say is that all? Is that all Hashem wants from us, to return home and that’s it?

Thank You, Mr. President

First, even had the president actually said something reprehensible, is it our job to reprimand him? Is that in the charter statements of these organizations?

Seeking Completion

After banning Jews from being augurs, diviners, sorcerers, and necromancers, the Torah commands that one should be “tamim with G-d” (Deut. 18:13).

The Ethic Of Holiness

This week’s Torah portion marks the first time we encounter the idea of a hereditary elite within the Jewish people

With Hashem’s Help

Once I found the correct hole, the pipe was easily snapped into place and I felt like a conquering hero (with Hashem’s help, of course). Throughout the whole procedure, I asked for His help and he led me to a positive outcome.

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