Salek Discovers Apt
Whereas Salek's father's appearance was rather modern for that period - sporting only a short beard, just like his cousins - his grandfather, Avrohom Orenstein, had a flowing beard and wore a shtreimel on Shabbos.
The Rubashkin Saga – IX
While we rejoice at the recent release of Shalom Mordechai Rubashkin from prison, the series continues this month and beyond.
Reb Elimelech M’Lizhensk (Part II)
The parents of Reb Elimelech M’Lizhensk, Eliezer Lipman and his pious wife, Mirish, emanated from families that could trace their lineage all the way back to Rashi, Rav Yochanan Hasandlar of Talmudic fame and even King David. They lived in the townlet of Lapachi, not far from Tiktin.
Look Inside Before Condemning Others
The end of the story is that my wife and family are pleased with the new oven. (This was pretty much a win-win as the old oven barely cooked, and anything with a functional heating element would have been an improvement.)
The Rubashkin Saga – V
These PETA people are not Orthodox Jews. So, why would they so strongly criticize a kosher packing plant for what they believe to be violations of kosher practice? They are using tactics similar to the Nazis.
A Brand-New Perspective
The Jewish Press has made great and important changes in recent months. Now it’s my column’s turn: “Chodesh Tov” will also undergo some revision. First, it has a new name, and second, a new focus. I am proud to report that the author (yours truly) will remain constant.
The Belzer Rebbe’s Flight To Freedom
Beginning in the tiny Galician town of Belz, Rabbi Aharon Rokeach, better known as the Belzer Rebbe, maintained his chassidic court despite the constant danger.
Jewish Practice In The U.S. Military (IX)
The ongoing legal saga of whether Dr. Simcha Goldman could wear his yarmulke while serving in the US Air Force
Reb Elimelech M’Lizhensk (Part X)
To the misnaged-opponent, chassidus was not perceived as a different strand of normative Judaism, nor as a movement to uplift downtrodden Jews – but as an existential threat to Judaism itself. And the threat was no longer viewed as a futuristic potentiality; it was a real and imminent danger, for the movement was no longer limited to just the commoner but had infiltrated the ranks of scholars.
When You Give You Get
Just days before the celebrations, the situation had all the makings of a powder keg that would inevitably leave one family, and particularly one young man, feeling slighted and deprived.
The Accusations Against Israel Exact A Price
Ultimately, the IRS admitted that the true reason Z Street and other organizations were selected for special scrutiny was because their viewpoints on Israel conflicted with that of the Obama Administration.
Friendship To The Rescue
The United States was convinced that Israel could never prevail against so many Arabs and feared that U.S. troops would be called in to save Israel.
Jewish Practice In The U.S. Military (X)
Goldman's case would be the first time the Supreme Court considered a service member’s right of Free Exercise as protected by the First Amendment of the Constitution.
The Rubashkin Saga (Part II)
With the opening of Agri in 1987, Postville was beset with what the locals dubbed, “The Jewish Invasion.” The arrival of the Jews caused a local polarization.
Reb Elimelech M’Lizhensk (Part I)
Just when it seemed that the Jews could never recover from the ruinous events of the 17th and 18th centuries, their plight was worsened yet, by even heavier taxes imposed by the Polish government.
Guard Your Influence (I)
No year will exceed the seminary year in influencing the development of these young women.
A Successive Tribute To Lion of Justice Norman Rosenbaum, z”l (Part 3)
Norman Rosenbaum was the only one in his family up to making the trans-world trip and accepting the challenge.
Jewish Practice In The U.S. Military (I)
The story of Air Force Chaplain Rabbi Geller's options concerning his beard: "Either you go to the barber shop or you go to jail."
Jewish Practice In The U.S. Military (II)
Mitchell Geller was inducted as a Jewish chaplain; a rabbi and a beard go hand in hand. To tell a rabbi to take off his beard would be akin to telling a Catholic Father to remove his collar.
Breakfast And Happiness (Part V)
So goes the story about a man in the silly town of Chelm who visited a public bathhouse and found himself in a terrible predicament. Without the distinction of clothing, everyone looked alike. “Among all these men who look alike,” he said to himself, “how will I ever know which one is me?” He solved his dilemma by tying a red string around his big toe.
The Ever-Amazing Reb Elimelech (Part XIV)
As has been noted in a previous column, Reb Elimelech – like the Baal Shem Tov before him – asserted that pessimism and depression cause sin and spiritual apathy. Repentance (yes, even repentance!) that causes depression and sadness distances the Holy Presence.
The Breakfast Of Champions (Part III)
With absolutely nothing to lose, including his employment for the coming year, Dan Zweifel devised a strategy for a team that could not seem to catch an offensive rhythm and for players that had protracted shooting slumps and 10-minute-long droughts. His solution, his only recourse, was defense.
Weaponizing Government Agencies Against Israel
In a 2010 Tablet Magazine piece, Lee Smith described how the U.S. counter-intelligence community took up the failed, decades-long effort by media and academics to undermine solid American support for Israel by criminalizing legitimate, pro-Israel advocacy in Washington...
Guard Your Influence (Conclusion)
It is quite a mind-shift to look at your life from the future. This entails thinking about your greatest legacy, how will one be remembered?
The Breakfast Of Champions (Part I)
Dear Readers:
You may remember how we once did an experiment with a story (about a monster fire in Arizona) without Jewish protagonists, but containing a universal lesson that I believed worthy to record for the readers of Chodesh Tov. We are there yet again, this time directly north in Wisconsin.
Please bear with me as we once again record a story we investigated in the hope that the lesson is unique and worthy of our attention. It is going to take us five full columns to complete the tale, and I thank you in advance for your patience.
Reb Elimelech M’Lizhensk (Part VI)
The popularity of the rise of chassidus did not go unnoticed by those who did not share the same allegiance. As long as the movement was limited to the commoner and isolated in a few pockets of Poland no one perceived it as a threat. But all of this had changed by 1772.
The Ultimate (Heartfelt) Improbable Tale
According to the information that he was given, his good friend from Auschwitz, Yozo Weiss, was now a taxi driver in Tel Aviv! Lonely Latzi just had to find Yozo.
One Mitzvah Leads To Another
Our story takes place in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan in 2014. What?! You never heard of Sault Ste. Marie? The very town of legendary native American fur trapper Ozhaguscodaywayquay.
Jewish Practice In The U.S. Military (III)
Dr. Goldman went from testifying as an expert witness to being the defendant. Could it have been because of his yamulke?
Jewish Practice In The U.S. Military (VI)
The Air Force’s defense was that the Constitution only protected a genuine religious law; not a personal preference. Wearing a yarmulke, they argued, was not the law.