Tag: Judaism
Live from Jerusalem: ‘Teacher and preacher’ program bridges chasm between Jew and Christian
What happens when a devout Christian minister and equally devout Orthodox Jew 9,000 miles apart wrestle with the most sensitive of subjects, while 100,000 people across the country eavesdrop?
They discover is that their two...
Parashat Terumah תְּרוּמָה
In the word “Terumah” ("תרומה") we find a hint of things to come within a certain time period. The word Terumah conceals the word Torah ("תורה") and the letter “Mem” (“מ”) which is 40...
The business of saving Jewish lives, one kidney at a time
Avi Shafar, a 40-year-old man from Teaneck, N.J., went to Montefiore Hospital in the Bronx last week and donated his kidney to someone he had never met. Immediately after transplantation, within a couple of...
The Grand Showdown Over Women “Rabbis”
It was June 2009, and Rabbi Avi Weiss, along with Bar-Ilan University Professor Daniel Sperber, had just conferred upon Sara Hurwitz the title “Maharat,” a phrase coined by Weiss for “Manhigah Halachatit Ruchanit Toranit,”...
Today is Tu BiShvat
Every winter, just as we start to think about spring, a minor holiday comes along. Minor enough that not all of us know what it means or how it came to be.
Tu Bishvat first...
Parashat Beshalach בְּשַׁלַּח
This Parasha has a very odd opening verse; it basically states that HaShem was worried that Bnei-Yisrael might go back to Egypt upon the prospect of war. The Torah writes that Pharaoh “sent” the...
Liberal Judaism to produce first new Siddur since 1995
Liberal Judaism has published its first new draft Shabbat service in more than two decades, as it begins a year-long process to produce a new Siddur.
The new Siddur will be the movement’s first since...
Parashat Bo – בֹּא
In this Parasha we learn about the three remaining plagues brought upon Pharaoh and his nation, once again to repay a “Midah KeNeged Midah" (“מידה כנגד מידה“), measure for measure punishment for what they...
The process of conversion is tied to community life
As a small-town synagogue president, I field a lot of very interesting calls. I’ve talked to parents who are worried about their kids going to school far away from home, to such an un-Jewish...
Parashat Va’Eira וָאֵרָא
Moshe is seventy-nine years old at this point in time (will be 80 on 7th of Adar) and Aaron is eighty-three years old; According to Miriam’s prophecy, Moshe will be eighty years old when...