Article
Qitniyoth – a Qaraite Custom?
Most people know that Ashkenazi Jews do not eat Qitniyoth – rice, millet, lentils, beans, corn and legumes – during Passover. Few…
Al-HaNissim for Yom Ha’Assmauth
The Talmud (Pesahim 117a) informs us that the Hallel prayer “was instituted by the Prophets to be said by the Jewish People…
Nusah Erets Yisrael
By Rav Bar-Hayim The Origins of the Siddur 2,500 years ago, after having been driven into exile by the Babylonian emperor Nevukhadnessar,…
Going Nowhere Fast
Israel is lost and directionless. Its political leaders lack vision and aspire to nothing. Judaism is lost and directionless. Its rabbinical leaders…
Think Big
Revisionist leader Ze’ev Jabotinsky once illustrated his criticism of mainstream Zionism with the following analogy: “I saw a man limping down the…
Cheeseburgers and the Bet HaMiqdash
A student of mine recently sent me a link to a passionate discussion about the propriety of eating kosher cheeseburgers. The arguments…
Rosh HaShanna – A Holiday in Transition
Rosh HaShanna is currently celebrated throughout the world for two consecutive days, but has this always been the case? According to Rabbi…
One Nation or Many Communities?
“Do you know the song “Am Yisrael Hai”? Of course you do. We have all sung it many times. Nevertheless, it does…
Crisis in Blue
When, as a teenager, my father used to tell me that he did not like me wearing jeans, I usually asked: “Why…
Hannukah — Getting the Point
Why do we Jews celebrate Hannukah? What’s it all about? Many of us tend to concentrate on Questions such as whether to…