IN THE BEGINNING: What Happened During the Second Day of Creation?
One of the least understood topics in the Biblical story of the creation of the world is what happened on the second day of...
A Yom Kippur Preparation
We are only a few days away from Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, the most important day of the year for a Jewish...
ELUL: How Can You Tell That You Are Awake?
בֶּן אָדָם מַה לְּךָ נִרְדָּם
Today is the second day of the month of Elul. We are less than 40 days away from Yom Kippur,...
King David describes the ideal Jew
.מזְמוֹר, לְדָוִד ה’ מִי יָגוּר בְּאָהֳלֶךָ מִי יִשְׁכֹּן בְּהַר קָדְשֶׁךָ
הוֹלֵךְ תָּמִים, וּפֹעֵל צֶדֶק וְדֹבֵר אֱמֶת בִּלְבָבוֹ.
לא-רָגַל עַל-לְשֹׁנוֹ לֹא-עָשָׂה לְרֵעֵהוּ רָעָה וְחֶרְפָּה לֹא נָשָׂא עַל-קְרֹבוֹ
נבְזֶה...
WE, THE RABBIS. Inspired by Mr. Al Gindi’s letter.
Yesterday I got an email from the president of my community, and my good friend, Mr. Albert Laboz. The email had an attachment: a letter...
Remembering Jerusalem in celebrations and social events
Previously, we explained that the Sages who lived during the generation in which the Bet haMiqdash was destroyed instituted certain Rabbinical decrees (taqanot) —certain...
POST 9 AB: The delicate balance between mourning and celebration
After the destruction of the Second Temple, year 68 of the common era, a new and more difficult situation started for the people of...
6. The Falling Of Betar, a 9th of Ab Story
אמרו חז"ל (איכה רבא פ"ב סי 'ה) על בן כוזיבא ואנשיו: ובשעה שהיו יוצאין למלחמה היו אומרים לא תסעוד ולא תסכיף
As we have already...
5. The Bar Kokhba Rebellion and the Falling of Betar (130-135)
בתשעה באב נגזר על אבותינו שלא ייכנסו לארץ וחרב הבית בראשונה ובשניה ונלכדה בית תור ונחרשה העיר
Last week I wrote about one of the...
1. What happened after the destruction of Jerusalem? (68-129 EC)
The 9th of Ab is the day of the national mourning of the Jewish people. As we explained in previous years, the first reason...
What happened on the 17 of Tamuz?
This coming Sunday, July 21, 2019, is a day of public fasting (תענית ציבור) that commemorates the 17th of Tammuz. On that day we...
Honoring our parents, when they are no longer with us
The Sages explained that the commandment to honor our parents continues beyond this life. This idea, in the first place, helps us to understand a...
Humility and Leadership in the Jewish People
Ancient civilizations admired the physical power of their leaders (Hercules); their military wit (Alexander the Great), or their cunning (Hermes). Humility never deserved to...
Our Parents Dignity
כבד את אביך ואת אמך
When our parents are older and depend on us, we must pay close attention to maintaining their dignity while taking...
How do we Honor our Parents?
כבד את אביך ואת אמך
We will see now some examples of how to honor our parents
NAMING OF OUR CHILDREN
Naming our children with our parents...
Rabbi Refael Aharon Ben Shimon and the Ashkenazi community of Cairo
Rabbi Refael Aharon ben Shimon was born in Rabat, Morocco in 1847. His father and main teacher was Rabbi David ben Shimon. In 1854...
Who is behind Trump, Putin, Cyrus?
ובשנת אחת לכורש מלך פרס לכלות דבר ה' בפי ירמיה העיר ה' את רוח כורש
VICTORY DAY
May 9, 1945 Nazi Germany capitulates and signs its surrender to the...
HATSIPOREN: The Perfume of the Sea
בּוֹרִית כַּרְשִׁינָא לְמָה הִיא בָאָה כְּדֵי לְשַׁפּוֹת בָּהּ אֶת הַצִּפּוֹרֶן כְּדֵי שֶׁתְּהֵא נָאָה. יֵין קַפְרִיסִין לְמָה הוּא בָא כְּדֵי לִשְׁרוֹת בּוֹ אֶת הַצִּפּוֹרֶן כְּדֵי...
HATSORI: The Perfume of the Messiah
רַבָּן שִׁמְעון בֶּן גַּמְלִיאֵל אומֵר: הַצֳּרִי אֵינו אֶלָּא שְׁרָף הַנּוטֵף מֵעֲצֵי הַקְּטָף
A few days ago we talked about the Qetoret, the incense that used...
