RIBBI SAADIA BENZAQUEN: Rabbi of Rabbis
Some men are more angels than men. That was the case with Ribbi Saadia Benzaquen z”l, my first teacher. He led the beautiful synagogue...
Rabbi Shemuel Laniado (1530-1610) and the pearls beneath the fish
Rabbi Shemuel Laniado belonged to an ancient and prestigious family that descended from Spain. His paternal grandfather, who bore the same name, escaped from...
The Woman Who Discovered Rabbi Akiva
THE FATHER OF THE TALMUD
The Mishna, the Tosefta, the Sifra, and the Sifre, the seminal texts of rabbinical literature, have their origin directly or...
Minds and Stones
IS ANYONE POORER THAN ME?
Rachel, the daughter of Kalba Sabua, married Aqiba, one of her father's herdsmen, because she saw in him an enormous...
The infallible Segula of Abba Hilqiya
In the Gemara, Ta’anit 23a, the Rabbis describe the qualities a person must possess for their Tefilot (prayers) to be answered.
Around the year 100...
Why Is This Yom HaAtzmaut Different from All the Others?
Written in MAY 2025
OPENING YOUR EYES
This Yom HaAtzmaut we celebrate 77 years since the declaration of the independence of the State of Israel. And...
Rabbi Hayim haCohen (1585-1655) and the pirates who stole books
Rabbi Hayim haCohen was born in Egypt in 1585. His father, Ribbi Abraham haCohen, belonged to a distinguished family of Cohanim, descendants of Don...
Declaration of Independence (May 14, 5 Iyar, 1948)
A MOST DIFFICULT DECISION
The British were to leave the territory of Palestine on May 15 at midnight. The Jewish leaders planned to announce the...
What Did The Prophet Zekharia See?
Look closely at this picture. Do you see anything special? Just children playing . Right? Well, not so fast…
This is the Old City of...
YOM HAATZMAUT: What did Isaiah see?
מִי-אֵלֶּה, כָּעָב תְּעוּפֶינָה וְכַיּוֹנִים, אֶל-אֲרֻבֹּתֵיהֶם
There will be those who will flying like clouds, and like doves to their nests
The Tora predicted that the...
