Featured Articles
The “Hypocrisy of Chanukah”
An Open Letter to a Reconstructionist Brother
This column is different than all my others. But I couldn’t help it. Could you ignore a New...
Shabbos Rosh Chanukah: The Mysterious Segulah of Three Parshiyos
This Shabbos, an abundance of kedusha is coming our way. As with all such gifts, we must prepare properly for this present from above...
A Matter of Perspective That Can Change Your Life
You know the story of the couple who went to the therapist. The husband had all kinds of claims against his wife: The house...
Long Live the Bones
One can never cease to be amazed at the gadlus haBorei and the astonishing genius with which He created the world. “How great are...
Reconnecting Our Siddur and Ourselves
Sometimes, we tend to ignore the obvious. Perhaps this, too, is obvious. One obvious example (there seems to be a pattern here) is our...
A Chesed for Generations
He was one of the giants of spirit, a hero amongst his people. Like Avrohom Avinu, he had the letter hey added to his...
Politics, Bad Middos and Daas Torah
Mention of Trump is Enough to Set Off a Holy War
There is almost nothing like politics to inflame passion. In today’s America, just the...
Our Sin of Kafuy Tovah Toward President Trump
Our eternally wise Torah teaches us many middos. Sometimes, the focus is on the positive, illustrating which character traits to embrace and emulate. At...
The Great Highway From Reward to Lishmah
We have often pointed out in these pages that Chazal were light years ahead of modern science even thousands of years ago. Rav Dovid...
Never, Ever Give Up
Emunah and Bitachon. From Rav Saadya Gaon to the Chazon Ish, our sages have written about faith and trust in Hashem. Our gedolim and...
Creating a Tidal Wave of Beautiful Words and Deeds
Last week, in these pages, we discussed the niggun of the Torah and Jewish speech in general. This week, we will focus on the...
Escape Tunnel Reveals Shocking History of Vilna Jews
For almost 70 years, the fabled tunnel in the heart of Lithuania lay in that misty region between rumor and reality.
Survivors spoke of it...
The True Mystery of “Rabbi Voice”
In the rush of pre-Yom Tov reading, an interesting recent secular article may have gotten lost. Coming on Erev Rosh Hashanah, I doubt any...
The Sukkos Symphony of Joy
What exactly is the great joy of Sukkos? What differentiates it from all the other Yomim Tovim? Let us explore five approaches to these...
Teshuvah: Delete or Overwrite?
The Chofetz Chaim famously taught that Hashem gave mankind the wisdom to come up with many modern inventions for the purpose of strengthening our...
Pomegranate Swirl Bundt Cake
The pomegranate syrup is slightly tart, adding an acidic spin to this cake. This cake pairs perfectly with fruit or a sorbet. Any extra...
It’s Elul- Smile!
The Sinking Feeling…
“Elul is so hard,” was the way one yeshiva bochur framed it.
Wherever you are and whoever you are, the transition from the...
Know Your Enemy
The other day, when paused at a red light, I found myself facing a bumper sticker attached to the car in front of me....
A Cry In the Wilderness; When the Rabbis Marched on Washington
More than seven decades have passed since the 1943 historic Rabbis March on Washington, when over 400 rabbis tearfully approached the White House to...
Elul Lessons from Secretarial School
One of the hallmarks of a wise person is that he learns from everything and everyone (Pirkei Avos 4:1). The Ozerover Rebbe (Be’er Moshe,...