When G-d first spoke to Avraham and commanded him to leave his homeland and move to what would become known as the Land of Israel, He made several promises, including, “Va’abarechecha Mebarecheka, U’mekelelcha A’or” – “I shall bless those who...
Life comes with both good days and challenging ones. While we are blessed, at times we are tested. Pirkei Avos teaches “Asara nisyonos nisnassoh Avraham Avinu, Our father, Avraham, was tested ten times, v’omad b’kulam,...
An old Jewish lady sold pretzels on a street corner for 25 cents each. Every day a young well- dressed man would leave his office building at lunch time, and as he passed the pretzel stand, he would...
When my cousin’s daughter asked me to officiate her wedding in Israel the week after Sukkos, how could I say no? Her mother, my beloved first cousin, passed away at a young age from cancer. She loved Israel...
I. Teaching Torah G r a n d p a r e n t s fulfill a unique mitzvah by teaching their descendants Torah. The Gemara (Kiddushin 30a) offers someone named Zevulun ben Dan as an example of the...
The first pasuk in Parashat Noach describes him as an Ish Tzaddik – “righteous man,” and also as Tamim, which means “pure,” or “innocent.” Later, however, we read that when Hashem brought the flood, He told Noach...
The sequence of expression in the opening pasukim of our parsha [Bereishis 6:9-10] is noteworthy. The Torah begins “And these are the offspring of Noach” (Eleh toldos Noach), which would lead us to expect that we will be immediately told...
As the entire world was about to be destroyed by the great mabul, the flood, the only means of escape was to get passage on Noach’s ark. Only those who maintained absolute morality were given a coveted berth...
The nusach of Yizkor, is “ Compassionate Father Who dwells in heaven.” Also, at a levayah, people say, “ Hashem Who is full of compassion and dwells in heaven.” Why do we mention in these tefillos that Hashem dwells in...
Q: Can one buy unflavored hot coffee both regular and/or decaf from any non-kosher establishment such as Starbucks or a Dunkin Donuts without a hechsher? This is a very complicated question. I often see people...