The eighteenth century saw a massive questioning of the issue of daily Birkat Kohanim. On the one hand, no one really remembered why it had started. (We have access to documents that were not generally available at that time.) On the other hand,...
When I lived in Israel, I was once invited to Shabbat dinned at the home of a young Yemenite rabbi, of the type that follows the rulings of RAMBAM completely (there are five distinct Yemenite groups, with different ideologies and practices) When...
I rarely comment online about Jewish topics, because everyone thinks they know, and is ready for a fight. I tend to forget that things that are obvious to me, are far from most people's awareness. To illustrate, just over a year ago, someone...
Rabbi Yechiel Michel Epstein (1829-1908) was a man of great learning and integrity, with the ability to bridge chasms that appeared unbridgeable. Although the animosity against Hassidism and Hassidim that dated back to the Eighteenth century had...
Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan (1839-1933) was, by all accounts, a man of piety, humility and of the highest ethics. He is universally know as Chafetz Chaim, after the name of one of his books on ethics, especially the avoidance of slander and gossip....
There is a popular meme that one often sees on Facebook, that I find deeply offensive. It reads "This is what the World Owes You...", followed by a blank page. Needless to say, care must be taken that no one swindles or takes unfair advantage of...
The English word "charity" is full of resentful and downright hateful connotations. We have already seen that "charity", in Hebrew (Tzedakah) means "justice". In the Jerusalem Talmud, charity is simply called "Mitzvah". Hebrew is not alone in...
(Ketubot 67b) Our Rabbis taught: If an orphan applied for assistance to marry, a house must be rented for him, a bed must be prepared for him and [he must also be supplied with] all [household] objects [required for] his use, and then he is given...
In 1992, my daughter, Nechami, took seriously ill with bacterial meningitis, one day after her second birthday. This was, of course, a very frightening time for us, and we are grateful to G-d that she pulled through. The doctors said that had we...
When there is a disaster in Israel, natural or man made, one sees on TV, besides the EMS and other first responders, groups of obviously religious men, wearing insignias reading "Zaka" (zihui korabnot ason; identification of victims of tragedy)...
I began this series with the prevalent idea that Tikun Olam and Gemilut Hasadim are fairly synonymous. But, in Kabbalistic circles, they are two very different concepts. In Kabbalah, the word "Olam" (world) is understood as being derived from the...
Disaster threatened the Jewish community in the time of the Baal Shem Tov. he went up into the mountains, he lit a fire, said a prayer, meditated a proper meditation, and the disaster was averted. In the next generation, again disaster...
RAMBAM's Aristotelian views are unknown alien to the Talmud. There are even passages which show the rabbis' contempt for Greek philosophy. The view of G-d in the sayings of our Sages is one of a loving Father, on the one hand, and a great King on...
Prayer in the Kabbalah takes on whole new meanings. Rather than an outpouring of the soul, it is a daunting journey through the spiritual universe, with tasks to accomplish, and dangerous missions to face.It should be noted that this is not what...
As I always say, there is no ONE Jewish approach to anything. Judaism is not a religion of dogma. Many will disagree with what I am about to say, and that is fine. One of the foundations of RAMBAM's philosophy is that G-d, and His will, are...
