The Jewish people have a history of feeling alone. During the Holocaust, there was no one that spoke out in support of us, that helped us, that came to our rescue until six million of us were killed. Now, after the horrific October 7 attack against so many of our brothers and sisters in Israel, […]
If you’ve been living on social media these days like so many of us, it’s become a bleak place. The reality of the events occurring is devastating. Each day I awaken with fear of what news is going to come to my phone next. Some of that scare factor comes from the mass amounts of […]
On October 7, I didn’t spiral. Like all Jews, the last seven weeks have been torturous to live through. But had October 7 happened a few years ago, I would have now been in the mud, clawing my way through a deep depression, trying to find a reason to live. Years ago, the slightest hiccup […]
When you dig into your Thanksgiving turkey this year, remember that it’s not only an American tradition, and an opportunity to express gratitude for our great country, but a mitzvah. Surprised? Let me explain. The Torah, in Leviticus Chapter 7, discusses a “korban todah”—a “thanksgiving sacrifice.” The commentator Rashi explains that a person brought such […]
When we had my son Rafi, knowing he was the last baby, I nicknamed him Rafikomen. The Ari taught that Jewish parents are imbued with Ruach Hakodesh (Divine inspiration) when they name their children. The names they choose describe the essence of their children. The gemara (Talmud) discusses a similar idea in terms of character in […]
“It feels like the end of the world,” Rosie O’Donnell shared with Allison Josephs on the latest episode of Rosie’s podcast, Onward. While she was speaking generally about the war, so many of us are experiencing a similar sentiment. If you’ve always worried about something terrible happening to the Jews, it feels like the shoe […]
