Elul is known as the period when “the King is in the field.” Both in our tefillot (prayers) and mitzvot (commandments), Hashem is tangibly closer to us. The Shechina (God’s presence) is stronger, the kedusha (holiness) is more intense. God is more accessible at this time. The layers of camouflage which normally mask reality and make […]
(Editor’s Note: While this article was written years before October 7, its words ring truer than ever. The Jewish people are experiencing the worse calamity in our lifetimes and even as we heal, we will forever carry brokenness. This is not new to our people. Rabbi Aaron Goldscheider poignantly explains what it looks like to […]
I didn’t sleep through the night for a month after October 7th. I woke up at 4am, frustrated because I needed the rest, but something wouldn’t let me rest. Like many Jews, I learned about the massacre from a police officer who stands guard at a local synagogue. As chag (the holiday) carried on, people […]
It was the first week of the war. The second shiva house that I attended. It was held in a Jerusalem hotel, because the hero who had died defending people in the Gaza envelope was a lone soldier from France. His name was Binyanmin Lev. Binyamin’s mom spoke about how Binyamin had left the safety […]
Joe Roberts grew up with a Christmas tree in his Dayton Ohio home, with an abundance of gifts to open the morning of December 25. He didn’t celebrate Chanukah, Rosh Hashanah or Passover. While he knew he was Jewish, Judaism didn’t have an active presence in his house. He comes from a line of secular […]
We are not supposed to ask to be tested according to Jewish tradition. We learn this from King David who erred by asking for a test. It’s uncomfortable to see good coming out of unimaginable evil, but it seems to be how God created our world. We didn’t ask for October 7 – we’d give […]
