It’s a dark heavy time… our hostages are still not home, war rages on. And it’s Adar, the Jewish month which when our joy should increase. Is this feasible? Are we really supposed to be happy when Israel is at war? And how are we supposed to increase our joy just because the Hebrew calendar […]
I had the privilege of seeing Harmony last night, the final week before the show closes in an unfortunately short run. The production opened in mid-October and is having its last performance on February 4. While the show was created well before October 7, 2023, it’s almost like the writer knew how deeply the themes […]
In a time when it seems like the world is turning against us, when people all over are crying out that a Jewish state shouldn’t exist, we keep getting gifts that show us just how true to the land we are. (If only others would take note!) The discovery by researchers at four Israeli universities […]
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 […]
When Hamas terrorists came to maim, torture, rape and murder thousands of Israelis on October 7, a 22-year-old woman named Neta Portal and her boyfriend, Santiago, living in Kibbutz Kfar Aza, found themselves in a life and death situation. Neta turned to the one person she knew could save her — her estranged father – […]
Dear Jew in the City, People often say that learning Torah “holds up the world.” What does that mean exactly? At this time when it’s being more stressed than ever, how is it actually helping? Sincerely, Erin Dear Erin, Thanks for your questions. Before I answer them, I’d like to give you some important […]
