On Tuesday afternoon, I thought my neighbor was making a bbq and that it was about to rain. Neither of those things turned out to be true. Instead, the “bbq” and gloomy sky were a result of wildfires in Canada. This phenomenon is affecting 90 million Americans at the moment. I have a weird confession […]

We always focus on the obvious miracles of Chanukah: the miraculous military victory of a small band of fighters against a might army, the fact that the Maccabees found a small jar of oil in the rubble of the Holy Temple and that that oil burned for eight days, when it should have only lasted […]

Would you set out on an important road trip if you only had enough gas for the first 20 miles and no forseeable way of filling your car up for a week? If you were a Maccabee you would. I recently started wondering why the Jews decided to light the menorah with the paltry sum of oil they found. Why bother lighting an eternal light that you […]

Chanukah and miracles. The words go together like latkes and oil. Ask most people and they can tell you about the two pivotal miracles that took place on the holiday of Chanukah: the miracle of the few over the many and the miracle of the oil which lasted eight days. What is interesting about the […]

Hi Jew in the City- In my family, my father lights the menorah alone, but in my friends’ family, everyone lights their own menorah. Who should light it? Sincerely, Meira   Dear Meira- Thanks for your question. The prevalent practice among Sefardic Jews is for one menorah to be lit; the prevalent practice among Ashkenazim […]