Dear Jew in the City- Two people have told me that July 4, 1776 was on the 17th of Tammuz. Wikipedia confirms this. Does that indicate something negative about America? Sincerely, J.S. Dear J.S.- Thanks for your question. Rav Salman Mutzafi (a student of the Ben Ish Chai and the author of Siddur HaRashash), Rav […]
Experts Uncover Evidence of Ancient Jerusalem’s Destruction by the Babylonians Archaeologists excavating the City of David in Israel’s Jerusalem Walls National Park have uncovered charred wood, grape seeds, pottery, fish scales and bones and numerous rare artifacts that date back to the city’s demise at the hands of the Babylonians more than 2,600 years ago. […]
Tisha B’Av – the ninth day of the month of Av – is usually the saddest day of the Jewish calendar, a day of fasting and mourning the destruction of both Temples in Jerusalem, among other tragedies. But last year, our family’s Tisha B’Av was far from solemn. Late in June, my husband, Daniel, received […]
Today was a typical day: carpool pick-up, after school errands, and a trip to the local pizza store for dinner. When we got out of the car, I grabbed two quarters from my wallet for the parking meter. I handed the first quarter to my younger (four-year-old) daughter who promptly told me, “My sister can go […]
My illness recently left me in the Neuro-ICU of one of New York’s finest hospitals for over a week. The medical care I received there was truly exceptional. That was the good news. All too quickly, it became clear that mine was no ordinary hospital room. There was no bathroom to speak of. There was […]
Tonight begins the joyful minor holiday of Tu b’Av, the fifteenth of the month of Av. The Talmud says besides Yom Kippur, there was no other holy day as happy for the Jews as Tu b’Av. In the times of the Temple, unmarried Jewish women would dress in white and dance in the vineyards, as that […]
