There are 304,805 Hebrew letters in the Chumash – 5 Books of Moses. That’s about 90,000 words or the length of a medium-sized novel. It tells us the story of human civilization and Jewish history for its first 2,000 years in a very concise book. That’s a big undertaking. Yet an overwhelming part of the […]
Should We Pray for our Team to Win?
Does God really care who wins the Super Bowl?
According to the Effort is the Reward
We are not in control of results in this world. Only God is. We can only control how much effort we choose to put into a task to help achieve our goals. In the Mishna, Ben Heh Heh teaches us, “According to the Effort is the Reward.” That means, when we undertake a job consistent […]
The Eight Levels of Charity
Moses Maimonides (Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon – known as RAMBAM ) was one
From Judah to Judah Maccabee
It was Matityahu (Mattathias) from the Hasmonaean priestly family who initiated
Getting excited about an orange?
We saw some oranges from the supermarket today and I got excited! Really? A couple of oranges?!! What’s so exciting? Well it’s the month of Kislev (December) here in the Galilee and Hanukkah is approaching. So even though the weather is stunningly warm and sunny, and the Kalla lilies are starting to sprout in our […]
Jacob, Esau and Italian Olive Oil Fraud
Most people don’t realize that the twins, Esau and Jacob were born to become twin-leaders of the Nation of Israel.
Pebbles from the Sea of Galilee
Why is there a custom to leave a small stone at the grave of a loved one when visiting a Jewish cemetery? Throughout the centuries the tradition of leaving a pebble or small stone on the monument or the grave has become part of the act of remembrance. In ancient times in the Land of Israel, […]
A Blossom in the Darkness
The Festivals are over and the moon of the month of Tishrei is waning. The days in
What does it really mean to recite a “blessing?”
Recently I was shopping in Jerusalem at a supermarket and the Land’s bounty on display was overwhelming. What a blessing! Among the huge variety of fruit we found some wonderful “Apple Pears” pictured above. This locally grown Asian fruit is crisp, fresh and sweet with a bit of a tang. It looks like an apple […]