For me, fall is the time to think of creative, eclectic dishes, since local summer produce is no longer at its best. The recipes below are some of my fall favorites. Split Pea Soup 8 servings This recipe is easy to make and wonderfully convenient to have on hand. It freezes well. 2 tablespoons olive […]
Chag HaSukkot is unquestionably one of our most enjoyable holidays. Preparation, however, is something else.
If you don’t already own a shofar, it’s better to first learn how to blow on a borrowed shofar before buying one. When you do go to the store, you need to find a shofar that is right for you personally. For reasons that are purely commercial, the longer the shofar, the more it costs. […]
“It Shall Be a Day of Sounding the Shofar for You” (Bemidbar 29:1) Most of us fulfill the mitzvah of tekiat shofar by passively listening to the ba’al tekiah. But is listening to the shofar really as passive as it seems? During this sacred, spiritual experience, as we stand there listening attentively, the shofar sounds […]
I often hear people talk about the awakening power of the sound of the shofar—how awesome a moment, how inspiring an experience it is for them. From the perspective of one who blows the shofar, the ba’al tekiah, it is even more than that. No other mitzvah resembles it in the way it is carried […]
Nine years ago, Jewish Action published a fierce debate on the validity of the Torah Codes. Emotions ran high as the debate touched a raw nerve for many, though not always for the same reason. Although things have quieted down since then, the issue is far from resolved, and indeed, codes research is continuing unabated. […]
My son, Shmuel, was born four years ago on the tenth of Cheshvan. My wife woke me at 3 A.M.; we were at the hospital a bit after 3:30. Not her first delivery, the labor was quick: by 5:45, she gave birth. So efficient she was, I thought, that there would be time to make […]
Why do so many people seem to feel that davening begins somewhere around Barchu and actually being on time for it is the domain of insomniacs and Kaddish-sayers? Why do educators wring their hands in despair about the low level of inspiration and kavanah that so many students attach to prayer? These are just a […]
Some years ago, I attended services in a large, impressive-looking synagogue in a New York suburb. But while the actual building was quite magnificent, the congregants’ decorum was appalling. During davening, people were conversing fairly loudly with their neighbors, with apparently no consideration for those who had, in fact, come to shul to pray. Several […]
“So, when are you hannouncing?” he asked me. I loved talking with—and listening to—Rabbi Kret. There were superficial reasons for this: As a wheelchair user accustomed to speaking to people’s stomachs, I found it a pleasure to converse with Rabbi Jacob Kret, who measured little over five feet tall. Talking with him meant never having […]