– In this week’s Torah portion, from Maimonides, we will be viewing some of his ideas on the custom of visiting graves. [Rabbi Dr. Michael Leo Samuel]
Philo and Maimonides on Chayei Sarah Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi
Jonathan Adelman, Ph.D., a past president of Scholars for Peace in the Middle East, died Friday, Oct. 29, SPME announced. [SPME}
Jonathan Adelman, Former SPME President Read More »
Middle East, Obituaries & memorials, Science, Medicine, & Education, USA
Most people think they know a lot about Abraham the father of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. They are mistaken. The events recorded about Abraham in scripture are generally if not always obscure. When the Bible does not clarify exactly what is happening, people tend to imagine details and come to think of them as really happening in the Bible. [Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin]
What do we know about Abraham? Read More »
Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish Religion
Released in 2021, Ver Vet Blaybn? (Who Will Remain?), a documentary that follows one woman’s journey to understand her grandfather, Yiddish poet Avrom Sutzkever, is resonating with audiences and having success on the 2021–2022 film festival circuit, with screenings booked at upcoming festivals around the globe, including next February’s San Diego International Jewish Film Festival. [Yiddish Book Center]
Documentary Film Traces Life, Works of Yiddish Poet Avrom Sutzkever Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Jewish History
Can you imagine an entire book in 12 words, not including the title? That last sentence took one more word than that. [Donald H. Harrison]
An Entire Book in 12 Words Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion
Torah reading is Hayyei Sarah, Genesis 23-25:18; Haftorah is 1 Kings I:1-31. By Irv Jacobs, M.D. This full-episode prose passage is set in a picture of aged, ill, and failing King David, cold, on his death bed. His memory has failed and he is manipulated over the matter of which son will be successor to
Haftorah Reading for October 30, 2021 Read More »
Irv Jacobs, MD, Jewish Religion
By Jacob Kamaras (JNS) In a sense, the Jewish communal reactions to the synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh and the coronavirus pandemic were diametric opposites. After Robert Bowers shot and killed 11 worshippers at the Tree of Life*Or L’Simcha Synagogue on Oct. 27, 2018, American Jews were urged to show up at services in droves the
Can a Synagogue Feel Open with Locked Doors? Rabbis Reflect on Pittsburgh, 3 Years Later Read More »
Jacob Kamaras, Jewish Religion, Lifestyles, USA
A March of the Living delegation from Britain embarked Monday, Oct. 25,on its first educational journey since the outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic. The delegation included four Holocaust survivors and around 80 participants – Jews, and non-Jews – aged 20-90. The delegation visited Berlin, Ravensbruck women and children concentration camp, and Bergen-Belsen. [March of the Living news release]
March of Living Delegation Visits Ravensbruck, Bergen-Belsen Read More »
International, Jewish History
Several years ago, when writing about this week’s Torah portion, I shared two very contemporary lessons I saw inside of the ancient text – never give up hope and be in emotional control when dealing with oneself and with others. Now several years later, several years older, these lessons appear even more valuable. [Michael R. Mantell, Ph.D]
Torah Reading for October 30, 2021 Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael Mantell
After more subdued celebrations in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the international Shabbat Project roared back to life last weekend with record-setting participation in the initiative’s ninth year, holding 1,166 citywide “unity events” in addition to thousands of private events across 1,511 cities worldwide.
Thousands of Jews Across the World Participate in Shabbat Project Read More »
International, Jewish Religion, Middle East, USA
The current selection for the PJ Library, mailed free to Jewish children whose families request, age-appropriate Jewish stories is about a self-sufficient farmer named Sarah, who knows how to change her tractor’s oil, how to handle his clutch, and the right way to switch his gears. They were a great team, Sarah and Yitzi. Every Friday night, they would power down and do no work until after Shabbat was over. It was their routine for Sarah to have a sip of wine at the beginning of Shabbat, and for Yitzi to have a sip of gasoline. [Donald H. Harrison]
The Tractor that Observed Shabbat Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion
A parade of speakers on Sunday rededicated a 50-year-old Holocaust monument, telling about the Jewish communal building where the monument is now located, about the artist who created the massive bronze sculpture, and most importantly, about the victims and survivors of the genocide launched against the Jews by Nazi Germany. [Donald H. Harrison]
Holocaust Memorial, Once at East County JCC, Finds a New Home Read More »
Donald H. Harrison, International, Jewish History, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, San Diego CountyThis fairly short prose passage from the “Early Prophets” is really a couple of folktales fused together, arguably from ‘annals’ of the early Northern Kingdom of Israel. In those days, storytellers were welcome to insert fantasy miracles into their stories. [Irv Jacobs, M.D.]
Notes on Haftorah Reading for October 23, 2021 Read More »
Irv Jacobs, MD, Jewish ReligionAlthough most Judaic, Christian, and Muslim commentators and thinkers interpret the Akedah as having actually occurred while Abraham was in a wakeful state of consciousness, Maimonides hints that there may be another way of interpreting the story. Maimonides mentioned on many occasions how the Divine speaks to mortals in either a dream, or by granting them a visionary experience. Perhaps the Akedah was also a visionary experience. [Rabbi Dr. Michael Leo Samuel]
Maimonides on The Akedah and Biblical Visions Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi