Jewish Religion

The floods of Gilgamesh and the Bible

By Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin BOCA RATON, Florida — There are remarkable similarities between the biblical story of the flood and the more ancient version of Gilgamesh. The Babylonian epic Gilgamesh was written on twelve tablets around 2000 BCE and has survived in several versions. It was discovered in 1839 among the ruins of a […]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish Religion, Middle East

Contrasting the Bible with Greek mythology

By Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin BOCA RATON, Florida — Greek and Jewish myths, reports and tales appear at first blush to be remarkably similar, but there are stark differences in how each culture views God, the world, the presence of evil, the worth of people, their duty, and their future. Psychologists have recognized that one

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish Religion

Family, clergy, extol Cantor Merel on his 95th birthday

By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO – Family members and three fellow clergy saluted Cantor Emeritus Shelly Foster Merel of Congregation Beth Israel  on his 95th birthday  during a dinner gathering Saturday night, May 18, at the Bay Club Hotel and Marina on Shelter Island.  There were so many speakers that the presentations went on

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Cantor Sheldon Foster Merel, z"l, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, San Diego County

Weekly Torah portion: Emor

By Rabbi Joshua Dorsch SAN DIEGO — In our Torah portion this week, Parashat Emor, we read about the sabbatical year, the seventh year where farmers are supposed to refrain from planting their crops. The number seven is a very powerful and symbolic number in Judaism. God created the world in six days, designating every

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Jewish Religion

Levin: Poway shooting was a step backwards for U.S.

By Rep. Mike Levin OCEANSIDE, California — Recently Jewish families around the world celebrated Passover, a time of renewal, freedom and reflection on our shared values. At Chabad of Poway, located just outside of my district in San Diego County, the conclusion of these holiest of days was interrupted by evil. Lori Gilbert Kaye was

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Jewish Religion, San Diego County, USA

Israel’s Tourism Triumph, Part IV

To read previous installments, please click on the number desired:1,2,3  The Religious Lure © Edwin Black JERUSALEM — When the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement [BDS] mounted a campaign against Israel, it targeted more than Israel’s economy, including tourism—which has nonetheless flourished beyond any expectation. The “D” in BDS really stands for delegitimize. So the

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Edwin Black, International, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Middle East, Travel and Food, USA

The Myth of Lag B’Omer

By Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin BOCA RATON, Florida — The following is from my book Mysteries of Judaism without the footnotes. The semi-holiday Lag B’omer is based on an unsubstantiated and unlikely tradition. Lag B’omer means the thirty-third day since bringing the barley harvest (omer) to the tabernacle and later temples to thank God for the barley harvest.

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Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Middle East

Beer and Torah? To this, they say ‘L’chaim!’

  By Donald H. Harrison EL CAJON, California  — “What’ll it be, sir?” “I’ll have a beer and where’s that Torah discussion group?” “Over there, sir.  And here’s our beer menu.” Once a month, members of Tifereth Israel Synagogue sample the selections at one of San Diego County’s burgeoning microbrewery industry’s locations, where they socialize,

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Donald H. Harrison, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, San Diego County, Travel and Food

Food, song, reflections mark TIS Yom Ha’ atzma’ ut

By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO – Tifereth Israel Synagogue celebrated Yom Ha’atzma’ut, Israeli independence day, on Thursday night, May 9, with songs, four American perspectives on Israel, and the kind of dairy dinner you might be served in Tel Aviv. Oscar and Olga Worm own Bekker’s Catering, which typically serves non-kosher food.  But the

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Donald H. Harrison, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, San Diego County, Travel and Food, USA