By Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin BOCA RATON, Florida — My father Rabbi Dr. Nathan Drazin was a very wise man. He was a rabbi in Shaarei Tfiloh Congregation in Baltimore, Maryland for 31 years. I enjoyed listening to his sermons. The one I liked the best concerned his true interpretation of the incident where many […]
Did Jacob really wrestle with an angel? Read More »
Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish Religion
Victims identified as Lori Gilbert Kaye, z”l; Rabbi Yisroel Goldstein; Almog Peretz, and young Noya Dahan; Alleged shooter John P. Earnest taken into custody By Donald H. Harrison POWAY, California – A white male shooter opened fire during Saturday morning Shabbat services on the last day of Passover, killing one woman at the Altman Family
Woman slain, three others wounded at Chabad of Poway Read More »
Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, San Diego County
By Mimi Pollack LA JOLLA, California — Whenever I hear of an organization whose purpose is to build bridges of communication, I want to find out more. I was invited to attend the Sunday Seder of the San Diego chapter of the Sisterhood of Salaam Shalom, an organization of Muslim and Jewish women, which
Connecting at a Jewish – Muslim seder Read More »
Jewish Religion, Mimi Pollack, San Diego County, Travel and FoodBy Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin BOCA RATON, Florida –There are many interpretations of biblical event that people were taught to believe which are clearly untrue. The following are three examples. Adam lied to his wife resulting in a catastrophe Genesis 2:16-17 states that before Eve was created, “The Lord God commanded the man, saying: ‘You
Some common mistakes about Bible stories Read More »
Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish History, Jewish ReligionBy H. Applebaum SAN DIEGO — What do parents do if they are raising a Jewish child, yet have no resources at hand? The cause could be intermarriage, or living far from family or other Jews, or all of the above. When Jews leave traditional Jewish enclaves, and children come along, it presents a challenge.
PJ Library helps families seeking more Jewish context Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, International, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Middle East, USABy Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin BOCA RATON, Florida — The Torah says count weeks, but Jews count days. As I described in detail in my book Mysteries of Judaism, the ancient religious Jewish group Pharisees, who existed from about 320 BCE until 70 CE, and the rabbis who followed them changed all of the Jewish practices
Rabbis, not Torah, decreed counting days of the Omer Read More »
Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish History, Jewish ReligionBy Rabbi Joshua Dorsch SAN DIEGO — Tonight, we will begin celebrating Passover. Many of us will have the opportunity to sit around a Seder table with family and friends, sharing a festive meal, while we tell the story of the ancient Israelites’ journey from servitude towards redemption. It is a dramatic story. There are
Passover and the blessing of freedom Read More »
Jewish Religion, San Diego CountyBy Rabbi Dow Marmur JERUSALEM — The late Bernard Lewis, the great scholar of Islam, has written about how Muslims have adopted Christian anti-Semitism for their own polemics against Jews, Zionism and the State of Israel. A recent illustration of a notorious, persistent and lethal lie is provided by a video posted on YouTube last
Matzah and the blood libel Read More »
Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Middle EastBy Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin BOCA RATON, Florida — Many Jewish practices are not as old as people think and many had no religious significance when first introduced. We do not even know how or when most Jewish practices began and why they began. We can only guess. And in many instances our guesses reveal
Passover Haroset’s mysterious origin Read More »
Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Travel and Food, Videos
By Moshe Dann JERUSALEM — Although Jews have been retelling the story of the Exodus from Egypt at the Pesach Seder for millennia, the Haggadah as we know it was compiled during the Gaonic period (8th-9th century CE) in Babylon, with additional songs written by Jews probably during the Middle Ages. Based on Torah, Mishna
Who compiled the Haggadah, and why? Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, International, Jewish Religion, Middle EastBy Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel CHULA VISTA, California — As Jews are observing the Passover holiday this coming weekend, recalling a time when our ancestors left Egypt, the land of their oppression, we are witnessing a new kind of Exodus taking place today: Jews are leaving France in record numbers amidst the rising anti-Semitic attacks that have
Sometimes, “It’s Hard to Be a Jew” Read More »
Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi
By Simmy Allen JERUSALEM — The Pesach holiday – which marks the Jewish people’s exodus from enslavement in ancient Egypt – was never more reminiscent in modern times as during the Holocaust. In the Pesach Haggadah, which recounts the miraculous story, Jews are told to proclaim: “This year we are here; next year we will
Pesach during the Holocaust Read More »
International, Jewish History, Jewish Religion
By Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel CHULA VISTA, California — Often the greatest critics of religion offer us a series of criticism about the depth of our faith; they confront us with our hypocrisy. They challenge us to reexamine what it means to “believe.” As a young teenager, I remember hiding Raphael Patai’s book, Hebrew Myths in
Book Review: ‘In Good Faith’ Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Jewish Religion, Michael Leo Samuel-RabbiBy Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin BOCA RATON, Florida — Unlike Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, which I describe in my book Mysteries of Judaism, the holiday of Passover did not continue to exist in a radically modified fashion with a new name after the temple was destroyed in 70 CE. It disappeared entirely and Chag
Where did those Passover traditions come from? Read More »
Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish History, Jewish Religion