By Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel CHULA VISTA, California — Simchat Torah is a relatively new holiday. Nowhere is it mentioned in the Talmud; nor is it mentioned in Maimonides or the Tur Shulchan Aruch. But it is explicitly mentioned in the Zohar,[1] a work that dates back to about 1270—although it is a holiday that […]
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Jewish Religion, Michael Leo Samuel-RabbiAn El Al flight that took off from Paris landed in Israel minutes before the Shemini Atzeret holiday began, forcing passengers to violate the holiday, Behadrei Haredim reported. Among the passengers was Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat. According to the report, the plane landed at Ben Gurion Airport at 18:04, while the sunset in Tel Aviv
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International, Jewish Religion, Middle EastJewish prisoners in Michigan are seeking class-action status in a federal lawsuit that claims they are being denied kosher meals. The lawsuit filed Monday in US District Court in Flint against the Michigan Department of Corrections claims there are 50 to 100 Jewish prisoners approved to get kosher meals and that requests to receive them
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Jewish Religion, USABy Rabbi Dow Marmur JERUSALEM–If you decide to look up the word that appears often nowadays in the Hebrew press, הדתה (hadata), you’re not likely to find it in standard dictionaries. It’s obviously connected to the word dat (דת), a Persian term which entered the Hebrew language to mean “religion.” The derivative can perhaps be
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Jewish Religion, Middle EastA kosher Shabbat dinner at a backpacker”s lodge in Dalat, Vietnam a 9,000 women-strong challah-baking event in Buenos Aires a glow-in-the-dark challah event in Costa Rica a binational gathering on the Mexican-US border a dinner for 1,000 Israelis in a shipping hanger in Tel Aviv and a Shabbat kept in full on the slopes of
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International, Jewish Religion, Middle East, USAOne of the haredi world”s most prominent businessmen and a prolific philanthropist, Shlomo Rechnitz, explained his opposition to liberal religious movements, including “Open Orthodoxy”, during a gathering at the Mir Yeshiva during the Sukkot holiday. The term “Open Orthodoxy” was popularized by Rabbi Avi Weiss, founder of Yeshivat Chovevei Torah, to promote “greater inclusivity” in
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Jewish ReligionTens of thousands of people from Israel and around the world marched in Jerusalem on Tuesday to mark the Jewish festival of Sukkot. The Jerusalem March, which each year is attended by thousands of pro-Israel supporters, passed through the heart of the capital, leading to road closures and snarling traffic. Get The Times of Israel’s
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Jewish Religion, Middle East
Editor’s Note: The following sermon was delivered during the recent High Holy Days by Rabbi Shalom Lewis of Congregation Etz Chaim of Atlanta, Georgia By Rabbi Shalom Lewis The words I am about to share will be riddled with controversy. Some will squirm in their seats and I will squirm here on the bima but
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Jewish Religion, Middle East, USAThe Coalition for Jewish Values (CJV) today welcomed a series of directives from the Trump Administration to protect religious freedom and the rights of unborn children able to feel pain. Late last week, Attorney General Jeff Sessions, the Departments of Health and Human Services, Treasury, and Labor, and the Office of Management and Budget all
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Jewish Religion, USAAlexandria’s Menasce Synagogue has been placed on Egypt’s Heritage List, reports Nevine El-Aref Alexandria’s Menasce Synagogue The Menasce Synagogue is located in Mansheya Square in central Alexandria, its simple architectural style and façade being complemented by decorated arcaded widows. This week, more than 100 years after it was built, the synagogue has been added to
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Jewish Religion, Middle EastRabbi Shlomo Riskin will step down from running the network of liberal Orthodox schools and seminaries he founded. The Israeli-American leader will retire in July 2018 as chancellor of Ohr Torah Stone, a network of educational institutions that has pushed the limits of traditional Jewish law to be more inclusive of women and converts. Rabbi
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Jewish Religion, Middle EastA shipment of 20,000 date palm fronds were trucked Monday from the Gaza Strip to Israel where they were to be sold for use in a traditional Jewish religious ritual during the coming Sukkot holiday, the Defense Ministry said. A closed palm frond, known in Hebrew as a lulav, is gathered along with myrtle stalks,
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Jewish Religion, Middle EastA Swiss lawmaker resigned after comparing the transportation of pigs for farming to the transportation of prisoners to Auschwitz. “The (Nazi) deportees had only a slight chance to survive. As for the pigs, they are condemned to certain death,” Swiss Green Party lawmaker Jonas Fricker said on Thursday during a debate in the National Council,
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International, Jewish Religion
By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO – The temporary structures, or sukkahs, in which Jews celebrate the holiday of Sukkot typically are thrown up by Jewish families or congregations to partake in celebratory communal meals and to welcome strangers to our community. However, the sukkah just recently built at the Jewish Family Service (JFS) campus
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Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education