If you look at the menorah on the cover of Hanukkah Nights, you’ll see that each candle flame is of a different color. What you can’t see—until you read the actual book—is that each flame was created with a different artistic technique. [Donald H. Harrison]
A Primer on Hanukkah and Art Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts
By Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin BOCA RATON, Florida — In Maimonides’ Guide for the Perplexed, book 3, chapter 51, in the easy-to-read translation by Michael Friedlander, Maimonides tells readers: “The present chapter does not contain any additional matter that has not been treated in the (previous) chapters of this treatise. It is a kind of
How Does God Want People to Behave? Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish Religion
By Gedaliah Borvick JERUSALEM — My friend recently texted me from Tel Aviv: “What are the chances that I would be on Imber Street in the morning and at the Hatikvah Market on Hatikvah Street in the afternoon? Unbelievable!” After I pleaded ignorance, my friend helped me connect the dots and gain an appreciation of
Hatikvah: The Bohemian’s Rhapsody Read More »
Gedaliah Borvick, Israel, Jewish History, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts
Special problems faced by the preschool-through-12th-grade school district in Sha’ar Hanegev (Gateway to the Negev) are security for the students in a region often targeted by missiles fired by terrorists in neighboring Gaza, and persuading the students that there are jobs and good futures for them in that rural, agricultural area. [Donald H. Harrison]
Sha’ar Hanegev School Superintendent Tells of Missile Zone Challenges Read More »
Donald H. Harrison, Israel, Jewish Religion, Lifestyles, Middle East, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education
By Michael R. Mantell, Ph.D. SAN DIEGO — Over the past several years when writing about this week’s Torah portion, I often shared two very contemporary lessons – never give up hope and be in control, emotionally, when dealing with oneself and with others. As the years pass, it appears these lessons are even more
Parashat Chayei Sarah: Never Give Up Hope Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael Mantell
At 11:11 a.m. on November 11, or what might be written as 11:11/11/11, former South African enlisted man Norman Kort blew taps on a World War II bugle that he had purchased at an estate sale in England. As he did so, David Schlichtman raised the U.S. flag at Tifereth Israel Synagogue in honor of America’s Veterans Day. The occasion marked 104 years since the Nov. 11, 1918 Armistice that brought World War I to a close. [Donald H. Harrison]
3 Jewish Vets Recommend Universal Military Service Read More »
Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, San Diego County, USA
By Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin BOCA RATON, Florida — The Chaim Grade masterpiece, “The Yeshiva II,” is subtitled “Masters and Disciples” because it tells of dozens of lives of people in a manner unequaled by other writers. Each of the many people who populate this story has interesting and exciting lives that will fascinate readers.
‘The Yeshiva’ Volume II: Interesting and Exciting Lives That Will Fascinate Readers Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish Religion
Trestman was a medical doctor long before he became a rabbi. He still is a pulmonary specialist with the Palomar/ Pomerado Hospital Group. But now, he is also a Chabad rabbi who, with his wife Debra, hosts Bais Betzalel Chabad of North County Inland at their home in Rancho Bernardo near the Poway city line. At the hospital, his colleagues call him “Ken” whereas at the shul he is known by his Hebrew name “Yehuda.” [Donald H. Harrison]
Doctor Who Became a Rabbi Runs Chabad Shul in Rancho Bernardo Read More »
Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, Lifestyles, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, USA
(JNS) Nov. 30, 2022, is proscribed by Israeli law as the annual remembrance day when 850,000 Sephardi/Mizrahi Jews were driven, expelled, coerced, and “encouraged” to leave their homes across all Arab lands and from Iran. It will mark the 75th anniversary from when the expulsion pressures began with redoubled earnestness. One day earlier, on Nov.
November 30 in Jerusalem: Annual Remembrance Day for Jews Expelled From Arab Lands Read More »
Israel, Jewish History, Middle EastBy Michael R. Mantell, Ph.D. SAN DIEGO — It may be difficult to imagine that the purpose of an entire week’s Torah reading is to teach us about the importance of acts of kindness, in particular, hachnasat orchim, but that is just what Rabbi David Kimcha, the Radak, suggests to us. Do you run, not
Parashat Vayeira: The Importance of Acts of Kindness Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael Mantell
LA JOLLA, Calif. — On Tuesday, Nov. 8, from 6:30-9 p.m., South African Jewish American Community (SAJAC) San Diego will hold the gala opening of “The Goldene Medina: Celebrating 175 Years of Jewish Life in South Africa,” a new exhibition in La Jolla. Gourmet bites and refreshments will be served. September 2016 marked the 175th
La Jolla Exhibition to Mark 175 Years of Jewish Life in South Africa Read More »
International, Jewish History, San Diego County
By Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin BOCA RATON, Florida — Journeys to Heaven and Hell by Bart D. Ehrman, a highly respected New Testament scholar, tells some of the different notions various nations and people had about the afterlife in ancient times. He describes a wide variety of katabases and anabases, but not all. Katabasis means
Examining Different Notions About the Afterlife Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish Religion
By Alex Gordon HAIFA, Israel — The assassination in Sarajevo of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian Habsburg throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, was the most important political assassination of the twentieth century, for it was the trigger for World War I. However, this assassination, committed in 1914, was not the only resounding political assassination in the
The Red Terror of the Pacifist Read More »
Alex Gordon, International, Jewish History, OpinionBy Michael R. Mantell, Ph.D. SAN DIEGO — Want to move beyond your limits and extend your potential? To do so requires that you forcefully replace any limiting thinking, and “Go out of your land, our native country, and your father’s house.” Contemporary self-help and self-awareness meant to help us grow and shift, suggests asking,
Parashat Lech Lecha: Why Torah? Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael Mantell