by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 11, 2023 | Community, Israel, Masei
In this Torah portion, the final portion in the book of Numbers, we review the journeys made by the Israelites in the desert and learn about the plan for their arrival in the Holy Land, including the division of the land. Finally, we return to the story of the...
by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 28, 2023 | Community, Israel, Judges, Tests and Trials
By Rabbi Elie Mischel It was one of the very worst moments in modern Jewish history. On May 14, 1948, Israel was reborn. Five Arab nations immediately invaded the new state of Israel, which would have to fight for its life with a limited supply of guns and ammunition....
by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 19, 2023 | Community, Freedom, God, Happiness and Joy, Holiness, Psalms, Responsibility, Tests and Trials
By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz A long time ago, I worked as a cook in exclusive restaurants in Manhattan. I once got a special order for a lunch party of ten young businessmen celebrating their success. They were all under thirty years old and they had each achieved a...
by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 15, 2023 | Community, Faith, God, Good and Evil, Israel, Judges, Leadership
By Rabbi Elie Mischel One of the Catholic practices that angered many people and led to the Protestant Reformation was the doctrine and practice of indulgences. Essentially, the Catholic church said that sinners could buy forgiveness for their sins by paying money to...
by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 2, 2023 | Community, Israel, Judges, Responsibility
By Rabbi Elie Mischel Throughout the book of Judges, the people of Israel’s greatest enemy was looking at them in the mirror. Though they were plagued by many dangerous external enemies, Israel suffered most from internal division and infighting. The tribes, by and...
by Shira Schechter (Moderator) | f 27, 2022 | Antisemitism, Community, Good and Evil, Psalms
By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz When I rode a motorcycle in New York, I used to hang out at bars that catered to a very rough crowd. It amazed me that biker gangs made no attempt to hide their identity and affiliations. They wore their ‘colors’ with pride on the back of...
