On Friday, May 16, Jews around the world will celebrate Lag Ba’omer. Lag Ba’omer is a joyous day. In Israel, thousands flock to Miron, the burial site of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, the second-century Talmudic sage who passed away on this day.
Rabbi Shimon was the first to publicize and record …
Realizing your worst fears can be frightful. Deep inside we all have that abiding fear that we tamp down and bury far beneath the surface. It might be a fear of failure, a fear of being mocked, a fear of heights, a fear of darkness. Whatever our fears are, we …
The Contradiction
The great mystic Rabbi Yehudah Lowe, otherwise known as the Maharal, once explained that Matzah, the impoverished bread, comprised of merely flour and water, is a symbol of freedom because those who are truly free are unencumbered. Ordinary bread is slaved to sugar and yeast for flavor and texture. …
The Baal Shem Tov is said to have once heard a cantor confessing his sins on Yom Kippur to a joyful melody. The Baal Shem Tov asked him why he was so happy? The cantor replied that if he had the privilege to remove the garbage from the king’s palace, …
After Jacob returned from Haran, where he contended with the avarice and deceit of his uncle Laban, he was forced to face his long-standing nemesis and brother Esau. Once that was done, Jacob sought to settle down and raise his family in relative peace and comfort. He hoped to enjoy …
These past two days have been the most difficult for our people in the last fifty years. It was Simchat Torah, a time for rejoicing, yet it was a time of horror. Nearly a thousand members of our family were brutally murdered, more than a hundred were taken hostage, and …
