This is truly an eternal debate, and everyone has an opinion. Mostly, they focus on the negative opinion: which do they hate? Personally, I hate early Shabbos, but not for the reasons you would think. First, what are early and late Shabbos? Early Shabbos is in the winter, when Shabbos begins early on Friday afternoon. […]
Tomorrow Is the Fast of the 17th of Tammuz
Tomorrow is a fast day! Sunrise to sunset only. If you are uncertain how the laws of fasting apply or how they apply to you, ask your rabbi! Remember that if you are halachically unable to fast because of your health, it is a mitzvah for you to eat! The Fast of the 17th of […]
Phrase of the Day: B’Seder
Appropriately enough after my last post, today’s word is “b’seder.” This word/phrase is ubiquitous in Israel. That means it is everywhere. Israelis say “b’seder” more than teenage girls say “like.” Literally, it means “in order.” It generally means “ok” or “fine” or “everything will be ok.” You can even end your sentences with it, like […]
Are Conversion Rabbis Capable of Understanding the Conversion Candidate’s Emotional State?
Can conversion rabbis ever really understand the emotional issues that face conversion candidates? Worse, maybe even our friends and family can’t understand? I don’t mean to downplay the suffering that other people face. We all have our own challenges, but orthodox conversion candidates face an outside restriction on the most intimate areas of life. Given […]
Lessons in Ahavas Yisrael: Tattoos in the Mikvah
(I’m not so bright, so I accidentally scheduled this for tomorrow’s date. Sorry!) A really nice story to start your day off right! I don’t think any story can really be classified as a “chassidic story” unless it involves a forest in The Old Country, a miraculous job offer, and someone who gets pregnant after […]
Parsha Shlach: The Spies, the Ayin Tov, and Converts
This is my first post on Torah, but I just can’t resist this parsha. The story of the spies is one of my favorites, and last year, it was even the parsha when I visited Eretz Yisrael for the first time! Appropriate, right? The spies became a kind of analogy for my Birthright group, which […]
Dressing Awesomely and Modestly: The “Fresh off the Boat from Seminary” Look
Here is Tuesday’s awesome and modest look! Calhoun decided to photobomb me, looking for lovin’. The skirt is a black, floor-length (because I’m short) polyester/rayon blend and comes from from Nordstrom’s kids’ section. The t-shirt is from my Birthright trip to Israel, so it has the easily-spotted Birthright logo on the pocket area and a […]
The Various Meanings of Aliyah
It’s annoying that so many Hebrew words have multiple meanings in English. Most of the time, this is because multiple Hebrew spellings could have the same sound. Today, let’s talk about the English word “aliyah,” which literally means “ascent.” A. You “receive an aliyah” when you are called up to the Torah to chant the […]
The Four Holy Cities of Israel
Just about everyone in the Western world knows that Jerusalem is a city that is holy to Jews. However, there are four holy cities in Eretz Yisrael (the land of Israel)! The Four Holy Cities are Jerusalem, Tzfat (also known as Safed), Tiberius, and Hebron. Jerusalem: Jerusalem is the center of the Jewish world. We […]
Sunday is Lag B’Omer!
Lag B’Omer is the 33rd day of the Omer. (My understanding is that Sephardic Jews say Lag LaOmer, which is just a different literal translation of the preposition.) Forgive me for not giving you a detailed explanation of the Omer here. This year, Lag B’Omer is Saturday, May 22, 2011, at sundown until Sunday, May […]