So much has been happening in the news lately concerning Israel, and my apologies for only catching up now. Perhaps it is better to write one post to cover several issues that have sprouted up about the the flotilla incident, the dismissal of Helen Thomas and the whirl of news surrounding the Holy Land lately. So let’s start with the most recent issue and work backwards. Since I’m not able to view certain video clips outside of the U.S,. I have to rely on articles, rather than the original clip, from The View a few days ago. Apparently, the women … Continue reading →

There was gentle cool rain last night in Jerusalem. That’s unusual, because the rainy season stops in the spring, and there usually isn’t a drop the entire summer. The dry season can be hard to bear, but I’ve noticed how this year we are being gradually eased and coaxed from the winter to the summer, with a refreshing rain on Passover morning, another spritz on the middle of the season and an unexpected spray last night that seemed to bring a bit of steam up and it dropped down. If my kids had been outside, they would have been excited; … Continue reading →

I’m sure you’ve all heard about Martin Grossman, may his memory be a blessing. Many would protest at my using the traditional Jewish expression for someone who has passed on (may his memory be a blessing) about a man who was addicted to drugs from his youth, who was high on drugs and yet with awareness of what he was doing, killed a female police officer and then tried to hide his guilt. After 25 years spent in prison, Martin was executed last week. Thousands protested this death sentence, many of them Jews, arguing not that Martin Grossman was innocent, … Continue reading →

It was during this past Chanukah that I heard the speech of a mother who has experienced the ultimate suffering, something that should not happen to anyone, the loss of a child r’l. I remember the shock I experienced when I first heard the story. Three young Lubavitch yeshiva students, Yonason Bitton, Moshe Golan and Levi Hendel all off blessed memory, were killed when their van turned over and landed in a nearby ditch. They were on their way to give Chanukah cheer to Israeli soldiers in Eilat, and as soldiers of light themselves, they were “armed” with their jelly … Continue reading →

It felt like the whole world was watching when Moshe Holtzberg, a day shy of his second birthday, cried,”Ima! Ima!” (Mommy! Mommy!) in the arms of the family cook half the world away in a synagogue in Mumbai. His grandmother, Yehudit, could hardly hold back the tears and his grandfather, Shimon, allowed the tears to surface as the little boy cried out for the mother he would never see again. And yet, there must be an end to tears. Someone told me that one shouldn’t be excessive in mourning, because it makes the souls of the deceased grieve when they … Continue reading →

The esteemed Torah scholar Rashi describes the loss of a child as the ultimate bereavement. It is something for which we have no words, cannot understand even if there were an ultimate Divine purpose that we were able to comprehend. When someone passes away, we bless G-d and call him “The True Judged.” Kaddish, the prayer of mourning, is not an outpouring of grief, but praise to a Creator who gives us life on loan, who allows us to live in His world for a certain amount of time, and takes us to another level of existence, closer to where … Continue reading →

It is wonderful to get a bracha (blessing) for our children. That they should be learned, kind, talented. That they should make strangers smile, stop what they are doing, forget about their worries and appreciate the wondrous world seen through youthful eyes. Wouldn’t we all want to be proud parents of a child the teacher remembers fondly for years and even decades? If we could imagine the possibility that all of the blessings given to our children could be fulfilled at once, that all of our realistic hopes and distant wishes could be realized in one child, would we, if … Continue reading →

Are there really siblings without rivalry? Well, there are books that claim this can be possible, but I find these sibling squabbles all but inevitable. After a week at his grandmother’s, my oldest son returned home to find that certain diminutive member of his family had seized possession of all of his toys, and the younger ones had to return their prizes to their original owner. I reminded them that returning lost objects is a mitzvah outlined in this week’s Torah portion. While the five year old, the owner of the toys, seemed to comprehend this well, the younger one … Continue reading →

I see it often expressed that we are living in a world of increased darkness and chaos. Fears of terrorism reach a diversity of people, regardless of ethnic background, location or social class. People are afraid to ride the subway, sit down in a café, and this isn’t just in the Land of Israel, but the fear penetrates even in former safe havens, such as Middle America. Right now, we are worried about Iran and its nuclear capabilities; its declared enemies are the U.S. and Israel, which it plans to “wipe off the map (but we are approaching the holiday … Continue reading →