- Shabbat and Holidays
- The Essence of Purim
Ok – What Is the Real Deal About Hamantashen??!!
Do they resemble a 3-cornered hat Haman wore? What? He looked like Washington crossing the Delaware?! You think we should name a pastry after a Jew-hating maniac? What’s next: Apples Amalek or Khomeini Cookies?! Or is it Mahn-Tashen, "pockets" of poppy-seeds? Well, I don’t like poppy-seeds (& I hate when I think they’re chocolate & I take a bite!) so that’s out. (I actually like them with filled with peanut butter – try it!). Archeologist friend Simcha J. says it looks like dice from Babylonia’s Game of Ur (UR you kidding?!) & connects to Haman casting dice, not lots, to pick a date for our demise (lots to wonder about there). And why is it called Oznei Haman in Ivrit? Did the schmendrick have big ears? Or is it because an ear has 10 parts, & Haman had 10 sons? Or were Haman’s ears cut off before he was hanged? (according to Sefer Ha-Moadim). Our family tradition is to eat kreplach (connects to "crepes?") on Purim, plus of course quiche - in honor of Mordechai’s great-grandfather, whose name was......oh, look it up. PURIM SAMEACH!!

When Israel Sees God at Work
Rabbi Shalom Schmidet | Adar 5676

Why Is Purim Filled With So Many "Mems?"
Rabbi Stewart Weiss | Adar 5 5781

Irony & Hashem's "Sense of Humor" as Basics in Purim and Jewish Thought!
Rabbi Ari Shvat | Adar 13 5781

"Purim Meshulash" and The Purim Song
Rabbi Sholom Gold

Rabbi Stewart Weiss
Was ordained at the Hebrew Theological College in Skokie, Illinois, and led congregations in Chicago and Dallas prior to making Aliyah in 1992. He directs the Jewish Outreach Center in Ra'anana, helping to facilitate the spiritual absorption of new olim.

WE ARE THE MISHKAN!
Adar 6 5777

What Is the Connection Between Jews and Almonds?
Sivan 29 5781

THE HOWS and WHYS OF 9 AV
Av 6 5776

In My Life, I’ve Loved Them All
20 Elul 5783

Flying High - A Traveler’s Guide to Channukah
Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff | Kislev 5768
Lighting the Chanukah Candles
Rabbi Eliezer Melamed | Kislev 5768

Prayer for Redemption and Blessings for Mashiach
Rabbi Avraham (Abe) Abrahami
Lighting the Chanukah Candles
Rabbi Eliezer Melamed | Kislev 5768

The Third Player in the Contest Between Good and Evil
Rabbi Elyakim Levanon | 25 Kislev 5784

How the Four Places Called "Zion" are All the Same
Rabbi Moshe Tzuriel | 4 Kislev 5784
