Author: Sara Wood

Photo Credit: Ad Meskens / Wikimedia Low Memorial Library at Columbia University, NYC Members of Columbia University’s student council voted last Sunday to hold a divestment referendum in the spring of 2020, enabling students to vote on whether to divest “from companies that profit from or engage in the State of Israel’s acts towards Palestinians […]

Photo Credit: Miriam Alster / Flash 90 Left-wing activists protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calling on him to resign, at Habima Square in Tel Aviv. Last week it was a pro-Netanyahu rally, this weekend it is an anti-Netanyahu protest. At least 10,000 demonstrators gathered in Tel Aviv’s Habima Square on Saturday night for a […]

Photo Credit: Jewish Press The discussion at the Shabbat table revolved around the subject of leadership. What exactly is the Jewish view on the parameters of being a leader and what responsibilities should one have when assuming a leadership role? Some of the prerequisites that evolved in our discussion were that a leader must not […]

[embedded content] Usman Khan, 28, the Pakistani who carried out a stabbing attack on London Bridge on Friday at 1:58 PM local time, murdering a man and a woman and injuring three others, “was known to authorities,” according to the London Metropolitan Police, “having been convicted in 2012 for terrorism offenses. He was released from […]

Photo Credit: Jewish Press All of us aspire to acquire the Keser Torah, the crown of Torah. But Torah is vastly different than any other branch of knowledge. If you want to master calculus or physics, for example, you need to have brains, a good teacher, and disciplined study habits. For Torah you need more. […]

Photo Credit: Jewish Press Question: I find myself in a very delicate situation and am calling upon your halachic expertise. I am the rabbi in a small town of a very close-knit community with a small Orthodox minyan. We have two boys who are exactly the same age and will reach the age of bar […]

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Photo Credit: pixabay American-Israelis celebrate Thanksgiving with their state-side brethren. Ethiopian-Israelis observe Sigd by rededicating themselves to God and Torah. And in a most complex parsha, Jacob and Esau receive very different blessings with everlasting consequences. Advertisement ‘); _avp.push({ tagid: article_top_ad_tagid, alias: ‘/’, type: ‘banner’, zid: ThisAdID, pid: 16, onscroll: 10 });

Photo Credit: pixabay This week Rav Yitzchak and William discuss the weekly Torah portion where we read the story of a supposed deception played out when Rebecca convinces her son to fool his father who is about to give a blessing to Esau. Does this raise any ethical questions, and how does it relate to […]