Nearly 60 years have passed since Eli Weisel’s visit to the Soviet Union in September 1965, which prompted his report on Soviet Jewry,...

Re-posted from the Rabbi's words 8/16/2024 Thoughts on Tu B’Av – The 15th of Av This week the annual period of mourning, the three weeks...

Re-posted from the Rabbi's words 8/23/2024 Like many of you, I suspect, as I’ve watched portions of the Democratic National Convention...

This week, on Tuesday and Wednesday, we observe Rosh Chodesh as we begin the month of Elul. This is a month dedicated to preparation for...

Thoughts on Tisha B’Av and Hope   This week, on Monday evening and Tuesday, we observe the major fast day of Tisha B’Av, the ninth day of...

In a satirical piece on a miraculous splitting of a river to allow a group of God’s favorites to cross on dry land, Mark Twain remarks on...

I have often noted that, if one gets technical about it, there is really no such thing as “Juda-ism.”  It is a convenient catchall term,...

I hope you all had an enjoyable Fourth of July holiday.  This is one festival on the American calendar which truly provides an...

Thoughts on the “Lord’s Prayer” and Jewish Liturgy Most of us who went to public school prior to the decision of the Supreme Court in...

Six years ago, at the urging of our then Membership and Publicity Chair, I was asked to write a weekly piece for our Facebook page and...

After the Flood in Noah’s day, a great rainbow appeared in the sky.  We read in Genesis that God told Noah, “I have set my bow in the...

I was very pleased to see on Wednesday that the Chicago Board of Rabbis presented its annual Rabbi Mordecai Simon Award to Rabbi Anna...

It seems that this is the season for remembrance, a time to recall those who have fallen in battle as well as those whose lives ended...

Earlier this week, on Tuesday, we observed Yom HaAtzmaut, Israel’s Independence Day.  As always, it was preceded, on Monday, with...

How can one best memorialize those who died during the Shoah during the Second World War?  As in most areas of Jewish life, so too here...

Moadim l’simcha!  I wish you the joy of this holiday season. This week, as you know, we are celebrating the festival of Pesach, of...

Certainly, one of the most popular and frequently published works in Jewish tradition is the Passover Haggadah, the booklet we use for...

Thoughts on a Recurring Divine Attribute I wrote last week about one of the traditional Passover songs that appears at the end of the...

As Passover approaches in the next couple of weeks, I wanted to take another look at the Haggadah and some of the songs and prayers I...