My wife and I have just returned from an amazing visit to Israel. One feature of the population stuck out, delighting us both. While Israel has many unique facets, in one way we felt that we had stepped into a time warp, beaming us back to healthier days in the United States. Regardless of actual...
Solomon & Socrates It would be difficult to overstate the reverence with which Jews who try to be faithful to the Bible’s teachings treat a Torah scroll. It is hand-written in carefully scripted Hebrew, on meticulously stitched together parchment sheets, by an expert known as a ‘sofer’. A Torah scroll is treated with the tender...
As the school year began anew, author (and courageous columnist) Abigail Shrier wrote about an increasing number of parents who are sending their children to classical schools or schools with dual-language curricula. She concluded that the draw wasn’t so much the foreign language acquisition as it was these parents dismay with what was taking place...
Humor can be dangerous. In Stalinist Russia laughing at a joke the regime deemed inappropriate might trigger loss of a job or worse. Today, in the United States, comedians as famous as Jerry Seinfeld no longer perform on college campuses based on the hate-filled reactions hurled at them. Paradoxically, a sense of humor remains high...
There are many secrets to success in life, but here’s a good one: Empower your wife and other vital women in your life to bring out the best in you. This lesson emerges from a mystery posed by three verses, Genesis 24:58-60. Verse A:They called Rebecca and said to her, “Will you go with this man?” ...
Here is one of the most important lessons to teach yourself and your children: Wrongdoers detest those who don’t join in. That idea illuminates a clear picture of much behind-the-scenes maneuvering in business as well as in much of our political process. More than one dedicated and idealistic candidate has won election promising to become...
One of my least favorite laws was the National Speed Limit law of 1974 that mandated 55 miles per hour as the legal maximum. Government assured us that it would save gasoline that, back then, we were lining up at gas stations to buy at, gasp! 55 cents a gallon. Of course the law did...
I learned an important principle of how the world really works from one of my favorite animal books, the astoundingly illustrated book, Journey to the Ants. “If an animal is beautifully colored and acts with relative indifference to your presence it is probably poisonous or well armored.” An example of this principle is the South...
Over the past week, since the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade, our office has received a number of letters asking for the truth about ancient Jewish wisdom’s view of abortion. In response, we have been forwarding an Ask the Rabbi and Susan from 2019 that answered the following question. Hello! Please comment on...
A study (conducted before inflation drove prices skyward) claimed that American women spend an average of $65 per month on anti-aging creams and treatments. American men spend just under $50 a month taking care of their own faces. These numbers seem wildly improbable but, either way, the Bible provides advice on how to look younger...
