Menahem Schmelzer, a Hungarian refugee who for more than two decades was the doting custodian of one of the world’s greatest collections of ancient Hebrew and other Jewish manuscripts and books as the librarian of the Jewish Theological Seminary, died on Dec. 10 at his home in Manhattan. He was 88. During Professor Schmelzer’s tenure [...]
Category: News and Politics
Though darkened by Russian strikes lights of hope
In the north of Europe shelling brings a lot of darkness, but these days our brethren and sisters from Ukraine, with us are all united in the commemoration of another war won by the grace of the El' Elyon.
Looking forward to Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah
Going up to Simchat Torah, the Rejoicing of the Torah, remembering how everything we have is a gift from Hashem, Who has given His Word to guide us through our life.
More than seven anti-Semitic incidents in the U.S.A. per day
The Anti-Semitism Worldwide Report 2021 and the Anti-Defamation League report about anti-Semitism show the rise of hate against Jews.
British four-part television which chronicles British Jews who went undercover with Neo-Nazis now also on PBS
The British four-part television drama Ridley Road which premiered on BBC One on 3 October 2021 can now also be seen on PBS. The mini-series Ridley Road is set in the East End of London in the early 1960s and follows the story of a Jewish woman who infiltrates the ranks of the neo-Nazis, posing [...]
Soar to Places Unknown
With one foot in a world where there is no room for the Elohim and with the other foot where one is searching for the Kingdom of Peace offered by the Creator, one must dare to make the right decision in a world where individualism and consumerism are paramount.
After not being deliberately separated from everyone else, we may look forward to times that we shall be allowed again to gather, finding again some precious time to feel a unity to worship the Elohim.
After a time when isolation seemed to be the priority, we as human beings will now have to make the choice whether we want to bond with others in the community before the Most High.
During the long months when we could not meet in the shul and were assigned to celebrate all the Feasts of Hashem in our own little living room among house-mates, it became clear how important the meetings are for the community, to keep them alive but also to give them enough spiritual food to grow.
Now that the lockdown periods seem to be over, let us not be deterred by the ongoing invasion of Ukraine, but let that also be one of the reasons to come together now more than ever, for prayer and reflection, looking forward to a time when our people will enjoy an everlasting peace under Hashem’s blessings.
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- Going back to shul
We humans live with one foot firmly in the physical world, and yet we have an inexplicable urge to dip a toe in the spiritual world. However strong or tentative that impulse may be, we all have our moments when we long to transcend our physical being and soar. Where to? That’s the mystery.
Today I shared a moment with a woman whom I had only just met. It was time for her to take the last step in her conversion to Judaism, and I had the privilege of walking into the Gulf of Mexico with her while she prepared to submerge three times.
The Gulf is a beautiful place to use as a mikvah. It is living waters, mayim chayyim, as required of a mikvah, but instead of being surrounded by the walls of a building we were surrounded by sand and sky, white clouds and soft breezes. …
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Times of seclusion, restriction, liberation, connection, religious affiliation and conversion
In Corona time many people got time to think about which way to go with their faith. Now more people feel the need to go back to the shul after all the lockdowns.
Miscalculation as high as it was in August 1914 No one outside of Serbia expected war
On the domestic political side, neither the United States nor Russia are as stable or predictable as they were in the Cold War and Putin, in all his cocksureness, pushed his country into a conflict none foresaw.
A Jew who would be a Nazi who has to be killed according president Putin
The first-ever Jewish president of Ukraine is being accused to be a Nazi and to be terrorising ethnic Russians in Ukraine, and therefore should be killed and is the reason for Putin to undertake what he calls the peace mission to give the Ukrainians a better life.
Jodi Rudoren moderating a civil discourse
Under the auspices of the Temple Emanu-El Streicker Center, Forward Editor-in-Chief, Jodi Rudoren moderated a spirited debate on the aspects of my previous posting. The hot topic was part of a panel discussion with Bret Stephens of The Times, and Peter Beinart of Jewish Currents, at The Temple Emanu-El Streicker Center. In this video underneath [...]
Anti-Defamation League’s survey showing the problem of American anti-Jewishness
The Anti-Defamation League released a survey earlier this year in which 36% of American Jews and 41% of Americans said they had experienced online hate and harassment. According to the FBI’s 2020 statistics, crimes targeting Jews comprised 57.5% of all hate crimes, more than any other religious group. Despite the seeming blitz of self-regulation from [...]
Rosh Hashana 2021 / רֹאשׁ הַשָּׁנָה 5782
Coronavirus disease 2019 (CoViD-19), a disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), was first reported from Wuhan, China in December 2019 and it has already claimed more than forty thousand live. As if Corona was not enough, we got the Summer flooding and the wettest summer in years, which was not a [...]
British Jews suffering worst levels of hatred for decades
In the first half of 2021 there was a record number of reports of hate incidents and antisemitism in the U.K. and other countries. Several Christians have no idea how Jews are still the People of God.
In times of flooding and other miseries
The summer of 2021 brought an enormous flood over Belgium and several other Western European countries. This weekend, the Torah brings a line of help as Tree of Life or Etz haChayim.
Three Weeks of sadness but also of hope
From June 27 until July 18 2021, thinking of exiles, misfortunes and calamities for the Jewish people. Mourning for sad events but also looking forward with the hope of God's promises.
Immanuel Verbondskind - עמנואל קאָווענאַנט קינד 