Reflections on the passing of Dayan Chanoch Ehrentreu zt”l
By Rabbi Jeremy Conway
Somehow it was my great zechus to become a zanav l’aroyos – “a tail to lions” and in particular to the...
The “State” of Hashem in Our World
By Rabbi Moshe Taragin for Rosh Hashanah
"All of humanity pass before You as sheep.. ". On Rosh Hashanah, Hashem reviews all human behavior, scrutinizes...
Moving and Meaningful Tisha B’Av programme Whitefield Community Kollel in their new home, Shomrei...
Sunday Tisha B’Av saw a well-attended day long programme offered at Shomrei Hadas Shul Prestwich by Whitefield Community Kollel.
In the day’s programme, led by...
Donkeygate
by Rabbi Moshe Taragin
A lot was at stake. We were perched to enter the promised land, launch Jewish history, and assemble the kingdom...
Naso, a brave new world
The drama of a nazir illustrates our delicate interface with the physical world which surrounds us. God crafted us as spiritual creatures- more angel...
Parshat Bechukotai: what drives history?
Our sedra contains the tochacha, a whole litany of curses that will befall the Jewish People should they turn away from a life of...
Parshat Behar: is the Torah speaking economics?
What is the Torah’s take on economics?
The laws of Shemittah and Yovel perhaps tell us. Every seven years was to be a “Shabbat of...
Torah reading: why specify the obvious?
Lineage
The sidra begins, "Say to the kohanim the descendants of Aaron". The definition of the kohanim as descending from Aaron seems too obvious to...
The changing tides of the Omer
Jews experience time very deeply. Different stages of our calendar are suited for different religious experiences. During the forty days leading up to Yom...
Sefiras Ha’omer: Achieving the impossible
Imagine a teenager lying on a grassy field, gazing into the night sky. As he stares up at the stars, he thinks to himself,...
Parshat Kedoshim: what is holiness?
What does the term kedusha mean? What is holiness? In what way is God holy, and how are we meant to copy it? Many...
OzTorah: vengeance – K’doshim
THE EXTRA PHRASE
The Torah constantly tells us who is speaking (generally God) and who is being addressed (often Moses, often the people of Israel).
We...
What sort of Jewish state?
The Palestinians and the world are not stupid. They know quite well that we are a Jewish and democratic State. Their deeds leave no...
Elon Musk and freedom of speech
Dear Rabbi
I wonder what you think about Elon Musk taking over Twitter. As a Jew, the idea of him opening up “freedom of speech”...
Ask the Rabbi: being nice to terrorists
BEING NICE TO TERRORISTS
Q. It says in Pir’kei Avot that we should judge each person favourably ("dan l’chaf z’chut"). Does this apply to terrorists?...
Yom Ha’atzmaut: Jewish history under construction
Redemption comes in many varieties. Sometimes it is a rapid swell and sometimes a gentle flow. Sometimes history is overhauled in a heartbeat and...
Yom Hashoah: interviews with three Jewish martyrs
On a wintry October day in 1941 The Jews of the Kovno ghetto were assembled at an Umshlagplatz (gathering place), about to be deported...
Jewish youngsters urged to ‘pass on the torch of memory’
After two years, March of the Living UK - an annual trip giving young people from the UK access to experiential Holocaust education in...
Parshat Metzorah: speech, propaganda, and Seder night
This week's Torah portion describes the procedures that must be taken to cleanse the gossiper inflicted with tzoraat. He is sprinkled with the blood of...
Expensive Afikoment presents
Dear Rabbi
Is it appropriate to give expensive presents to children or stealing the Afikomen? When I was growing up it was always some sweets...