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Book Review: Tough Questions Jews Ask: A Young Adult’s Guide to Building a...
“Are you ready to be serious?” About halfway through Tough Questions Jews Ask, Rabbi Edward Feinstein tells a story about a man he met at the gym. Asking the Rabbi about how often he was planning on...
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Book Review:God's To-Do List: 103 Ways to Be an Angel and Do God's Work on Earth
If there weren’t any consequences for being bad, why would any of us be good? It’s a question that I always ask my students. As Jews, we tend to be kept in line by our appreciation of our texts,...
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Tisha B'Av by Candlelight
Summer camp was always a joyous time in my life, but one thing about camp each summer was exactly the opposite: Tisha B’Av, the ninth day of the Hebrew month of Av. Tisha B’Av is a fast day on which...
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Interview with Yishai Fleisher- Director of Arutz Sheva, Israel National News
Yishai Fleisher, the director of Arutz Sheva, Israel National News, is coming to Congregation Or Yisrael on July 27 as part of multi-city speaking tour in the US. Fleisher, the son of Russian...
View ArticleThe Dilemma of the American Zionist: Rav Kook, Shabbat Nachamu, and a Fair...
Zionism is on my brain this week. Part of the reason is that it’s summer, and every summer I say goodbye to kids who are bound for Israel on teen tours, and then I follow their Facebook status...
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Rooting for the Minnows of the Champions League Soccer Competition
To say that I'm a sports fan is an understatement. I love watching sports, playing sports, competing, getting angry at the TV, and exhibiting other irrational behaviors that only happen when sports...
View ArticleIf A Rocket Falls in Eilat, and No One Talks About It, Did it Really Happen?
The dog days of summer are here. Here in the Bay State, it's been hard to avoid the debate raging on Beacon Hill about slots and "racinos," the faux-outrage about John Kerry's yacht-gate scandal, and...
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The People in Your Neighborhood: Rabbi Benjamin Shalva of Temple Reyim
Temple Reyim began a new chapter with the arrival of their new rabbi, Benjamin Shalva, on August 1. A native of Milwaukee, Rabbi Shalva was ordained by the Jewish Theological Seminary in 2008 and...
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A Kippah-Wearing Forward Shines in Salzburg
A glorious victory for HaPoel Tel Aviv last night in Salzburg, Austria, as the Israeli champions passed their biggest test yet with flying colors, defeating Red Bull Salzburg 3-2. I was thrilled that...
View ArticleHebrew School is Around the Corner- Tips for Parents
In Eastern Massachusetts right now there are thousands of Jewish kids getting ready to resume their formal Jewish learning in supplementary Hebrew schools. For parents, it’s time to start organizing...
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Rosh Hashana Recipe: Stuffed Acorn Squash
Acorn squash with apple/raisin/cinnamon filling, just in time for Rosh Hashana and Sukkot!Ingredients1 whole acorn squash4-5 medium apples1/2 cup of raisins1 1/2 tsp cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and...
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Red Lightning- HaPoel Tel Aviv Qualifies
Eran Zahavi has a flair for the dramatic. His goal in stoppage time last year in the Israeli championship won the league title for HaPoel Tel Aviv, and last night, in the ninety-third minute, his...
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A Lackluster Draw for HaPoel
Coulda, shoulda, woulda, didn’t. The collective groan from the sands of Tel Aviv must have been a pathetic sound to hear as the Champions League draw was announced in Monaco today. With all of the...
View ArticleKi Tavo- Why Be Good?
Why be good? In the case of the Jewish people, it’s perhaps the greatest existential question we struggle with. We are presented with a Torah full of mitzvot, an oral Torah and a Shulchan Aruch that...
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Why Kesher? Easy...Great Teaching
Today was the first day of staff orientation at Kesher Newton and we spent most of the day throwing out trash, putting in new rugs, and getting the classrooms ready for the open house coming up on...
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Coming to a Full Stop: Nitzavim, Vayelech, and the Days of Awe
Judaism is a study in contrasts. We are meant to see that for every calamity, there is redemption. For every curse, there is a blessing. For everyone in despair, there is hope. Recall that last...
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Born With a Knife in Their Hearts -- Questions for Rosh Hashanah
A week from today, many of you will listen to the Torah reading about the Akedat Yitzchak, the binding of Isaac, which is traditionally read on the second day of Rosh Hashana. The moral questions...
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Unplugged in 5771: Finding "The Still, Small Voice"
You might be familiar with the biblical story of the prophet Elijah on Mount Chorev, which comes from I Kings, chapter 19. Up on the mountain, seeking refuge from furious Queen Jezebel after his...
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You Couldn't Make This Stuff Up: Three Pearls of Wisdom for the Next Generation
The opening of the Kesher Newton year inevitably comes with a few snafus and oversights. Yesterday was no different, as we welcomed sixty children in for a full Tuesday of programming from 12:30-5:45...
View ArticleShofar Sneakiness
The phone rang today at 5:05 with a name I didn’t recognize on the caller ID.Me: “Shalom, Kesher. This is Dan.”Caller: “I have a crazy question for you.”What an introduction! It had already been a...
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