by Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks The meaning of tikkun and its connection to Shavuot. ] Excerpted from the Koren Shavuot Mahzor with introduction by Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks The word tikkun, as in tikkun olam, “mending the world,” and tikkun leyl Shavuot, the custom of staying up and studying Torah all night on the first … Read more
by Gerald M. Steinberg A unique and unhealthy mutual dependence has developed between the EU and a narrow group of Israeli and Palestinian political NGOs. In 1995, the European Union’s Barcelona Conference launched the grand-sounding Euro-Mediterranean Partnership, a massive effort encompassing the countries of North Africa, Israel, Syria and Jordan. The main objective was to … Read more
Times of Israel: Raphael Ahren and Raoul Wootliff contributed to this report As Netanyahu, Liberman voice support for Arab Peace Initiative, Shaked and Bennett say Palestine won’t happen on their watch By Times of Israel staff May 31, 2016, 10:35 pm 7 In a dramatic move, Netanyahu on Monday partially endorsed the Arab Peace Initiative, … Read more
Moshe Kempinski This past week has seen thousands come through the gates of the old city, to sing dance and pray. Yesterday a group of seemingly secular Jews formed a circle at the foot of the Hurva synagogue and began to sing songs of Jerusalem. One man then pulled out a large shofar and began … Read more
Moshe Kempinski The book of Bamidbar or the Book of the Wilderness is the book describing the wilderness experience of the newly emerging people of Israel. It describes their challenges and their failures on the one hand and their persistence and courage on the other. As with all the words of Torah it also remains … Read more
Rabbi Chanan Morisson based on the writings of Harav Kook In 1751, the Pennsylvania Assembly ordered a special bell be cast, commemorating the 50th anniversary of William Penn’s ‘Charter of Privileges.’ The Speaker of the Assembly was entrusted with finding an appropriate inscription for what later became famous as the Liberty Bell. The best expression … Read more
Like a Mountain Moshe Kempinski The Torah portion of Behar begins with the words “And Hashem spoke to Moshe on Mount Sinai, saying,”( Leviticus 25:1) Why do we need to know that these words were spoken at Mount Sinai? We already knew where they were encamped. Rashi gives the following explanation; What special relevance does … Read more
‘ Uri Heitner On Aug. 26, 1947, three months before the partition resolution and nine months before the founding of the State of Israel, David Ben-Gurion said in a speech to the Zionist General Council: “We now face not simply acts of robbery and terrorism and attempts to disturb our work, but an attempt to … Read more
