Jewish Blogs

Stenciling On Color Washed Walls Or Canvases: A Great Look For Summer!

About six months or so ago I introduced you to another creative Jewish mom by the name of Roberta Rose, and her beautifully color washed walls here. The walls in this photo however, are the work of Roberta’s mentor, Therese Parnes, herself a decorative painter, and very creative soul! I wanted to share this project with you, as I think ...

Steal This Matzah

Over at the Awl there’s an awesome post about something called Moonstrips which are apparently awesome and made of matzah (I am already skeptical). After discovering Moonstrips the author headed over to the Streit’s factory, still on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, to procure some from their in-house store.The store was open, but there was no one there to collect his ...

StarTribune: Minnesota Muslim Congressman Keith Ellison calls for release of Israeli Soldier Gilad Shalit

This is good news all around. Shalit should be release soon, based on this important activity.Ellison leads call for Israeli soldier’s releaseby JEREMY HERBWASHINGTON – U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison and a group of high-profile U.S. Muslims have sent a letter to Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal urging the militant group to release an Israeli soldier held captive since 2006.The letter, an ...

StarTribune: Beware of the Dangers of Road Rage Even in Winter

We usually think of road rage as a scourge of the summer months. Not so reports the Star Tribune.Raging driver cuts off, blocks another, allegedly pulls gunMinneapolis police on Wednesday were investigating a driver’s complaint that when he asked another motorist to move his car, the man pulled a gun on him and flew into a rage.The complainant, Steve Haughton, ...

Start the Parsha Earlier in the Week

The Yomim Tovim are past and it’s a good opportunity to increase our Torah learning. How many times are we rushing to finish the Parsha on Friday night or Shabbos morning?Why not start early in the week so you can research some of the questions you have and do a better job of learning the Parsha.Here’s Rabbi Rietti’s outline of ...

Standing on Masada

The REALITY Israel Experience is a unique leadership development opportunity for selected Teach For America corps members to spend 10 days exploring Israel’s education and social justice systems, gaining exposure to top Israeli leaders and thinkers, and uncovering and recommitting to the values that drive their passion for public service. It is a program of the Charles and Lynn Schusterman ...

Spiritual Meaning in Everyday Life

Question: In one of your classes, you discussed how every physical thing is “hevel” because it will eventually end. I feel that most of what I can perceive and experience in this world is physical. If this is so, how can I develop myself? What can I hold onto?Answer: Spirituality doesn’t mean cutting yourself off from the physical world. On ...

Spiritual Cause and Effect

I’m privileged to bear the name of the holy Mishnaic sage (Tanna, in Aramaic) Rebbe Eliezer ben Yaakov. His gravesite is 2 kilometers east of the Hananya crossroads, about 10 kilometers south of Meron.Rebbe Eliezer ben Yaakov was nicknamed kav veNaki (Gemara tractate Eruvin 62b, Yevamot 49b, and other places), which literally means “grain with no chaff”. The connotation is that he ...

Special Mission

Our friend Logan is a college student in New Jersey.Hello Reb Lazer,I wanted to tell you something that happened to me a couple weeks ago. I go to a secular college in New Jersey and there is very little Jewish presence on campus. I am the only one I’ve ever seen on campus with a kippa and tzitzit. In short, I stick ...

Speaking to Your Kids About Personal Safety – mp3 and article

In the broadest sense, I think that the time for fathers and mothers to begin protecting their beloved children from sexual abuse is the moment that they walk down from the chuppah and begin their married life together.Think of it this way. Children who are raised in homes that are havens of safety, love, mutual respect and tolerance are far ...

Spanx may make panty lines invisible, but can’t smooth over feminist critique

This delicious article in the Boston Globe had me pumping my feminist fist in the air! In a report on the Combined Jewish Philanthropies Women’s Philanthropy’s annual Pomegranate event held at Congregation Mishkan Tefilah in Chestnut Hill, MA, Beth Teitell reported that there were no “visible panty lines,” or “VPLs.”Speaking at the event was Spanx chief executive Laurie Ann Goldman. Teitell reports:Goldman, 48, also ...

Sour Gripes

Like pretty much all publicity, the heavy reportage of the Siyum HaShas at MetLife Stadium earlier this month was something of a two-edged sword. Over the weeks since the Siyum, awareness of the event likely inspired many Jews to undertake Daf Yomi and legions of others to aspire to a greater degree of Jewish study and observance. It also brought ...