With the counting of Sefirah just about to end, the festival of Shavuot commemorating the giving of the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai can not be too far behind. In fact the observance of this briefest of holidays is the exact culmination of the Sefirah count and the climax of the historic link between Pesach, the Exodus, and Shavuot and the giving of the Torah.
more
By Alan Jay Gerber
|
5/9/13
|
The Jewish Publication Society, the oldest Jewish publishing company in the United States, recently published “Modern Orthodox Judaism: A Documentary History,” by Rabbi Dr. Zev Eleff, …
more
By Alan Jay Gerber
|
12/6/16
|
The Birnbaum Siddur — who among us has never heard of that iconic prayer book? Yes, iconic, inasmuch as it was among the most popular siddurim of the mid-20th century. But who was …
more
By Alan Jay Gerber
|
12/5/18
|
Yes indeed, it is Rosh Hashanah once again, and there are some really fine, high quality books for your continued learning pleasure.
To really understand the true meaning and feeling for the upcoming “Yimei Ratzon,” a close reading of some of the most authoritative teachings concerning this holy season is always in order. This year is no different, and by the time you finish with this essay, you will be inspired to read some of the selections suggested or revisit previous Kosher Bookworm reviews for even more choices.
more
By Alan Jay Gerber
|
9/13/12
|
This past Sunday marked the bicentennial anniversary of the yahrtzeit of the Baal HaTanya, Rabbi Scheneur Zalman. Among his most lasting literary works was the Tanya, perhaps the most definitive foundational work of Chabad chasidus, as well as one of the most influential of Judaism’s literary works of that era. Yet among his interpreters, each saw different teachings and theological meanings in his writings in the Tanya.
more
By Alan Jay Gerber
|
1/10/13
|
When I was growing up on New York’s Lower East Side, one of the greatest people, who was to become in our time one of America’s most prominent literary figures, was Herman Wouk. His …
more
By Alan Jay Gerber
|
7/24/19
|
The Kosher Bookworm
by Alan Jay Gerber
Issue of May 28, 2010/ 15 Sivan 5770
Dr. Michael Wyschograd, one of America’s premier Jewish theologians, once described the tsadik as “the …
more
5/26/10
|
Maggid Books has released “The Intellect And The Exodus, Authentic Emuna for a Complex Age,” by award-winning author Rabbi Jeremy Kagan.
Rabbi Kagan presents keen and powerful …
more
By Alan Jay Gerber
|
7/9/20
|
How to respond to grief with chesed and Torah learning
By Alan Jay Gerber
Issue of July 31, 2009 / 10 Av 5769
Two recent books deal with the untimely death of a close one, each in a …
more
7/29/09
|
Rabbi Shlomo of Kartin said: “If you want to raise a man from mud and filth, do not think it is enough to keep standing on top and reaching down to him a helping hand. You must go all the way down yourself, down into mud and filth. Then take hold of him with strong hands, and pull him and yourself out into the light.”
more
By Alan Jay Gerber
|
10/26/11
|