Outside of Orthodoxy, Shavuot is one of the lesser-known Jewish holidays. In an essay titled “Thoughts on Shavuot” from his book, “Angels for Shabbat,” Rabbi Marc Angel, director of the Institute for Jewish Ideas and Ideals states quite eloquently: “Shavuot is the festival on which we recall the Revelation at Mount Sinai. It is also a good time to plan for a hypothetical second gathering of Israelites at Sinai – and to think carefully how we can envision such an event as an opportunity to bring us all together. more

The holiday of Shavuoth is coming and the teacher Rabbi Gevaltsky stands before his class and asks the bochurim, “can someone tell me about any of the Ten Commandments?” more

To this day there are few things I enjoy more than fishing. When I was younger, my dad would take me quite frequently during the summer months. We would rise at the crack of dawn, grab our packed lunches, and drive out an hour to the pond. more

There are seven instances in the Torah when a tally of army-aged males is given to us. Twice they are rounded to “600,000 foot soldiers” (Shmot 12:37 and Bamidbar 11:21). more

I never met him. But of his many written works, I have read. The recent untimely passing of Rabbi Dr. Aaron Levine, whose sheloshim was observed this past week, represents the loss of one of … more

Last week President Obama called for any Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement to be based on the pre-June 1967 borders: Forgetting for a moment whether Obama was right or wrong for making that declaration, there is a serious problem with his statement as a pre-1967 border does not exist! more

The Jewish presence in Jerusalem’s Old City and surrounding eastern neighborhoods continues to grow, with local supporters preparing for a June 1 celebration fundraiser at Terrace on the Park in Queens, raising funds for American Friends of Ateret Cohanim/Jerusalem Chai. Widely known for its promotion of Jewish settlement in eastern Jerusalem, this year marks the 32nd year for the yeshiva. more

Hudna is an Arabic term meaning a temporary "truce" or "armistice" as well as "quiet", coming from a verbal root meaning "calm." It is sometimes translated as "cease-fire." more

Do a search on the internet for "Klausenburger Rebbe" and you'll find the deceased rebbe has a Facebook page. Add the word "tochacha" to your search, and you'll find a story about a time he was in shul for the reading of the tochacha, and he told the reader to read the section in a loud voice. Rabbi Frand, who tells the story, records the Rebbe's explanation for this contrarian position to an ancient custom. more

Winds of change are blowing across the Five Towns as candidates emerge from our community asking the most basic of questions: Where is our money going? Is it being used efficiently? Where can cuts be made? more