Rabbi's Blog

After the Splitting of the Sea the newborn Jewish nation wanted to thank G-d for the great miracle and salvation. So they sang a song of praise, now famous as a part of our daily prayers known as Az Yashir. But the women were not satisfied with mere poetry and melody.  They felt that G-d deserved a true expression of exuberance. So they took their musical instruments and began to truly praise the L-rd in musical dance. As this week’s parsha Beshalach tells:

Miriam, the prophetess, Aaron's sister, took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women came out after her with timbrels and with dances.... ( Read More » )

You might argue that if the ancient Egyptians would have discovered electricity they may have avoided the suffering of the ninth plague of darkness. This week’s parsha Bo describes a week of darkness in Egypt as the second-to-final plague that befell Egypt and led to the exodus of the Jewish people.

But the Midrash tells us, “There were six days of darkness... during the first three, "a man saw not his fellow"; during the last three days, he who sat could not stand up, he who stood could not sit down, and he who was lying down could not raise himself upright.”... ( Read More » )

My seven-year-old son once bought a magic trick set. He was so proud of the few tricks that he had mastered. He was longing for the opportunity to show off these tricks (after subjecting the family to incessant renditions). He had ample chance to do so and enjoyed his new hobby. Until he met his match. When he went to a ‘real’ magic show, his heart sunk. “I can never do those types of tricks.”

It’s one thing to impress family and friends. But to impress the pros is a different league altogether.... ( Read More » )

With the current economic slump affecting many Americans, the debate on credit cards has reached a crescendo. On the one hand, now – more than ever – people are dependent on credit to get by. On the other hand, a strong argument can be made against acquiring debt in a perilous economic period.

Media reports indicate a strong uptick in debit card use, and a decline in credit card use.... ( Read More » )

With the Iowa caucuses behind us and the primary season upon us, Americans begin to tune in to the elections ahead. Looking at the polls can be a dizzying experience. Analyzing candidates’ positions might be more dizzying, some may argue.

All the hype leads us to wonder: Is there more that unites us than divides us?... ( Read More » )

The final chapter has yet to be written on the Arab Spring. Events unfolding in Egypt indicate that the situation is still quite volatile.

But the first Egyptian Spring occurred over 3000 years ago, when a people – three million strong – simply walked out of a dictator’s grasp. Ten plagues and a sea split in two probably was better cover than a NATO no-fly zone.... ( Read More » )

The Ignored Miracle?

Chanukah, one of the most observed Jewish holidays – commemorates two miracles. The first, the victory of the Maccabees’ small, amateur army over the mighty Greek-Syrians, is the lesser-known of the two. The latter, the oil of the menorah lasting eight days instead of one, is relived every year when we kindle the menorah.... ( Read More » )

As Chanukah creeps closer and closer, I begin getting the annual phone calls about how difficult it is to be a Jew during this time of year. At schools, businesses and public places the non-Jewish holiday displays are ubiquitous. Coupled with songs and parties – it’s simply everywhere.

How do Jews remain proud at this time of year, especially in places like Idaho? How can we compete against such great odds? Indeed, we cherish the religious freedom that our great country affords us.  But we are, after all, a minority.... ( Read More » )

George Burns once quipped that happiness is having a large, loving, caring, close-knit family – in another city.

In this week’s parsha of Vayishlach, we read of a unique family reunion between Yaakov (Jacob) and Eisav (Esau). The last time the two were in the same town, Eisav threatened to kill Yaakov, who promptly fled the country. Since then, they had been incommunicado for over 34 years.... ( Read More » )

As I flew home this week from New York, I contemplated the relatively quick shift from the Big Apple to Boise. Spending a long weekend with colleagues and family immersed in Torah, Chassidic inspiration and simply surrounded by Jewish culture was a special treat. 

Thanks to the invention and advances of the airplane, several hours later I was transported back to Boise. As the Yiddish saying goes, “It’s good to travel, but it’s better to come home.”... ( Read More » )

When reading the life-story of Yitzchak (Isaac) in this week’s parsha Toldot, I am amazed to see that although we are familiar with Yitzchak from birth onwards, the Torah begins the narrative of his life from the point of his marriage to Rivka (Rebecca). To be sure, we know a fair amount about him from previous Torah portions. We know that he was circumcised at eight days old; that his parents threw a grand party when he was weaned; that his father almost sacrificed him at 37 years old; and that his father sought an extraordinary girl for him to marry. According to the Midrash, Yitzchak also spent three years in the Garden of Eden. But all of that is a detail in the tale of his parents. In his own right, we are introduced... ( Read More » )

I received this loevly Thanksgiving meditation from my colleague Rabbi Israel Rubin (Chabad of Albany, New York) and want to share it with you.

If you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof over your head, and a place to sleep…
you are richer than 75% of the world.... ( Read More » )

Whether it be Facebook or home décor, we are often engaged in some degree of promoting ourselves. On Twitter we let everyone know what we are up to, at the ballgame we demonstrate our allegiances and at home we show our true colors.

We are, on balance, a very self-obsessed society. Those of us that are lucky parents are sometimes yanked out of that constant self-promotion with the cry of a baby or the text message of a teen. We know our duty is primarily to others and we come second.... ( Read More » )

America is stunned by the shocking revelations of tragic sexual abuses to minors that allegedly occurred at Penn State University. According to sworn grand jury testimony, several individuals at Penn State University, including now-former head football coach Joe Paterno, were informed of an alleged assault on a child on campus. But no one called the authorities.

Since that revelation, several arrests have been made. The board of trustees at Penn Sate subsequently fired the president of the university and the head football coach.... ( Read More » )

Sometime this week humanity welcomed member number 7 billion to our planet. 

Mazal Tov!... ( Read More » )