Rabbi's Blog - Chabad Lubavitch of Idaho

Love Your Fellow Self

Friday, April 24, 2026 - 11:14 AM

I have the amazing fortune of spending Shabbat at a class reunion with friends from my yeshiva days. I’m reconnecting with buddies from Massachusetts, Israel, Greece, Miami, London, and beyond. It’s so special.

More special than the fond memories and nostalgia is hearing their successes and life stories. It truly feels so uplifting as each one fargins the other and celebrates their families and journeys.

Some are Rabbis. Some are businessmen. Some are professionals.

But, we are all brothers. And the farbrengens betray a true sense of pride we have in each other.

This week’s double parsha of Acharei-Kedoshim includes the famous words, “Love your fellow as yourself.” The Torah doesn’t just tell us to lo… Read More »

One Child at a Time

Friday, April 17, 2026 - 11:15 AM

In a conversation today, my wife and I mentioned to someone that we have twelve children. During the conversation, this person causally mentioned our combined family. Apparently, it never dawned upon her that these children might all be the offspring of both of us. She may have meant well, but it demonstrates a societal bias.

In fact, none of our children were combined at birth either, as we do not have any twins. Actually, we do have a set of Irish twins, who are currently the same age.

I will remain forever proud of my dear wife, the mother of all my children.

Our society prides itself on understanding the human psyche and investing in what’s best for our youth. Yet, the assumption is that less is more. If we have jus… Read More »

Relatively Incomparable

Friday, April 10, 2026 - 8:39 AM

Cleaning the house before Pesach is a long and important process. The Torah doesn’t allow us to own any Chametz at all throughout the days of Passover.

When we have finally cleaned the house of Chametz, sold our Chametz, and searched for Chametz, we are ready to settle in to a Chametz-free zone for Pesach.

The kitchen is changed over from Chametz to Kosher-for-Pesach utensils and dishes. Cupboards with Chametz are out of bounds. It’s a full kitchen makeover – but just for about a week.

Then comes the conclusion of Pesach. As soon as Passover is over, we tear it all down and put away the Passover dishes until next year.

It’s amazing how quickly we go from Pesach to Chametz. It took us weeks of preparation to get t… Read More »