The first mention of Lot is found in the midst of the genealogical summations that appear at the end of Parashat Noach, “And Terah lived 70 years, and he begot Abram, Nahor, and Haran. And … more

Phew! I’m glad to know the beloved library has not been sworn off. Books and a love of reading have been with me since I was little. Growing up in a tiny matchbox of a Jerusalem apartment, my … more

Just when you thought things couldn’t get any messier over at the Center for Jewish History, a New York Times columnist who was invited to speak at an event there … more

Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon made a good point at a Security Council meeting on the Middle East last week when he stated that the Iranian regime “has tried to obtain … more

Jewish institutions are under siege these days, and their principal critics aren’t neo-Nazis. Despite the clear leftward tilt of most organized Jewish life, liberal critics are constantly … more

Our parasha, LechLecha, contains the sole instances of the specific phrase, “lebrit olam,” (“as an everlasting covenant,”) that appear in Chamisha Chumshei Torah (the Five … more

The upcoming 75th anniversary of Operation Torch, the Allies’ liberation of North Africa, has triggered discussions about the … more

His name was Shachar, which means the dawn, and the joke was with him around it was always dawn, because he blotted out the sun. He was a massive fellow, and watching him squeeze into the … more

After the jokes of Bereshit sermons fade away — “And G-d uttered, zul zayn azoy, and it was so,” or “And G-d created the heavens and the earth and all the rest was made in … more

I had my first cold-weather cup of hot tea the other day. I stood in the kitchen and tried to will summer to stay for just a while longer. The sun blazed in my kitchen, the sky was … more