With Purim now safely behind us, we are now ready to give our full attention to what is one of the most popular holidays on the Jewish calendar, Pesach. In a recent essay by Shira Schechter, the Madricha Ruchaniyah of Stern College, titled “Purim and Pesach: Two Holidays, One Theme,” she notes the spiritually symbiotic link between these two festivals: “Every year as Purim approaches we already begin looking towards Pesach. more

What brought about the deaths of Aharon’s older sons? Most discussions analyze the specific nature of the particular service they were performing. Were they drunk? Were they wearing the proper clothing? Did they enter an area prohibited to them? Did they perform a service reserved for their father alone? Did they merely bring a strange fire? more

For people who keep kosher, New York is rivaled only by Jerusalem as one of the great epicenters of kosher cuisine. My father, who grew up in New York, often talks about how the kosher restaurant scene evolved into what it is today. Originally the restaurants served simple but delectable food like deli sandwiches and knishes. Then a restaurant called La Différence opened up in the city and forever altered the kosher landscape of New York. La Différence, which was a fancy French-style restaurant, was a game changer in that it was the first kosher restaurant to offer what was considered fine dining. more

Dear Aviva, My family is in a lot of financial trouble. There’s very little money coming in and it’s very stressful. I manage the bills and I keep trying to explain to my wife that we cannot spend on any extras. She claims she understands, but she still spends over our budget. If I confront her, she gives me an excuse like, “I was being careful—I only bought things that were on sale.” Things are really stressful and her spending will get us into deeper trouble. Any advice? -Husbandry Husband more

David F. Nesenoff: Foremost on our minds is the killing of the members of the Fogel family. What is the message we take away from that? Moshe Feiglin: When I came back from the funeral to my car and realized that the whole funeral was broadcast live on the second largest station in Israel, I felt that something dramatic has changed in the Israeli society. more

The bribery case of Brooklyn State Senator Carl Kruger could provide an opportunity for the local Russian Jewish community to send one of its own to Albany. “He was never liked for his shenanigans. more

Less than two weeks after the horrific murder of a Jewish family in Itamar, attacks against Israel are escalating, with rockets from Gaza shelling Beersheva, and a deadly bus bombing outside the Binyanei Ha’Uma convention center in Jerusalem on March 23. more

Israel mix up Crowds of anti-Jewish protesters stood with signs demanding to stop future construction in Israel. After five hours of protesting they realized that they got mixed up and were not protesting the State of Israel, but rather were standing outside the home of Congressman Steve Israel. Although the mob eventually left, Congressman Israel, who was redoing his guest bathroom, stopped the construction contractor from continuing. more

David F. Nesenoff: Thank you for the interview and Happy Purim. Moses: It’s a pleasure to speak with you but I would have thought you would want to interview Mordechai this time of year. It’m kind of a Passover guy. DFN: Well, Mordechai has an exclusive with the Five Towns Jewish Times and het’s not allowed to talk with us, you know how it is. M: It’ve been retired for a while, but It’m glad to tell you what I can. more

President Obamat’s real name is Baruch Chaim Abramowitz. He is Jewish and was born in Haifa not Hawaii. The right-wing Orthodox Jewish community is perplexed with this new development. On the one hand het’s not an American citizen, so therefore he cant’t be president anymore. On the other hand het’s Jewish. more