Jewish Life
Jewish life, community news, and Torah perspective.
Spiritual birthright: this week’s parashah, Toldot
"And the children strove within her; and she said, 'if it is so, why do I live?!' And she went to inquire of God” Genesis 25:22
The girl who saved Jews in the Holocaust passed away at age 91
Yaroslavna Levitska, who helped save Jews in the Holocaust at the age of six, passed away in Haifa, two months before her 92nd birthday. Her funeral will take place today at the Tel Regev cemetery.…
Flying on Hanukkah? The panic in teacher groups and the Education Ministry's response
Ahead of the Hanukkah vacation that will begin in early December, a storm erupted in teacher groups around the question of whether they are allowed to fly abroad without permission • While some commenters frightened…
Daily Tanya: Tanya Yomi: 2 Kislev
The most honest people aren't those who admit their obvious flaws. They are the ones brave enough to search for the flaws they cannot see. A great teacher once listened to a confession and searched…
A single letter helps us understand many Halakhot
The lessson: We need people to live their Yiddishkeit because it’s not something which is just taught. It needs to be caught
Booklets Calling on Jews to Convert to Christianity Distributed to Residents in Central Israel
In an unusually large distribution compared to previous years, booklets calling on Jews to believe in Christianity have recently been distributed in several cities in the Sharon region. "We call on the public to remain…
The centuries we leave out of Israel’s story
Between a burning Temple and a declaration read aloud in Tel Aviv, nearly two millennia of Jewish life often disappears from the story we tell. In this one, Rome destroys Jerusalem, the Jews go into…
The Service Business Owner Who Cannot Stop Explaining
A plumber in Texas named Roger Wakefield spent thirty years in the trade before he pointed a camera at a pipe. Ask him why a water heater makes that noise at eleven at night and…
Don't Need a State? 1,000 Shekels for Every Avreich
In a new budgetary move, the World Torah Fund is for the first time distributing personal grants directly to the bank accounts of married avreichim (yeshiva students) who have been married for over three years.
When the Jewish calendar doesn’t cooperate with Christmas
At 5:30 a.m. one recent morning, I set out on a pilgrimage to Home Depot. The day ahead was packed, but I’d heard that DJ Dreidel, the musical Hanukkah stuffed bear who plays “Hava Nagila,”…
How to uncover your family's Holocaust history when the stories were never told
From Yad Vashem to the Arolsen Archives, experts explain how descendants of Holocaust survivors can reconstruct their family histories when no one is left to tell their stories
Toldot – Blessings of Tohu in the Blessed One of Tikkun
Isaac prepares to bless Esau, and Rebecca sends Jacob deceitfully. This week's column attempts to explain the ultimate question: Why didn't Rebecca simply speak with Isaac? And also, what is the connection between the blessings,…
The Chesed Fund That Outgrew the Group Chat
Someone in your community gets sick. The word goes out on WhatsApp. Money starts arriving. A hundred dollars here, five hundred there, a few thousand from someone who heard through a cousin. Within a week…
The government approved today the principles of the National Plan to strengthen Jewish education in the Jewish communities in North America, following the Government decision fr…
The government approved today the principles of the National Plan to strengthen Jewish education in the Jewish communities in North America, following the Government decision from 28 June 2026. The Plan was formulated by the…
November 11: Jewish soldiers who died for France
Supporters of the Sacred Union, 16,000 French Jews will go to the front (to which must be added 14,000 Jews from Algeria out of a total of 65,000, and 8,000 foreign Jews living in France
In Memory of Yaroslava Levitskaya: A Lifelong Story of Courage
At the age of 91, Yaroslava Levitskaya, the last of the Righteous Among the Nations living in Israel, passed away. She died just about two months short of her 92nd birthday, in Haifa, where she…
Noahide Leaders Gather in Jerusalem for Historic Congress; Tucker Carlson Spreads Conspiracy Theories
Rabbi Ouri Cherki with Noahides from around the world at the first International Congress of Noahides at the Seven Arches Hotel on the Mount of Olives, Nov. 3, 2026. Photo: Shannon Nuszen Nearly 100 Noahide…
The Giving Slot Is the One You Book First
Most families plan an Israel trip by listing places to see. The Kotel, the Old City, Masada, a hike in the north, maybe a day at the beach. Then they look for a gap where…
The Editor Never Left
I run a desk of human writers for a living. Here is the test I use on any draft, machine or human, before it goes out under a client's name. The draft is fine, and…
The Hasidic Rabbi that brings together Jews and Arabs
עס זײַנען דאָ אַזעלכע מענטשן װאָס מע טרעפֿט זײ רעגלמעסיק אױף דער גאַס, אין קאַפֿע, אַרום דער שטאָט. אַזױ איז בײַ מיר און הרבֿ הערשל גליק. פֿון אױבן אױף, זעט אױס אַז מיר זײַנען גאַנץ…
The Bank Guarantee Is the Document Nobody Asks For
A buyer signs on a project in the hills outside Yerushalayim. The floor plan is good. The price is better than anything inside the city. The sales office has a model of the shul, a…
We are not parasites
Elections come and elections go, manipulations celebrate - but the attitude towards the public of observant Jews must change
President Trump says that “America took a giant step back in History with the results of the last Election,” citing a “one day, 3 Trillion Dollar loss” in the stock market. 📈
On Thursday, when the full scale of the Democratic sweep became clear, the market erased every dollar of that rally and then lost another 1,833 points on top of it - one of the worst…
Landmark Ruling: Son Sues His Father Over Inheritance – While Still Alive
The Nazareth District Court ruled that a son can sue his father while he is still alive • This is due to concerns that transferring assets to his sisters would empty the mutual will of…
Friends of the Sick to close after eight decades
The charity will transfer its remaining assets to Jewish Care, with whom it has formed a strong relationship over the years
After October 7th, Dorit Zilberman Realized Something About Holocaust Survivors: "The Very Act of Survival is Heroism"
Ahead of her 70th birthday and the launch of her 23rd book, Dorit Zilberman puts into writing testimonies of Holocaust survivors who have accompanied her for decades. She explains why she chose to publish the…
Wood Fragments Located at Noah's Ark Site: "Hard to Ignore This"
A dramatic turn in the investigation of the mysterious structure in Turkey: ancient wood fragments were extracted from the depths of the earth and have now been sent for laboratory tests to determine their age…
Hayom Yom: Parashat Hashavua: Toldot
What if the most important moment of your life happens in a split second? In this week's Torah portion, Toldot, Esau is exhausted and hungry. He trades his eternal birthright for a bowl of stew.…
When parents disagree
It is especially important to be judicious and honestly objective in evaluating our children
Government Approves: Approximately 600 Members of the Bnei Menashe Community to Make Aliyah to Israel in 2027
Approximately 600 members of the Bnei Menashe community from northeastern India are expected to arrive in Israel in the first half of 2027 • Upon arrival, they will stay in absorption centers, where they will…
‘No other way to understand,’ Ecuadorian envoy tells JNS exclusively of visiting Auschwitz on Israel-led diplomatic tour
“It’s overwhelming to be here to really see what happened to humanity,” Montalvo Sosa, Ecuadorian ambassador to the United Nations, said of visiting the concentration camp for the first time
The Fire Went Out, the Prayer Was Forgotten – But the Story Remains | Adv. Benny Don-Yechiyeh
The Baal Shem Tov knew how to light the fire and pray, his disciples had already lost part of the knowledge, and Rabbi Yisrael of Ruzhin was left with only the story. Benny Don-Yechiyeh returns…
A challah festival descends on New York
A version of this piece first ran as part of the New York Jewish Week’s daily newsletter, rounding up the latest on politics, culture, food and what’s new with Jews in the city. Sign up…
What Israel means to the Jewish people: Beyond politics and borders - opinion
Israel is more than a country. It is the ancestral homeland, spiritual center, and place of self-determination for the Jewish people
Where Did the Sons of Ishmael Scatter - Part Two
Continuing in the footsteps of the Sons of Ishmael along the ancient 'King's Highway' with Ben Zion Afrasmon from 'Hargabim'. The exposure of archaeological remains from the Patriarchal period combined with the verses allows us…
When a Donor's DAF Cannot Reach Your Fund
A donor wants to give from her donor-advised fund. Whether your fund can accept it depends on the sponsor's policy. A donor emails you in November. She has a donor-advised fund at one of the…
Ethiopian Jews Celebrate Sigd in Jerusalem
In Jerusalem, the celebration of Sigd, a major holiday for Ethiopian Jews, gathers several hundred participants dressed in white on the Armon Hanatziv promenade. This day, which occurs 50 days after Yom Kippur, is marked…
Bagrut Rules: How Many Units and Points Are Needed for a Full Diploma
The secondary education system in Israel has a clear distinction between simply finishing school and obtaining a full matriculation certificate — the Bagrut (תעודת בגרות). Possession of this document serves as a basic condition for…
A Tzedakah Fund From 1788 Is Still Packing Boxes in Jerusalem
In 1788, Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, the Alter Rebbe and founder of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement, set up a tzedakah fund to support the poor of Eretz Yisrael. It collected coins from Jewish households in…
The Jewish community accepts interfaith families in principle — but it doesn’t look that way in practice
There is a photograph from my wedding that I think about more than any other. My wife Donna and I are standing under a chuppah. But we are not in a synagogue. Or even on…
A New Neighbourhood Is a Permit, a Road, and a School That Does Not Exist Yet
A new-build apartment comes with a permit, a road, and often a school that does not exist yet. Buyers from abroad spend most of their attention on the apartment itself, the floor plan, the finishes,…
"I Felt Like a Second-Class Citizen": Reservist to Be Compensated After Being Removed from Egged Bus Line
A was removed from a bus on the grounds that it was intended for ultra-Orthodox women only • "As soon as I got on, I saw the driver making an X sign with his hands…
Jewish climate activists sound a clarion call for change outside Parliament
EcoJudaism were holding their third Kol for Climate vigil on Monday, to coincide with COP31
18 Years Since the Mumbai Massacre: Gabi and Rivky Holtzberg Become a Symbol of Light
18 years after the terror attack in Mumbai, the story of Chabad emissaries Gabi and Rivky Holtzberg continues to move people. From the dramatic rescue of their two-year-old son to the Chabad House that resumed…
"The Whole Family Moved to Yeruham": What Attracts Young Families to the Southern City?
Young families arriving from outside, affordable homes and new construction are changing the face of Yeruham. The new residents speak of quality of life and economic opportunity, the veterans are happy about the development they…
Daily Tehillim: Parashat Hashavua: Toldot
Consider this. The name of this week's Torah portion is Generations. We usually think of this as biology, a family line. But the deepest meaning is the act of bringing out what is hidden. The…
The Parsha and Current Events: Where are we being led and why?
When the drizzle of assimilation turns into an unstoppable cloudburst, Hashem steps in to make a reset through antisemitism
After Becoming Kosher: The New Move of the Luxury Hotel in Jaffa
THE JAFFA Hotel continues to change its culinary offering: after becoming kosher last May, ARC, a meat and kosher chef restaurant led by chef Amos Hayon, opened on its premises. The new restaurant, which operates…
Zabar’s owner Stanley Zabar dies at 94
Stanley Zabar, principal owner of Zabar’s, the iconic Jewish deli on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, which his parents founded in 1934, died on Monday. He was 94. On Tuesday, the eatery stated that Zabar was…
Things You See from There - You Don't See from Here | Rabbi Lior Lavi
"I am in reality, I am not on the political map. I am simply in reality." Thoughts on the words of the creator who changed her perspective on reality.
Non-Jews who follow Jewish law gather in Israel for first international Noahide congress
Gilbert Meñoza spent decades as a Christian pastor in the Philippines before his study of the Hebrew Bible led him to reject the New Testament and embrace the Noahide faith. Meñoza said most of his…
Jaroslawa Lewicka, Israel’s last living Righteous Among the Nations, dies at 91
In 1989, Jaroslawa, Katarzyna, and Alexander were recognized as Righteous Among the Nations. In 1995, she immigrated to Israel, became an Israeli citizen, and settled in Haifa
When the WhatsApp Fund Is Ready to Become a Real Fund
A chesed fund usually starts the same way. Someone posts a need in a group chat. Money moves through a personal account because that is the fastest path, and the family gets help by Thursday.…
A Text by Flavius Josephus Reignites Controversy Over Jesus
An ancient account of Jesus challenges centuries of scholarly doubt: 'Totally authentic.' The professor used computer-assisted analysis on five ancient languages in his research. A scholar believes that a nearly 2,000-year-old account of Jesus's life…
How to pursue justice: 5 lessons from the life of Stan Levy
At a time of so much division and injustice, when the temptation is to retreat into outrage or into ourselves, there is much to be learned in the life of our friend, Stan Levy. Stan,…
Max Olesker is right about the conversion hurdles – but wrong to downplay antisemitism in the Guardian
The religious courts must do more to welcome those seeking to join the Jewish people, but describing this moment of murderous Jew-hatred as merely a “strange time” makes light of the situation
"On the Day of Disaster, It Will Be Too Late": Within a Year, There Will Be No Room to Bury in Israel's Cemeteries
Chevra Kadisha organizations petitioned the High Court of Justice: Projects for 40,000 graves in Tel Aviv and Haifa have been frozen, and the inventory in Or Yehuda, Yarkon, and Elad may run out within a…
The site that suffered intensive antiquities theft has been restored: "A story of our land"
KKL-JNF and the Israel Antiquities Authority inaugurated an ancient complex at Khirbet Burgin in the Adullam Park, featuring hiding systems from the Second Temple period alongside a Byzantine church with magnificent mosaics. The excavations at…
Daily Rambam (1 Chapter): Daily Rambam: Forbidden Foods 1
The Torah's prohibition against mixing different species isn't just an ancient agricultural rule. It reveals a deep principle of creation: every single thing has a unique, uncorrupted essence. A pure root in the fabric of…
No need for the government? 1000 shekel for kollel families
Eligible married yeshiva students to receive up to NIS 1,000 a month in recognition of their dedication to Torah study
