Ask the Rabbi with Rabbi Chaim Mintz I am Sephardic, and in our home we light only one menorah for the whole family. But I send my son to an Ashkenazic school, […]
Judaism 101
Explore deep Jewish concepts like free will, the soul, and Divine Providence—made approachable.
In Mishlei, King Solomon tells us, “Daaga b’lev ish, yashchena;” If a person has worry in his heart, he should quash it. The Gemara1 teaches that R’ Ami and R’ […]
It’s one of the great mysteries of the Torah: why did Yosef’s own brothers plot to kill him? These Shevatim (tribes) weren’t ordinary people. They were the Shivtei Kah – […]
“וְיִשְׂרָאֵל אָהַב אֶת יוֹסֵף מִכׇּל בָּנָיו כִּי בֶן זְקֻנִים הוּא לוֹ וְעָשָׂה לוֹ כְּתֹנֶת פַּסִּים” And Yisrael (Yaakov) loved Yosef more than all his sons because he was a son […]
Unnecessary Precautions In this week’s Torah reading, Yaakov (Jacob) prepared to meet his brother Eisav (Esau). Yaakov was returning to his homeland, where Eisav lived, after being away for many […]
And Sit There The verse in this week’s Torah reading, Parshat Vayishlach, says (35:1), “And God said to Yaakov (Jacob), “Get up and go up to Beit-El and sit there, […]
Ask the Rabbi with Rabbi Chaim Mintz I sometimes find myself committing aveirot (sins) that serve no real purpose for me, such as gossiping about people. I understand why I desire physical pleasures, but what is driving me […]
One of the hardest of the Ten Commandments is the direction that we not be jealous. Not killing, not stealing, not worshiping idols? I think most of us feel pretty […]
Ask the Rabbi with Rabbi Chaim Mintz Every year, as we light our menorah, my children express their disappointment that our little flames seem so insignificant next to all the […]
Power Prayers On each day of Chanukah, we recite the full Hallel during Shacharit prayers. This beautiful tefillah, often sung, is a heartfelt expression of praise and gratitude to Hashem […]
