Sarah is described by the Torah as being beautiful. (Bereshis 12:11) What is beauty? According to the Getty Museum ancient sculptors used canons—sets of “perfect” mathematical ratios and proportions—to depict the human form. The earliest known canons were developed by the Egyptians, whose grid-based proportions influenced Greek sculptors in the archaic period (700–480 B.C.). Over…
Abraham and Sarah, the parents of the Jewish people were renowned for their kindness and hospitality and indeed their children have, for thousands of years, also been noted for their philanthropy. Every Jewish community in the world, no matter how small or poor, has always had charitable societies and funds. A typical example was the…
As we begin the cycle of reading and studying the Torah once again from Bereshit, Genesis, I believe that it is appropriate to focus on the commandment of Torah study. One of the hallmarks of Jewish life throughout the ages has been a passion for study. This characteristic is so marked that for centuries we…
Winter is rapidly approaching, and I am patiently waiting for a few dry days so that my Sukkah boards will dry out. Personally, I don’t like winter, and I don’t enjoy the snow, however, from a Jewish perspective, winter isn’t really so bad. One reason that we are positive about winter in traditional Jewish thought…
Five days after the solemnity and intensity of Yom Kippur, Sukkot, the festival of joy and happiness, begins. The Torah describes the festival as follows: On the fifteenth day of this seventh month is the festival of Sukkot, a seven-day period for G-d: On the first day shall be a sacred holy day when you…
A great rabbi once said that it is easier to memorize the entire Babylonian Talmud than to change one character trait. Self-improvement is one of the greatest and most difficult challenges that a person faces. How does one go about overcoming a negative trait? The answer was supplied by my karate teacher many years ago…
It is customary to add a Psalm to our prayers during the month preceding Rosh Hashanah. The Psalm is Chapter 27 and is one of most beautiful prayers in the book of Psalms. “A Psalm of David. The Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of…
It’s the season for repentance, so a few words about a Jew who returned to Judaism. Sir Waldemar Mordechai Wolff Haffkine (1860 – 1930) worked with Louis Pasteur and was the leading pioneer of vaccinations in India. In fact, in Mumbai today there still exists the Haffkine Institute for vaccine research. Late in his life,…
I just returned from taking my car for an oil change and safety inspection. We do not only regularly inspect our cars, but, as someone who frequently flies, I happen to know (and am very happy that) the FAA inspects every plane on a regular basis. We do inspections all the time; cars, airplanes, fire…
As the baal tokeah for Gateways on Rosh Hashanah I bought a new shofar two years ago. It had caught my eye at the Judaica store: it was not polished beautifully, it had a rustic, earthy look to it, but it had a beautiful sound. I removed the numerous layers of price stickers and found…