Purim & 4 Parshiyot 60 articles

Holidays

The Puzzling Story of the Megillah
The Puzzling Story of the Megillah
The story of Esther tells us in the most lively, realistic fashion, with a tinge of refined yet biting sarcasm, about paradoxical, absurd events, which are both tragic and comical at...
Feb 17, 2010
By Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik
Rabbi Dr. Abraham Twerski: Yeshivas Must Speak Out, Drunk On Purim is Not a Mitzvah!
Rabbi Dr. Abraham Twerski: Yeshivas Must Speak Out, Drunk...
In the Talmud, there are differing opinions on some halachos, and we must conduct ourselves according to the rulings of the poskim. For example, R’ Yosi Hagelili believe that the issur...
Feb 17, 2010
By Rabbi Dr. Abraham J. Twerski
Lev Yehudi: Gather the Jews
Lev Yehudi: Gather the Jews
On Purim night, OU Israel’s Lev Yehudi program hosted an evening of grogger making, megillah reading and entertainment. Lev Yehudi reaches out to Jews in the Tel Aviv area, introducing them...
Mar 12, 2009
By Photos by Yitz Woolf
Where is the Tomb of Mordechai and Esther?
Where is the Tomb of Mordechai and Esther?
A few months ago, the normally hostile Iranian regime took the rather unusual step of adding a Jewish holy site to its National Heritage List. On December 9, 2008, Iranian news...
Mar 9, 2009
By Michael Freund
Persia, 369 BCE – 355 BCE
Persia, 369 BCE – 355 BCE
Miriam nervously stirred the pot of overcooked lentils, as she watched Shmuel putting on his finest silk robe. “Don’t you think there is something wrong with you going to a party...
Mar 5, 2009
By Rabbi Leiby Burnham
Tetzaveh: Obligation to Sleep on Purim
Tetzaveh: Obligation to Sleep on Purim
One of the lesser-known duties of the Purim holiday is the obligation to sleep. This obligation is mentioned explicitly in the Rema: “A person should drink more than he his accustomed...
Mar 5, 2009
By Asher Meir
Second Thoughts: From Badbad to Kushwait
Second Thoughts: From Badbad to Kushwait
I dunno – I just don’t know. You’d think that after 2365 years the story would be over already. Finished, old hat, dead as a doornail and utterly boring. I mean,...
Mar 4, 2009
By Yaffa Ganz
Zachor: Remember Not to Forget
Zachor: Remember Not to Forget
Blackberry or Treo or iPhone. I won’t pasken on this vexing contemporary shayla. Either way, it is the business of a multi-billion dollar enterprise, the memory industry. Capitalizing on human frailty,...
Mar 4, 2009
By Rabbi Asher Brander
Cunning General, Hidden Empress
Cunning General, Hidden Empress
Purim, and disguise the limit! Tradition has us featuring costumes relating to the characters named in the Megillah (The, ummm… err… extensive and quite thorough… story of Purim) as hiding the...
Mar 3, 2009
By Brian Mailman
A Traditional Purim Feast. Brought Up to Date.
A Traditional Purim Feast. Brought Up to Date.
When Jayne Cohen and her sister returned home after their grandmother had passed away, they were determined to recreate the holiday dishes they had grown up on. But neither had ever...
Mar 3, 2009
By Judy Bart Kancigor

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