The parsha is dominated by two parallel stories of dramatic negotiations. Avraham bargains with the citizens of Chevron to secure a burial plot for his deceased wife. Afterwards he dispatches his loyal servant to secure a wife for his chosen son, Yitzchak.  In each instance local “parties” must be convinced – to sell land or

Content warning: This article does not contain jokes or pop culture references. Rather, it discusses death, bereavement and, in particular, when a person takes his or her own life. (As discussed in a previous article, I will endeavor to minimize the number of occurrences of the word “suicide.”) Time magazine reported this week that the

On Tuesday morning I woke up and got ready for work as usual. I kissed my kids goodbye for the day and left my house around 7:00 AM. Only on the way to work did I hear on the news that half of my country did not have a typical morning. Tens of thousands of

Thanks to her humble beginnings on Barbie rollerblades, Orthodox Jewish Aliza Hiller is defying stereotypes as an ice hockey player in a competitive women’s league. As a kid, she actively played basketball, softball, and floor hockey, but competitive ice hockey was not an obvious passion, rather she says, “I grew to love it.” Hiller was

Non-kosher restaurants aren’t usually my “beat” but the world is losing its collective mind over a chicken sandwich and I think we should talk about it. First, some background. In August, Popeyes (no apostrophe; a fast-food chain) debuted a fried chicken sandwich, which created a frenzy. Customers tore through a two-month supply of the sandwich

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), at least 30% of antibiotics in this country are overprescribed and are unnecessary.  Why?  Antibiotics are wonderfully important, especially when necessary.  The world should express gratitude to Sir Alexander Flemming (1881-1955) for inventing the world’s first antibiotic substance benzylpenicillin (Penicillin G) from the mold called

On October 29, 1972, I attended a dazzling afternoon concert at Carnegie Hall. As I headed for home on the 59th Street Bridge, traffic came to a standstill. I suspected a car accident was to blame. But the conspicuous absence of angry car horns — not to mention the reverent expressions on my fellow commuters’

My wife and I recently toured the excavations at the City of David just below the Old City of Jerusalem. Our guide, Rafi, explained that the unearthed city, right next to the present-day Arab village of Silwan, was far older than the “Old City”, and it had been inhabited by Jewish kings, noblemen and commoners

Sadly, an entire planet had suffered total moral collapse and was tragically annihilated by the violent waters of the flood. Noach’s world disappears and humanity must be rebuilt from scratch. A few generations later, an ambitious company of people attempt to form a modern city punctuated by a tower. For some unspecified reason G-d intervenes

More than 2,000 people attended the Torah Yerushalayim event on Sunday, hosted by the OU Israel in the Ramada Jerusalem Hotel. The day was dedicated to learning in spiritual preparation for Yom Kippur. The shiurim were conducted in English servicing the Anglo-Saxon community in Israel. Throughout the day, attendees enjoyed learning from a choice of