The rush/emotional high of the NORPAC Mission to Washington is incomparable. This thrilling sensation draws more than a thousand people year after year to devote

In certain segments of the Ashkenazic Orthodox community it is common practice to stand for Kriat HaTorah. This is a result, in part, of the

Last Monday evening the TABC family received the bitter news of the passing of Moshe Trinz ‘96. Moshe is the son of Marcia and Bob

Rav Ovadia Yosef has famously called upon all Jews to abandon their unique practices imported to Israel from their exile communities—in favor of adopting the

It is always intriguing to note the different choices for the hafatarah between Sephardim and Ashkenazim. A poignant example is the selection for Parshat Shemot.

The gates shuttering the world of Moroccan Halacha have been opened wide with the recent publication of “Darke Abotenou: the Laws and Customs of the

Serving as the rabbi and halachic authority of a heterogeneous Sephardic kehila such as Congregation Shaarei Orah, the Sephardic Congregation of Teaneck, is a most

It was a very exciting Shabbat in March 2011 when Adina Bar-Shalom, the distinguished daughter of Rav Ovadia Yosef, visited Congregation Shaarei Orah, the Sephardic

An Ashkenazic woman called me recently asking why her recent Sephardic guest requested that her family be served water challot and not egg challah for

At a recent bar mitzvah celebration at a West Coast Sephardic congregation, a well-meaning and beloved visiting Ashkenazic rabbi began to lead the community in

One can easily imagine the following scene: An Ashkenazic family visits a Sephardic family for Shabbat. The Ashkenazim see the Sephardic family on Shabbat morning

Reflections Upon the Renewal Shabbat in Bergen County The Torah commands us: “Do not stand aside while your fellow’s blood is shed” (Vayikra 19:16). The