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
Is it one bracha or two brachot that men recite when wearing tefillin? It turns out that this is one of the differences between Sephardic
Part II Very recently, an Ashkenazic woman approached me, recounting what she perceived to be a bizarre incident. She was a guest at a Sephardic
I was struck with stage fright as the time for the Torah reading began. This journey began back in August on the Thursday prior to
What a beautiful way to begin Sefer Bereishit! Many Sephardic Jews, before beginning the reading of Sefer Bereishit on Simchat Torah, proclaim “b’simana tava,” in
One very rainy first night of Sukkot, the rabbi of Congregation Shaarei Zion of Brooklyn instructed his (Sephardic) congregation to eat a kezayit of bread
A young rabbi called before Rosh Hashanah with an inquiry regarding the Sephardic piyut for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, “Hashem Shamati Shim’acha Yareiti.” It
