During the holiday season in Jewish communities across the country, there is always an uptick in conversation about who is traveling to Israel for Yom Tov, and how nice it was to visit their child in seminary the previous year, or how beautiful it would be to spend Chanukah in the Old City… Whether your desire is to take the family to

We were back in New Orleans, 11 years after Hurricane Katrina, and we found ourselves asking one question: How do the people here find the strength to carry on? This time we were in Louisiana to help the devastated community in Baton Rouge. When everything you own is washed away and all of your personal belongings and

After hearing about the disastrous flooding in Louisiana in the news, I immediately wanted to go down there and help. After being part of the NJ NCSY-Ma’ayanot mission to Houston this past May, I had returned with a whole new appreciation and desire for chesed and tikkun olam. I had discovered that while the labor can sometimes be

In late February, I went on a mission with my school, Ma’ayanot, and NCSY to New Orleans to help rebuild the community, which was still in need of restoration 10 years after it was hit and decimated by Hurricane Katrina. It was disheartening to see all the derelict houses still in need of repairs, but we were uplifted knowing that we

The landscape of design is always changing. Designers are constantly inspired and affected by the world around them. Trends in fashion slowly make their way into Interior Design. You may see a gingham dress on the runway and then several months later see gingham on a sofa. Taffeta on a gown and later on a drapery

If solid support for Israel is a key consideration in your decision for the 5th congressional district election in New Jersey, you can’t go wrong no matter who you choose. Both incumbent Scott Garrett and challenger Josh Gott­heimer are unquestionably in Israel’s corner.

Garrett, a conservative Republican, has served seven terms since entering

When writing about two of Torah’s giants, it takes time, care, data, meticulous research and clarity.

Rabbi Chaim Dalfin’s recently published book “Rav and Rebbe” (Jewish Enrichment Press) takes us through the close friendship between Rabbi Yosef Ber Soloveitchik, the Rav (1903-1993), and Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the Rebbe (1902-1994),

Jerusalem—Gemara, one of the most ancient written forms of the Oral Law, has undergone little modernization in its almost 2,000 years of existence. The most wide-sweeping update in contemporary times was perhaps the release of the most recent Vilna edition of the Talmud in the 1870s. However, in recent times, efforts have been made to bridge the two

May these words of Torah serve as a merit le’iluy nishmat Menachem Mendel ben Harav Yoel David Balk, a”h.

This week, we learned Bava Metzia 3 and 4. Here are some highlights.

Bava Metzia 3: Self-incrimination

Our Gemara mentioned the dispute between Rabbi Meir and the Sages about the power of witnesses. The Sages were of

Devarim: 31:19

Once, in the town of Rutherford, there lived a very contrary man named Ephraim Effenbacher. He had to do everything his own way. And no one could tell him anything. Rumor has it he used to wear his right shoe on his left foot and his left shoe on his right foot just to annoy people. And let me tell you, it was kind of annoying.

One day,

Is there anyone who is not judged by Hashem upon his or her leaving this world? Most of us are under the impression from the Tanach and Chazal that everyone must submit to Hashem’s judgment after 120 years. However, Rav Moshe Feinstein in his Teshuvot Igrot Moshe presents an astounding chidush(innovative idea), that some unique individuals are