יום שבת, ה׳ תמוז תשפ״וSaturday, June 20, 2026
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Rabbi Hanoch Teller is the award-winning producer of three films, a popular teacher in Jerusalem yeshivos and seminaries, and the author of 28 books, the latest entitled Heroic Children, chronicling the lives of nine child survivors of the Holocaust. Rabbi Teller is also a senior docent in Yad Vashem and is frequently invited to lecture to different communities throughout the world.
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On a personal level, especially being an out-of-towner, I looked forward to the arrival of The Jewish Press all week long. Right in the beginning pages, the paper laid out what was in store for the coming days, and if it was a week blessed with a holiday, the paper spelled out what to do and what had to be avoided. For those of us who could not remember from year to year, The Jewish Press was there to remind us.
This is not a war of maneuver. It is a slow, grinding, street-by-street campaign against an enemy embedded in every alley, hiding behind civilians, and fighting from below.
At 18, many girls might be expected to spend their time scrolling through their phones or shopping in malls. The chesed program provides these teenagers with a purpose beyond themselves, transforming them into compassionate, mature young women who value the art of giving.
With individual liberties curtailed, the government felt that it could keep the populace content by promising them the elimination of Israel. We have all witnessed miracles of Biblical proportions as to how matters did not work out this way.
When G-d redeemed us from slavery he saved us from purposeless work and life without purpose.
These anti-British forces formed a pro-German government, winning the support of the Iraqi Army and administration. They had hoped that an Axis victory in the war would facilitate independence for Iraq.
According to the Museum of the City of New York, a garment worker in 1905 was expected to sew at a rate twice that of her 1900 counterpart. The factories had scant safety or fire protection, mandated a 65-hour work week, and expected workers to provide their own basic materials such as needles and thread.
Treat people with whom you disagree with respect and fairness. One is entitled to argue – even with one’s spouse – as long as you are fair.
Israel’s innovative, young commander of the Negev campaign was Yigal Allon. In order to break the Egyptian hold, he would have to get his troops to the south undetected. This was a significant challenge as the only surfaced road was bordered by several Egyptian strongholds.
In most cases, people don't desire us to fix their problems or provide perspective, they wish us to acknowledge their feelings and show that we care about their experience.
Although many Israelis realized how important the reparations agreement was for the economy and safety of Israel, nonetheless, for survivors and non-survivors alike, the notion that money could somehow atone for the suffering and mass murder inflicted upon the Jewish people was utterly unconscionable.
Our story takes place in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan in 2014. What?! You never heard of Sault Ste. Marie? The very town of legendary native American fur trapper Ozhaguscodaywayquay.
I didn’t let go of what I correctly perceived was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and accompanied Rav Elyashiv all the way home – again just the two of us.
Although the haggadah is the essential tool to convey historical occurrences, the development of our People, and Jewish self-awareness, frequently the new releases have so many sideshows and kitschy illustrations that the message gets lost in the sauce.
While on the subject, there is one other sanctuary that we are indeed all familiar with, although we never refer to it with this term. And that is the chuppah.
Many people turned to Rabbi Kelemer not just because of his proficiency, but because he always knew precisely whom he was addressing, and perceived what they needed – without tampering with halacha.
Without telling anyone that he was going, Rabbi Kelemer had driven for hours to sit with this old man, who was not his congregant and had been non-verbal for many years. The rabbi was obviously embarrassed when the grandson walked in and found him there.
The technician was certain that the Rabbi intended to upbraid him personally for having caused him discomfort and for attempting to continue against his will. Rav Moshe, however, had something else in mind.
The sense of brotherhood is so genuine because aside from the fact that Israel is now caught in an existential struggle, it is fighting as a family.
It is, as Rabbi Shalom Rosner explained, an outlook on life, arguably the outlook on life. It means giving halacha dominance in one’s worldview to the extent that our perception of reality is shaped by halacha.
Despite the misnaggid finding himself in a loony bin of naiveté, surely the Rebbe would not be so brazen and shameless to claim that he was up in Heaven reciting selichos!
I was always amazed by the lyrics of the Israeli folk song, Yesh lanu tayish, l’tayish yesh zakan – We have a goat, our goat has a beard…
Ultimately, the IRS admitted that the true reason Z Street and other organizations were selected for special scrutiny was because their viewpoints on Israel conflicted with that of the Obama Administration.
In a 2010 Tablet Magazine piece, Lee Smith described how the U.S. counter-intelligence community took up the failed, decades-long effort by media and academics to undermine solid American support for Israel by criminalizing legitimate, pro-Israel advocacy in Washington...
For the washing machine to conceal the noise and smell of the factory, it had to be in use 24 hours a day – which adds up to a lot of loads for a small kibbutz. Even the clothing had to do its share for the nascent State...
As franchisees of Shell Oil, the Raffs had to sell a certain amount of fuel to be eligible for loans and other company benefits. Alas, a filling station that cannot pump gas is what rain is to a garden wedding.
Even with night school, Avraham remained only nominally educated, but he was high on motivation. So high that he taught himself to become a CPA and then returned to the very office where he had started, at the very lowest rung.
Two more random thoughts about miracles: Everyone, religious or not, hopes for a miracle. And when times are trying, we even pray for one.
One who fears that a task is beyond their ability, or too challenging for their comfort level, has racked up the odds against their excelling beyond their current state of inertia.
Whatever the proposal would be to supply Jerusalem, it would have to circumvent the Latrun fortress equipped with Jordanian artillery that peered over the single artery into the city. The motherhood of necessity was deeply challenged by Jerusalem’s existential predicament.
Axel Pflueger then turned to the head of the committee, acknowledged to be one of the most celebrated medical ethicists in the world, and inquired, What precisely are the criteria to determine one’s quality of life?
On every Tisha B’Av, when it is forbidden to learn Torah, Reb Shlomo Zalman would read Dignity to Survive in its original Hebrew.
The end of the story is that my wife and family are pleased with the new oven. (This was pretty much a win-win as the old oven barely cooked, and anything with a functional heating element would have been an improvement.)
Do you mean to tell me, I gasped, unable to contain the note of exasperation from my tone, that I waited nearly two hours on the line only to find out that I had called for nothing?
Even where minyanim gather in less grandiose houses of worship, the sums of money they expend for beautification and refurbishing are staggering.
Just days before the celebrations, the situation had all the makings of a powder keg that would inevitably leave one family, and particularly one young man, feeling slighted and deprived.
This was going to take motivation, so I called upon my best friend – my imagination. Presto! We had it.
Walking up Rachel Imeinu Street it is hard to feel lonely. For thousands of years, Rachel has been masterfully offering solace to lonely, wandering Jews.
By 1939, not only had Novardhok reestablished itself on Polish soil, but it also had a network of 85 yeshivos! This dynamic phenomenon, unparalleled in Jewish history, came about as a result of a single statement.
One-out-of-three is not the kind of language that Dr. Weinblatt would ever employ, let alone even allow himself to think. The man is a fount of hope.
Because I have been teaching and lecturing for decades, a lot of people have seen and heard me, making me a likely subject for bageling. Often the gesture is less discreet and takes the form of frontal gawking and waving.
Eight days after Truman became president, he was visited by a Zionist delegation headed by Rabbi Steven S. Wise. The President told his guests that he supported the Zionist goals, but he was very concerned about opposition from the State Department.
The United States was convinced that Israel could never prevail against so many Arabs and feared that U.S. troops would be called in to save Israel.
Eight days after he was sworn into office, Truman was visited by a Zionist delegation headed by Rabbi Steven S. Wise. Truman told his visitors that he supported the Zionist goals, but he was very concerned about the very vocal opposition of the State Department.
Witnessing the British brutality was an exclamation point for UNSCOP. Wherever the delegates went in Palestine they saw elaborate military precautions, barbed wire, armored patrol cars, searchlight beams at night – all compelling evidence of a doomed political entity.
My initial search for heroes of Kristallnacht came up empty. Surely there must have been upright Germans who shielded their Jewish friends and neighbors from the angry mobs seeking them out. Sadly, my detailed research yielded only a pitiful, nameless few.
Exodus passengers were separated on the port into men and women, invoking the worst associations to these concentration camp survivors.
A betting man would have been hesitant to wager if the Warfield could make it across the Atlantic. Yet the group of idealistic recruits set off on February 25, 1947 under Haganah Captain Ike Aronowicz.
He left the meeting with no doubt that if Hitler only could, he would destroy European Jewry.
The Poles were also fearful that the Jews who had returned to Kielce would reclaim their prewar houses and businesses.
On board were 769 refugees bound for Palestine. This should have been a voyage of just a few days, but due to engine trouble, the boat headed to Istanbul for repair.
Rav Kook was incensed over the relinquishing of ownership of the Western Wall. "No one," he declared, "possesses that power of attorney."
The real motivator for the British was to win over the Jews, and Zionism seemed like a promising card to play.
Who could ever know if learning with disciples was preferable to pursuing self-growth and attaining spiritual perfection at the feet of the generation’s most respected saint?
If secular Jewish groups refused to get involved with the Crown Heights Riots because it was so politically incorrect – “chassidim victimized by African-Americans” – how much more so would the Democrats wish to steer clear?
Norman responded, “Captain, nobody is going to storm City Hall, but go and tell the mayor that he’s got to come out and see all of us.”
Norman Rosenbaum was the only one in his family up to making the trans-world trip and accepting the challenge.
Nelson’s pocket contained a bloody switchblade with the word “killer” inscribed on the handle. In that same pants pocket were three bloodstained one-dollar bills. The bloodstains were consistent with Rosenbaum’s blood type but not Nelson’s.
Lifsh immediately attempted to pry the car off the children. His efforts were in vain as a mob began to attack him.
There is no reason why we should have a monopoly on kind speech, and Telushkin has gone so far as to initiate a bipartisan group of senators to introduce Senate Resolution 264 calling for a national “Speak No Evil Day” in America.
This precise question does not arise in the Talmud. But young Reb Shlomo Zalman was able to marshal his breadth of knowledge and genius of application to render a most innovative ruling.
In one particular synagogue, however, the shamas would rely on the out-of-town beggars who normally arrived during the night to light up the oven. But many times, the beggars would not show up, and the synagogue would be freezing in the morning. People began to complain.
Victory comes in different forms.
I do not know the name of this chaplain. I wonder (and strongly doubt) that he ever heard the radio program. But his wise and sensitive comment had had a ripple effect that he never could have imagined.
Should the judge be strict and abide by the law, or make an exception because of the circumstances?
Where were the righteous gentiles – the “Schindlers,” if you will – of Kristallnacht? My quest to answer this question revealed information I had not anticipated.
Sometimes when we are locked in our little boxes, we, like Noach in the ark, need a window. When we think our world is crumbling and that we are doomed to a fate that is too difficult to bear, the Almighty tells us to make a window.
If the walls have ears (as the Midrash points out) then how much more so, human beings.
Let's look at the realm of vision and focus on a man who had unsurpassed foresight. I refer to none other than Rav Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman, zt”l, better known, and revered by all, as the Ponevezher Rav.
If you are not attuned to the right frequency, then all of the signals in the world will pass you by.
So why then are we not attentive enough to all of the signs that surround us? I have not the psychological training to analyze this question, but what seems clear is that slumber is not only restricted to our beds.
Inspiration is everywhere-especially in the small things--if we pay attention.
Habbat Shalom and Chag Sameach
Since the restructuring of my column at The Jewish Press, we have been focusing on the Jewish tenet that whatever G-d does, His interest is our good – even if we fail to see how events are for our betterment. Here is an example with a compelling script.
A great story told by a master storyteller--better still--it's TRUE!
The Tenafly appeal case has now become a textbook classic of Establishement vs. Freedom of Religion.
A rabbi from the area, although not from Tenafly, was brought in to explain what an eruv is about and to entertain questions. This attempt at enlightenment backfired because, for starters, he was not from Tenafly. But this time instead of ignoring him, he was misunderstood.
The Jewish Press has made great and important changes in recent months. Now it’s my column’s turn: “Chodesh Tov” will also undergo some revision. First, it has a new name, and second, a new focus. I am proud to report that the author (yours truly) will remain constant.
The conclusion to Shalom Rubashkin's circuitous route through the US legal system that ultimately led to justice
Another installment in the ongoing injustice perpetrated against Shalom Rubashkin. Chodesh Tov
Another installment in the ongoing Rubashkin saga
Another installment in the Rubashkin saga.
Another installment in the ongoing Rubashkin saga
Another installment in the ongoing Rubashkin saga
The ongoing saga of the incarceration and punitive pursuit of Shalom Rubashkin.
The ongoing saga of the incarceration and punitive pursuit of Shalom Rubashkin.
On April 2, 2008, Shalom Rubashkin invited the the Iowa Department of Labor to enter the plant without a warrant...
Rubashkin was treated like no other defendant ever arrested on illegal immigration violations. The federal prosecutors sent marshals to handcuff and shackle him as they led him past a phalanx of waiting photographers and TV crews
While we rejoice at the recent release of Shalom Mordechai Rubashkin from prison, the series continues this month and beyond.
While we rejoice at the recent release of Shalom Mordechai Rubashkin from prison, the series continues this month and beyond.
Another installment on the ongoing assault against Agriprocessor. This week's article discusses unions taking on the Rubashkins.
The ongoing Rubashkin saga has a new character--the unions.
The desire to build a social justice program with a huge lucrative potential, required an appalling trigger. Agriprocessors and Rubashkin fulfilled that need
These PETA people are not Orthodox Jews. So, why would they so strongly criticize a kosher packing plant for what they believe to be violations of kosher practice? They are using tactics similar to the Nazis.
These PETA people are not Orthodox Jews. So, why would they so strongly criticize a kosher packing plant for what they believe to be violations of kosher practice?
PETA has a lurid anti-shechita history, They claimed Rubashkin the way the animals were slaughtered at Agri rendered them non-kosher. Rabbinic authorities and major kashruth supervisors deemed Rubashkin to be of the highest kosher standards--yet PETA declared otherwise.
With the opening of Agri in 1987, Postville was beset with what the locals dubbed, “The Jewish Invasion.” The arrival of the Jews caused a local polarization.
Rubashkin’s idea was sound. A kosher slaughterhouse located in Pottsville, Iowa provided many benefits for consumers of kosher meat and the local economy.
