Menachem Mendel

I wanted to wish a Shanah Tovah and Ḥag Sameaḥ. May it be a year of peace, health, parnasah, and meaningful living for us all.

Posted on September 16th, 2012 under Holidays. Comments Off

Many people are familiar with the solemn musical version of Ani Ma’amin. As Yom ha-Shoah approaches, it is worthwhile recalling the origins of this tune. The Modzizter Hasidim were known for their niggunim, and it was a Modzizter hasid, Reb Azriel David Fastag, who reportedly composed this version of Ani Ma’amin while in a train [...]

Posted on May 1st, 2011 under Holidays, Music, Public Events. Comments Off

I know that it is a few months away, but my sister-in-law called my attention to an interesting competition that is happening in New York City, Sukkah City. The web site presents the basic laws of building a sukkah in a Halakhah 2.0 manner. ‘Sukkah City: New York City’ will re-imagine this ancient phenomenon, develop [...]

Posted on May 27th, 2010 under Holidays. Comments Off

In an interesting article in the Jerusalem Post, Stephen Gabriel Rosenberg wrote that the connection between Shavuot and the giving of the Torah is a post-destruction reinterpretation by the rabbis at Yavneh. But today, for some reason Shavuot is no longer the end of the barley harvest. It is no longer anything agricultural, it is [...]

Posted on May 28th, 2009 under Holidays. Comments Off

“On the Passover of 1917, the Turkish rulers of the country ordered the residents of Tel-Aviv to evacuate the city. Almost 8,000 people were listed for expulsion. A sense of dispossession accompanied the eviction notice. The expulsion was in effect exile from the homeland. Anxiety-ridden settlers prepared to leave their homes, although not from Egypt [...]

Posted on April 7th, 2009 under Holidays, Israel, Passover. Comments Off

A must-buy for all those interested in the history of the haggadah and the seder from my good friend Josh Kulp: The Schechter Haggadah: Art, History and Commentary presents a fascinating discussion and analysis of the historical development of each aspect of the Seder, from the development of the Mah Nishtanah to the use of [...]

Posted on January 6th, 2009 under Holidays, New Books, Passover. Comments: 4

The fantastic website Hebrewbooks.org has recently started a blog. They have a post linking to many responsa and sources which discuss the kashrut of turkey. I also remember seeing a book in Yiddish years back about the kashrut of Turkey. Not knowing Yiddish, I didn’t buy it nor remember its title.

Posted on November 27th, 2008 under Holidays, Internet, Kashrut, Online resources. Comments: 1

I wish everyone a happy and joyous Thanksgiving. Our prayers go out to all those American servicemen and women who are separated from their families this Thanksgiving, and to all of those who were wounded in the ongoing terrorist attacks in Mumbai. For updates on the hostage drama at the Chabad House, see here for [...]

Posted on November 27th, 2008 under Holidays, Miscellaneous. Comments: 1

Prefab sukkot make it to the NY Times. With the onset of Sukkot, an increasingly popular Jewish harvest holiday that has lately emerged from the high, holy shadows of its immediate precursors, Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, those new to celebrating it will no doubt have questions. You may be wondering, for example, if it’s [...]

Posted on October 2nd, 2008 under Holidays. Comments Off