Haftarat Vayetze is unique in the curious divergence between how Sephardic and Ashkenazic Jews read it, with each reading a different section of the prophecy. Sephardic communities read from Hoshea 11:7 until 12:12, whereas Ashkenazim begin the…
Category: Other
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Haftarat Parshat Vayetze: Reading and Imagining Yaakov Avinu
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Global Orchestration of anti-Israel Mobilisation
From October 7, 2023, Back to the Red/Green Alliance If the Islamic Republic of Iran is the model of the red/green alliance fallout, the West has a mountain to climb if it is to survive. It cannot begin to climb that mountain if it doesn’t…
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Is success our ruin?
Zohran Mamdani’s victory in the election for Mayor was a devastating blow to the Jewish community of New York City. Yet it is in part our success through the years that sowed the seeds that made his victory possible. The Jewish community…
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John Cleese, That’s No Excuse
John Cleese recently canceled his upcoming Israel performances despite the sold-out crowds that awaited him. If it had come to pass, this would not have been his first tour of Israel. Cleese’s most recent visit was just prior to COVID and I,…
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Pass the Gravy, Not the Grudges: Finding Unity in Disagreement on Thanksgiving
We often look at Thanksgiving as a beautifully secular spectacle: a day of strategic elastic-waistband deployment, a table groaning under the weight of delicious food, and the thrilling-yet-terrifying family dynamics that inevitably surface….
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Is the Tower of Babel a Literal or Symbolic Story?
The Tower of Babel provides an example of the human ego that grows so big that it shuts our ears, making us unable to understand one another. Just as it plays out in that story, such a state can once again lead the world to…
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The Oldest Person at My Family’s Thanksgiving Table? Me? How Did This Happen?
I can’t remember the exact moment when I realized I was to be the oldest person at my extended family’s Thanksgiving table. But I remember it was quite jarring. How did this happen? Clearly, I know it’s the circle of life. But how did I…
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Erdogan’s Turkey poses an immediate strategic threat to Israel
The Nagel Committee, which presented its recommendations in January 2025, warned that “a new threat will be created if… the Syrian force becomes, in practice, a Turkish proxy, as part of implementing Turkey’s dream to restore its ancient crown…
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The West Bank is Burning, Where is the Outrage?
Recently, I caught up with a friend who works at Hillel. Our friendship preceded October 7th, but deepened through our shared alienation from the intense polarization surrounding Israel-Palestine both on and off campus. During our chat, we walked…
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What Is It That Yaakov Did Not Know?
Forced to flee his home to escape his brother’s deadly threat, Yaakov found himself in the midst of an existential crisis. Alone, he journeyed toward Haran to seek refuge with his mother’s family. As nightfall overtook him, he fashioned a…
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