Ziplining with the Orthodox. Digging for Maccabean relics with archaeologists. Off-roading on the Golan. We planned our family trip to Israel on the theory that our kids would learn more if they were happy and engaged than if they were bored and bedraggled.
Archaeologists believe the Essenes were highly concerned with maintaining their ritual purity and bathed at least twice a day. An aqueduct system caught water from the hills above and channeled it into an elaborate series of mikvahs, or ritual baths.
The president of The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles recently visited refugee camps in the African country of Chad to bear witness to the pain and suffering of more than 250,000 victims of genocide from neighboring Sudan.
Couples who have created a partnership and life together consistently talk of the effort involved. Yes, some relationships seem easier than others, but all say it takes time, energy and a true willingness to face whatever comes along on their journey together.
Have you noticed more and more lately that your child is engrossed in a constant, beeping dialogue with her computer?
I understand tikkun olam, the repairing and healing of our world, as the central calling of our people. All of the prayer, teaching, outreach, pastoral work and congregational activities that I help facilitate lead me back to the notion that they are somehow helping to add the necessary energy into our global cosmos, which can facilitate the advent of a new and better time for all people. And I know that each of us is working, in our own way, to help better the world.
One of the biggest dangers for children during summer is drowning.
\”Everyday Miracles\” is an original musical about four Hebrew school students who travel back in time to interact with their biblical heroes.
We learn in the haggadah, \”B\’chol dor v\’dor, chayav adam lirot et atzmo k\’ilu hu yatzah mi\’mitzrayim\” — \”In every generation it is one\’s duty to regard himself as though he personally had come out of Egypt.\”
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