Monday, June 5th 2023 |
By RABBI JOSEPH H.PROUSER
A beloved Talmudic blessing (Berachot 17a) states, Olamcha Tir’eh B’Chayecha – often inartfully (and far too literally) translated: “May you see your world in your lifetime.” Well… what exactly does THAT mean?! Rashi theorizes: “May you benefit from all the good in the world in your lifetime.” Syntactically more sound; a tad grandiose.
Olam (especially with the possessive inflection: Olamcha/Olamo/Olamah – your/his/her “world”) is also used...
By RABBI JOSEPH H. PROUSER
The early eighteenth century Ger Tzedek of Vilna, Avraham ben Avraham, is one of history’s most celebrated converts to Judaism. He was born to the powerful Potocki family – Polish nobility famous for its leadership in the military, government, and Roman Catholic Church. While the Ger Tzedek is commonly referred to as Valentine Potocki, there is no record of his given name until an 1873...
By RABBI JOSEPH H. PROUSER
Today is the 35th anniversary of my ordination as a rabbi on May 19, 1988. I cherish memories of friends, classmates, and colleagues with whom I shared eight defining, formative years at the Jewish Theological Seminary. I gratefully recall teachers, professors, mentors, and exemplars of Jewish piety and scholarship from whom I was privileged to learn.
My ordination preceded Shavuot by a matter of days....
By RABBI JOSEPH H. PROUSER
The Sages teach: “Even if one recited the Shema during congregational evening services, it is a Mitzvah to do so again before bedtime” (Berachot 4b). Rabbi Yitzchak advised that this prayer (“Kriyat Shema al Ha-Mitah”) bestows upon the worshipper a measure of spiritual, if not physical security: “One who recites the bedtime Shema, it is as if he is armed with a double-edged sword… Malevolent...
By RABBI JOSEPH H. PROUSER
Mishnah Yadayim 2:4 addresses cases in which a measure of doubt impacts the washing of hands to achieve ritual purity, as before a meal. If it is uncertain that a sufficient amount of water was used, we are to assume that the ritual was properly performed and that our hands are pure.
If it is uncertain whether the water previously had been used for some...
By RABBI JOSEPH H. PROUSER
I recently saw “Camelot” at Lincoln Center. The musical retells the legend of King Arthur, said to have ascended England’s throne as a boy after drawing a sword from the stone in which it was long embedded… and which countless knights and nobles were unable to dislodge. This wondrous feat “proved” Arthur’s divine election and right to the throne. “Camelot” explores Arthur’s relationships with Queen...
By RABBI JOSEPH H. PROUSER
Yom Ha’Atzmaut – Israel’s Independence Day – is celebrated this Wednesday, April 26, 2023… 5 Iyar 5783. This year’s observance is a momentous milestone, marking 75 years of Israeli independence and national sovereignty. A Diamond Jubilee! A day lovingly to renew our personal ties to the Jewish State… to marvel at the miraculous quality of its 1948 founding.
The day preceding Yom Ha’Atzmaut is Yom...
By RABBI JOSEPH H. PROUSER
Albert Einstein observed: “The hardest thing to understand in the world is the income tax.” With tax returns due soon, many Americans would agree!
The long history of taxation is evident in Jewish sacred texts. Consider the half shekel tax first imposed in conjunction with the Israelite census (Exodus 30:13-16). A vestige of this practice is our pre-Purim payment of machatzit ha-shekel (customarily three fifty-cent...
By RABBI JOSEPH H. PROUSER
One of the least frequently occurring of Jewish rituals is Birkat Ha-Chammah – The Blessing of the Sun – recited once every 28 years (see Berachot 59b). The early morning blessing recalls the moment of creation, acknowledges the intricacies of the solar system, and beckons us to awe, humility, and a worthy perspective on the vastness of the universe and the passage of time!
This...
By RABBI JOSEPH H. PROUSER
On the cusp of the Exodus, Moses and Aaron were commanded: “Speak to the whole community of Israel and say that on the tenth of this month each of them shall take a lamb” to be designated for the Paschal Offering (Exodus 12:3)… a critical preparatory step in the observance of the original Passover. This year – as on the eve of the Exodus –...
