Instructions for Taking Terumah and Ma'aser
02/05/2015 04:06:08 PM
Periodically fruits and vegetables come in from Israel. Before one is able to eat any of these fruit, Terumah and Ma’aser must be taken.
When short on time, one do as follows (if time permits, see the detailed instructions below):
Remove a little more than 1% of each kind of food and say:
“I hereby separate Terumas and Ma’asros and the redemption...Read more...
We Will Not Be Afraid: A Response to the Paris Attacks
01/11/2015 02:08:39 PM
Our thoughts and prayers are with the Jews of France, and the nation of France, after this week’s atrocities.
Since this week’s attacks on the offices of Charlie Hebdo, our minds have all been focused on France. But Friday's terrible news, the taking of hostages, storming a kosher supermarket, the killing of innocent people buying food for Shabbos is eerily familiar.
After the deadly terror attacks in India a few...Read more...
Drasha Parshat Vayeshev
12/16/2014 04:06:21 PM
Shabbat Shalom
Let’s talk about miracles. Chanukah is coming, one of our most beloved holidays. Yet there's a question I have on Chanukah, something on my mind really since I came back from Israel. Chanukah is a story of an unprecedented miracle, or miracles, the nes of the oil in the temple, the military victory, the rabim biyad me’atim – the many are defeated by the few – because Hashem was with them, and despite their...Read more...
Har Nof – The Courage of Yitzchak
11/23/2014 03:31:06 PM
What a heartbreaking week. What unforgettable images.
I feel like we have all lived through abundant tragedies, far, far too many to count – wars and terror, kidnappings and massacres. Perhaps our expectations are so high for peace that we are genuinely crushed when we see terror. Or perhaps...Read more...
Drasha First Day of Rosh Hashana 2014
09/29/2014 04:52:46 PM
I want to wish the entire community a ketivah vechatimah tova. My heart felt thanks go to the members and staff of the shul who work so incredibly hard so that we have a place where we can daven and live such vibrant Jewish lives. May all who work ltzarchei Tzibur be blessed by Hashem with every imaginable blessing...Read more...
Women and Tefillin
02/03/2014 02:16:24 PM
This Shiur was presented on Shabbat, February 1, 2014
Laying tefillin is a ‘mitzvat aseh shehazman grama’, a positive, time bound commandment, and as such women are exempt. The question is whether women may perform this mitzvah, even though...Read more...
The Cherubim and The Community
02/03/2014 02:15:00 PM
The Cherubim and the Community - Talking to each other or talking past each other?
Rabbi Shaul Robinson, Lincoln Square Synagogue, Shabbat Parashat Terumah 5774
The recent, and much discussed decision by the principal at SAR high school in Riverdale to allow girls to wear tefillin under certain circumstances has provoked a deep debate in the community that shows no signs of abating. This debate, both the content and its...Read more...
Chanukah FAQs
11/25/2013 01:00:49 PM
Question: I live on a high floor in my apartment building. Where is the best place to light the Menorah?
Answer: The halacha is that one is not supposed to place the chanukah candles higher than 20 amot (approximately 35 feet) above the ground. Many halachic authorities rule that one who lives on a high floor in an apartment building should therefore not light the menorah by the window, because a person standing on the...Read more...
Priorities: Inside the Tent and Outside
11/10/2013 08:55:00 PM
It’s really great to be back in shul. Last week I was in Israel - every trip to Israel is incredibly impactful, but this one was uniquely so, and in an unexpected way.
As a way of setting the scene for the parasha, let me say a few words about my trip. I spent Shabbat in...Read more...
Gmar Chatima Tova- Yom Kippur Resources
09/30/2013 12:30:02 PM
As we approach the holy day of Yom Kippur, I want to take this opportunity of wishing all members of the community, our family and friends and Jewish people the world over a good, sweet, prosperous and healthy new year. I hope that this Yom Kippur will be a meaningful, purifying and uplifting day for all of us. To help prepare for Yom Kippur, I am sending some resources in this email, which I hope will...Read more...