Click here for moreA Gala to Remember A video message from Governor Jeb Bush, followed by personal letters of congratulations from President George W. Bush and the Ambassador of Israel to the United States, Daniel Ayalon, began an evening which will be long remembered by the hundreds who participated at Chabad-Lubavitch of Greater Boynton's Gala Banquet "Celebrating The First Decade of Wonders."Click here for moreStudents show off awesome knowledge at International mitzvah contest in Florida The finals of the international contest, challenging 5th-8th graders knowledge of the 613 mitzvahs, took place in Florida from March 31- April 4, 2005. Over one hundred and thirty boys and 24 chaperones from across the world participated in the finals of Tzivos Hashem’s 10th annual Chidon Sefer HaMitzvos.
Click here for moreChabad of Kentucky Celebrates 20 Years of Service with Gala Community Event Last Wednesday, on March 23rd, Chabad of Kentucky celebrated 20 years of community service to the Louisville Jewish Community. Rabbi Avrohom Litvin and his wife, Golda, first came to Louisville in March of 1985 as representatives of the Chabad Lubavitch organization. Over the years, they have taken leadership roles at Congregation Anshei Sfard, the Louisville Vaad Hakashruth, the Louisville Mikvah, Gan Torah Preschool and Torah Academy of Louisville.
Click here for moreThousands celebrate Purim across the UK Scotland - Rabbi Chaim Jacobs
BH we had an amazingly busy day.
We had a Seuda with 240 adults and children attending. We had two entertainers for different age groups, a fancy dress contest for children and adults. We read the Megillah, gave everyone gifts to exchange and raised £50 tzedakah for Shaarei Tzedek hospital. Among those attending were numerous Israelis many of whom have unfortunately married out. We have recently found Israelis living in Edinburgh, Livingston, Bathgate, Strathaven, Dumbarton, Fort William, Morar and more. Many of these people came to our Purim Bash. We have now started a small Cheder in Edinburgh for these children run by Mendel.
Click here for more25,979 LINES OF TANYA MEMORIZED IN THE TANYA BAAL PEH HEVRON LEARN-A-THON
Students who thought they could only memorize a few lines, memorized a few pages. Those who expected to learn a few pages, learned a few Perakim. During recess the hallways became filled with Talmidim practicing their lines while older Bochurim Farhered those ready to add more lines to their total. All this took place from Chuf Daled Teves until Rosh Chodesh Adar, for the Tanya Baal Peh Hevron Learn-a-thon of third through fifth grades in Oholei Menachem, in which sponsors specified a set amount for each line memorized. The money will be given to the Rebbe’s Shliach in Hevron, Rabbi Danny Cohen, for projects for children in the Holy City of Hevron, the first Chabad capital city in Eretz Yisroel. The website chevronlearnathon.com was set up to facilitate the sponsoring of lines. The site will remain active until the final testing is done.
Click here for more“We Only Go Forward”
In Celebrating the 40th anniversary West Coast Chabad Kinus, over 150 emissaries of the Rebbe’s Shluchim from California, Nevada, and parts of Mexico, met in the capital city of California, Sacramento, on March 13-14, to honor the Rebbe, learn from each other, share experiences, and strengthen each other. As the Rebbe teaches, the 41st year is special in that it takes one to a new and higher level.
Click here for more700 Attendees at the Friendship Circle’s Annual Banquet
“An inspiration to us all”, “a meaningful experience for my whole family”, and “an unforgettable evening”! These are just some of the accolades from the 700 friends and supporters who attended the Friendship Circle’s Annual Banquet on Wednesday, February 16 at the Birchwood Manor in Whippany, New Jersey.
Click here for moreChabad's newest project inspires children to learn Hebrew
Anyone who thinks Hebrew school has to be arguably boring, hasn't checked
out the Jewish School of the Arts, says Chani Ezagui, director of the
inventive school located at Chabad House Lubavitch of Palm Beach.Click here for moreMind yoga
MUNSTER, IN - From its rapid rise on the popularity map just about a decade ago, the study of Kabbalah - Jewish mysticism - has remained all the rage, with Jews and non-Jews alike, from celebrities to unknowns, finding more meaning in life through ancient spiritual teachings.Click here for more
Beachwood gives Chabad more time to finish shul
Caught between the proverbial rock and the hard place, the Beachwood Ohio City Council this week granted Waxman Chabad House more time to complete its new synagogue.Click here for more
Congressman Says Country Would Benefit From Keeping Sabbath
This past Friday night Congressman Sam Farr of California joined some 75 students for a Shabbat dinner at the Chabad Student Center at the University of California S. Cruz.
Click here for more
Beatboxer Matisyahu rocks
'There is nothing usual about a 6-foot, 4-inch, fully bearded, ultra-orthodox Jew as a reggae singer or beatboxer, yet over 200 people packed the Sidelines Pub last Saturday night.
Click here for more“I Will Write it in their Hearts” – Renowned Graphologist Highlights
Women to Women’s 6th Annual Luncheon
Women to Women of Lubavitch Chabad of Illinois’ held its sixth annual luncheon on Sunday, 27th of Shvat, February 6th. More than eighty ladies from throughout Illinois gathered at Lubavitch Chabad of Northbrook for an afternoon of inspiration and celebration.Click here for moreChabad-Lubavitch And NOVA To Certify Teachers
LUBAVITCH HEADQUARTERS, NY — “Educate a child according to his ways…”( Proverbs 22:6), a paradigm of Jewish thought and the main principle with which Chabad Lubavitch educators have approached their students for decades. Now, Merkos Linyonei Chinuch, the Lubavitch educational division, has brought new meaning to this age-old adage, with their latest project, the Merkos Linyonei Chinuch International Board of License, MLCIBL, for teachers and principals.Click here for more
Hundreds turn out for Mikvah Dedication in Oak Park, California
On Sunday, February 6, a crowd of 250 people turned out to dedicate the Mei Menachem Mikvas Devorah in Oak Park, California. Although neighboring towns were drenched in heavy rain, Oak Park shone with a blue sky as the Jewish community welcomed its first Mikvah.
Click here for more
Celebrating Tu b’Shevat in Byron Bay, thanks to Chabad
RABBI, Rabbi.” The words echoed across a Queensland car park early in September some 15 years ago. After initially ignoring the cry obviously directed towards me, I found myself in conversation with a Californian woman visiting the Gold Coast for a hairdressing convention.Click here for moreCoram class follows popular movement with 'Dummies' class
In entertainment magazines and newspaper gossip pages, the growing list of Hollywood and pop music stars studying Kabbalah, the ancient Jewish mysticism, has been well-documented.
Click here for more
At Age 74, Holocaust Survivor Is Studying For His Bar Mitzvah
Wellington Florida resident and Holocaust survivor Bernard Fainer is doing something quite remarkable. At the age of 74, Fainer is studying for his bar mitzvah, which will take place on Feb. 19.Click here for more
Fruits of Israel
More than 70 Vermont women gathered Sunday night at the Chabad Community
Center in Burlington to celebrate Tu B'Shvat, a Jewish holiday that
marks the rising of the sap and a new year for the trees.
Click here for more
Where Is Man?
MOSCOW, Russia - When remembering the tragedy of the Holocaust, as world leaders will today at the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, we are faced with the eternal question: Where was G-D?Click here for moreRabbi Bleich leads Babson students on tour of Israel
On Dec. 29, a group of Babson College students and Wellesley's own Chabad rabbi, Moshe Bleich, joined dozens of Jewish students from around the country on a 10-day excursion through the Israel, the Holy Land of Milk and Honey. Click here for more
An option for city's Jews, Hasidic rabbi plans to offer Chabad teachings
NORTHAMPTON, MA - Adding to an already rich array of religious options for the Jewish community here, a Hasidic rabbi who recently moved to Northampton is preparing to offer Orthodox Chabad teachings to local Jewish families.Click here for more
Rego Park temple inscribes word of God in new Torah
Rabbi Moshe Klein bent over the scroll, picked up the feather quill and began detailing the first tiny Hebrew characters Sunday in the Chabad of Rego Park's new Unity Torah, or collection of handwritten holy scriptures.
Children stared in awe at the impossibly fine black calligraphy on the parchment.
Click here for more
Celebration 101 in Florida – over 101 Chabad Houses now in the state
On Sunday night, the 6th of Shvat 5765, Friends of Lubavitch of Florida, celebrated the fulfillment of a promise made by Rabbi Avrohom Korf, the head shliach in the state of Florida, two years ago on 11 Nissan, corresponding to the Rebbe’s 100th birthday. That promise, was to reach the milestone whereby there would be 101 Chabad centers throughout the state of Florida. With thanks to the Almighty, this goal was accomplished and has already been surpassed.
Click here for moreOld cabins hinder plans for new Jewish center
Plans for an Aspen Jewish Community Center on Main Street remain in limbo until the city and the congregation can agree on what should happen to nine old cabins on the property.Click here for more'Spiritual counseling' - Rabbi uses Kabbalah to help heal troubled souls
Kabbalah is the new buzzword. It seems just about everyone is either talking
about Kaballah, taking classes in the ancient wisdom, or is teaching the
mystical philosophy - but do they really know what they're talking about?
asks Rabbi Shlomo Ezagui of Chabad Lubavitch of Palm Beach, Florida.
Click here for moreOK, so who's Utah's SECOND-best known rabbi?
SALT LAKE CITY, UT - For more than 10 years, Rabbi Benny Zippel has been in a job that calls for an unlimited supply of optimism. Think of Captain Ahab going after Moby Dick with nothing but a fork and tartar sauce.Click here for moreA reggae rapper who hangs with Hasidim
Forgive Matisyahu if he doesn't make eye contact onstage. The 24-year-old beatboxer and MC doesn't wear his glasses when he performs because odds are good that a number of women won't be dressed modestly, and Matisyahu - a Hasidic Jew who has spent the last two years living and studying in a Crown Heights, N.Y., yeshiva - is determined to deliver his rugged dancehall reggae without straying from the strict requirements of his Lubavitch community.Click here for moreMaking the Case for Democracy: OSU Chabad Hosts Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Natan Sharansky
One year ago, Harvard Law Professor Alan Dershowitz visited Ohio State, as the featured speaker for the OSU Chabad House’s Ambassadors for Israel fall program, and argued The Case for Israel before a large audience of students and community members. Two weeks ago, the Ambassadors for Israel again made their presence felt on the OSU campus, as they hosted Natan Sharansky, Israeli Minister for Diaspora and Jerusalem Affairs, who argued The Case for Democracy.
Click here for moreThe menora wars
On the third night of Hanukka, 11-year-old Menachem Felzenberg, decked out in a black hat and suit, lit the Hanukka menora in the White House. Click here for moreOdyssey illuminates Hanukkah
Being likened to a Southern Baptist stopped him in his tracks, because the only reason Yudi Steiner, a rabbi in the making, came to Boston was to jump for joy over being Jewish, especially at Hanukkah.
Click here for moreArea families celebrate Hanukkah in Oakwood - Crafts, history, fun part of Jewish holiday at Chabad
OAKWOOD, OH - Even though Xmas and Hanukkah share a general proximity on the
calendar, they're not very much alike.Click here for moreChanukah fun takes place all about town
Chanukah in the Detroit area began this month with a electrical-powered blaze of light that burned in unique ways and unexpected places.Click here for moreLight Up The Night: Festive Menorah Lighting at Miami City Hall
MIAMI, FLORIDA — Fireworks glowed and sparkled, a fire juggler performed, and Miami Mayor Manuel A. Diaz lit the first Chanukah candle as part of Light Up the Night, commemorating the Jewish festival of Chanukah. The festivities – Miami’s official public menorah-lighting ceremony –began at 7:30 PM Monday, December 13, on the grounds of Miami City Hall, 3500 Pan American Drive.Click here for moreChildren help build 12-foot menorah
FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP, NJ -- It wasn't enough for Ryan Blaire just to light
Hanukkah candles this weekend. He wanted to celebrate the eight-day
Jewish holiday with something a little bigger, a little more hands-on.
Last Tuesday, 30 Jewish Harvard students and professors gathered in Harvard Yard to enact their own version of the Hanukkah miracle: lighting the first candle in the pouring rain.
It takes just a small light to dispel darkness from the world, and in the
same way, it takes just a small gesture to make the world a better place.
Click here for more80 bikers get in Hanukkah spirit with toy run on Las Olas
Eighty bikers in black leather jackets, many carrying stuffed toys and gifts, roared down Las Olas Boulevard on Sunday afternoon, escorting a truck full of toys to a Hanukkah celebration in Huizenga Park.
Click here for moreHanukkah shows a Spanish touch
What happens when a centuries-old Jewish celebration takes over part of the Spanish-settled San Antonio River?Click here for moreChabad House menorah trashed A 15-foot menorah was found destroyed on the front steps of Chabad House at 715 Hill St. (SNS ED. in Ann Arbor, MI) Saturday morning. The menorah, the traditional symbol of Hanukkah, was built of gold-colored PVC pipes and had been torn down and left twisted on the sidewalk.
Click here for moreSpreading light - Fresno, CA boy's wish to help another child evolves into a tradition of giving
A 3-year-old Fresno boy asked his mother whether he could give his Hanukkah gift to a child in the hospital who was less fortunate. Click here for moreHanukkah celebrated in Naples, FL
The latkes weren't crisp enough, and there wasn't any sour cream, Albert Hershon declared, winking at an observer.Click here for moreHanukkah celebrated in Bonita Springs, FL
Gathered at the foot of a 9-foot menorah set in the center of Bonita Springs' Promenade Shops, a group of young boys spun a dreidel Tuesday night and played with a pile of toy coins. For some, the candles' lighting later that night would be the first time they celebrated their religion so publicly. Click here for moreLighting the holiday spirit Religious displays are Glenview's first in 20 years
After pulling the plug on holiday decorations last year, Glenview Village President Larry Carlson wasn't about to be deterred by brisk winds Sunday evening.
Click here for moreA Lofty Experience in Chelsea
Imagine an eclectic group of Manhattanites gathered one evening in a spacious downtown loft. The chatter in the room, a cacophony of accents, languages and stories, reflects the urban diversity that attracts artists, musicians, photographers, filmmakers and other bohemian types to trendy neighborhoods like Chelsea. A long table is artfully set with a potpourri of dishes and bowls filled with multi-colored organic salads and other healthy looking foods. Now imagine that the group of several dozen people -- some sporting trendy oval eyeglasses, some dressed like they’re cast members of The Apprentice and others decked mostly in black -- abruptly end their spirited conversations for a moment of group meditation and personal mind clearing. Click here for moreRabbi hopes to spark religion Chabad-Lubavitch member sees Hanukkah as a time to bring non-practicing Jews back into fold
COLONIE, NY -- In a forgotten storefront behind Santa at Latham Circle Mall, a bearded rabbi and his young bride hung banners and arranged boxes of educational toys. With little assistance, they readied the vacant space for a Hanukkah celebration today that will mark their introduction to Capital Region suburbia.
Click here for moreHanukkah menorah lighted
SPRINGFIELD, MA - Members of the Jewish community, school children and local officials took part yesterday in a ceremony at Court Square, lighting a large menorah to mark the beginning of Hanukkah. Click here for moreHanukkah Celebration a Joy for All People During a unique celebration of Hanukkah on Saturday night, guests of the Jewish Discovery Center Hanukkah Party were treated to everything from the singing of traditional Jewish songs to witnessing a man hammering nails into his nose.
Click here for moreNine-foot menorah lights up S-burg
STROUDSBURG, PA — As the covers were placed back on the two glowing lamps on the nine-foot-high menorah in Courthouse Square Tuesday, the crowd gathered for the celebration cheered. Click here for more3000 AT FLORIDA CHANUKAH FESTIVAL
An overwhelming, diverse crowd of over 3,000 men women and children turned out for the 25th Annual South Florida Chassidic Chanukah Festival, held at the McArthur High School Football Stadium in Hollywood, Florida, on Thursday evening December 9th.Click here for moreRabbi illustrates Hanukkah as a holiday for America
TEMECULA, CA - Voting habits or political party affiliations of Jewish-Americans apparently hasn't mattered to whoever serves as president of the United States, which became a heartwarming realization to Rabbi Yitzchok Hurwitz.Click here for moreDoor-to-door menorah - Rabbi Elazar Green hits the road to spread the word about Hanukkah LANCASTER COUNTY, PA - Hanukkah, the Jewish festival of lights, begins at sundown today, and you've forgotten to bring your menorah from home to your college dorm. Or maybe you don't even own a menorah.
Click here for more'Defiant menorah' lit in protest
FAIR LAWN, NJ - An 8-foot-tall menorah has been placed in a yard across from Borough Hall, but even after all its electric candles are lighted, it will not outshine the Borough Hall and its tree, which have hundreds of lightbulbs.Click here for moreLego menorah rises at mall
WEST NYACK, NY — A 10-foot-tall menorah made with Legos was erected yesterday on the ground floor of the Palisades Center mall by hundreds of children and their parents. Click here for moreHow the Menschen Helped Chanukah! Countless are the ways to celebrate Chanukah for the average Jewish American family. Most in Houston will attend Shabbat services this weekend at their respective synagogues. Parents throughout the city will work hard over the next week to remind their children that Chanukah is not about receiving presents for eight nights but, instead, is about celebrating the courage of the Maccabees, who won religious freedom against the Syrian-Greeks and rededicated the Temple in 165 B.C.E. In modern times, kindling the Chanukah lights on the 25th of Kislev is a ritual to which Jewish children and their families look forward year round, recalling this momentous event. Chanukah is a holiday for all Jews to delight in their identity. Click here for moreGuinn shares in Jewish celebration
Moshe Cunin knows that the reason Jews celebrate Hanukkah is in honor of three miracles.
SALT LAKE CITY -- For almost 15 years, Rabbi Benny Zippel has been in a job that calls for an unlimited supply of optimism. Think of Captain Ahab going after Moby Dick with nothing but a fork and tartar sauce.
Click here for moreMenorah lighting draws faithful in Cape Coral, FL
About 150 people attended a public menorah lighting ceremony Tuesday evening, thought to be the first of its kind in Cape Coral.Click here for moreGiving the Festival of Lights a Higher Profile It was anything but the intimate family celebration observed by most Jews at
Hanukkah. There on the steps outside the west portico of the state Capitol
stood Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and a group of rabbis in wide-brimmed black
hats beneath a giant menorah.
Click here for moreYeshiva Schools plan Hanukkah parade tonight
Thirty cars with lighted menorahs will add a festive touch to rush hour in parts of Squirrel Hill and Oakland tonight in a Hanukkah parade sponsored by Yeshiva Schools. Click here for moreMother dedicates children's museum in memory of slain son
NEW YORK -- More than 10 years after her son was gunned down on the Brooklyn Bridge, Devorah Halberstam celebrated the grand opening of the Jewish Children's Museum on Tuesday with a dedication to the memory of her slain child. Click here for moreAt 105, the Rabbi Doesn't Sleep Late
A century of poring over ancient Jewish texts has carved deep circles under Rabbi Yehuda Chitrik's eyes. Decades of Sabbath- table storytelling have left him speaking softly and seldom. At 105 years old, he seems almost mortal.Click here for moreMenorahs around the world light up for Hanukkah
NEW YORK -- At Columbia University in Upper Manhattan, a 4 1/2-metre menorah made from food cans will be lit each night of Hanukkah.
Click here for moreBreathtaking Menorah Kindling at Ronald Reagan Presidential Library
Chabad of the Conejo and Chabad of Simi Valley, California, joined with the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library for a most unique tribute to the late 40th president. An estimated 1500 people attended “The Triumph of Freedom – Chanukah and the Reagan Legacy” on Sunday, December 5th. Click here for moreThe joy of Jewishness
The matzoh balls print recipes. A giant tree talks about good deeds. A kosher refrigerator tells jokes and shofars don't just blow, they explain about Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. Click here for moreMenorah gets its night to shine - Wellesley, chabad reach compromise
An attorney for a local Hasidic missionary movement drew a line in the sand for Wellesley: Either sit down with the head of the local chabad and find a place to display the menorah during Hanukkah or face a lawsuit in federal court. The deadline was Thursday.Click here for moreRabbi Groner: the driving force of Chabad Australia
THE psalmist considers reaching one’s 80th year as a sign of gevurah — strength. Kabbalistically, gevurah is the second of the seven sefirot (divine emanations) which characterise the seven weeks of the sfirat ha’omer period as well as each of the seven days within those weeks. According to that system, the second day of the second week is gevurah shebigevurah — strength amid strength. Born on that day, Rabbi Groner personifies that kabbalistic concept.Click here for moreChabad establishes permanent center in Monroe Township, NJ
In a handsome colonial house at the intersection of Gravel Hill and Union Valley roads in Monroe Township, with a horse farm on one side and cornfields on the other, the first permanent home of the Chabad Jewish Center of Monroe is taking shape.
Click here for moreChabad fends off suit over two houses The Hollywood Florida Community Synagogue Chabad Lubavitch appears to have fended off one of the threats to its controversial Hollywood home, although the Orthodox congregation remains tangled in lawsuits and a federal investigation.
Click here for moreLet there be LEGOs - Giant menorahs to brighten Bay Area
When Rabbi Yossi Marcus was a kid, he loved his LEGOs. Using the colorful little bricks, he even built a little mechanic’s garage — “with a pulley and everything.”Click here for moreCreche, menorah to join Xmas tree in Nyack park
The annual Xmas tree that sits in Nyack's Veteran's Memorial Park during the holiday season will have a little more company this year. Click here for moreS.A. Jewish community embraces devout boxer
When Dmitriy Salita steps into the ring in New York tonight, he will carry the prayers and strength of a tiny, ultra-observant Jewish community nearly 2,000 miles away in San Antonio. Click here for moreBoy in the (Hebrew) ’Hood
As a teenager in White Plains, N.Y., Matthew Miller was a Grateful Dead fan who sang rap songs, and wore baggy pants, dreadlocks and tie-dyed Ts. Raised in a nonreligious household, Judaism never played a large role in his life. Click here for moreLighting of the menorah is scheduled in Medford MEDFORD, NJ - Dozens of residents will usher in Hanukkah early next month during a public lighting of a giant menorah in historic Medford Village.
Click here for moreEditor's Notes: The Rebbe's army marches forward
As the General Assembly of the United Jewish Communities was getting under way in Cleveland this week, another convention, far more overtly passionate and barely less numerous, was winding down a short flight away to the east. Click here for moreArmory visit part of Torah studies
LONGMEADOW, MA - What does the Springfield Armory, a factory opened in 1794 by George Washington, have to do with Jacob's dream, a ladder and a stone?Click here for moreWorld Of Chabad Comes Home
Emissaries from five continents return to New York with tales to tell.
Chabad isn’t as messianic as it used to be, but perhaps it’s more angelic, as upwards of 2,500 emissaries of the Lubavitcher rebbe returned to New York last weekend with tales of self-sacrifice and serendipity from Thai rainforests, the Siberian tundra, Texas plains, Congo jungles, Nepalese mountains, Moroccan casbahs, back alleys in Paraguay and American college quadrangles.
Click here for moreCLOSE TO 3000 FILL THE 69TH REGIMENT ARMORY FOR KINNUS HASHLUCHIM GALA BANQUET 5765
CROWN HEIGHTS (SNS) – On Sunday evening Rosh Chodesh Kislev, a record breaking crowd that numbered close to 3000 k”ah and included the Shluchim, their supporters, friends, parents of Shluchim and Bochurim filled the 69th Regiment Armory building in Manhattan for the gala banquet of the Kinnus HaShluchim.
Click here for moreHollywood teacher uses music to motivate, break down barriers
Some of his students can't move, their bodies forever trapped in wheelchairs.Click here for moreRabbi hopes orthodox synagogue fills void in Pompano
Pompano Beach Florida will soon have its first Orthodox synagogue: Chabad of North East Broward.Click here for moreRABBINICAL COLLEGE OF AMERICA HONORS PROMINENT PHILANTHROPIST
An overflow crowd gathered at the Sheraton Meadowlands Hotel to celebrate the Annual National Founders’ Dinner of the Rabbinical College of America – Morristown. Government Officials, dignitaries, benefactors and alumni assembled to show their support for the College and its many activities. Present was the legion of Chabad Lubavitch emissaries from throughout the state of New Jersey. Click here for moreBeth Rivkah gets best marks among Montreal Jewish schools
Beth Rivkah Academy, a school for girls under Lubavitch community auspices, has been rated the best of the Jewish day schools in the fifth annual Report Card on Quebec’s Secondary Schools, published by the Vancouver-based Fraser Institute and the Institut économique de Montréal. Click here for more700 on hand as Elie Wiesel keynotes Chabad of Solon opening gala
Nobel Peace Prize-winner Elie Wiesel has engaged in dialogues with heads of state, the pope, and international leaders of all stripes.Click here for moreWilliam Kravitz, 96, fulfills lifelong dream by making his bar mitzvah
NEW HAVEN, CT — Nobody ever said that the good things in life aren’t worth waiting for. It’s just that most people might give up waiting after, say, the first 80 years or so.Click here for moreOne-man genre, Rebbe & reggae The Messiah may come as soon as Matisyahu's next gig.
Click here for moreRacism suspected in van fire
AMHERST, MA - The owner of a van that was set on fire Oct. 11 said he fears his family may have been targeted because the vehicle had four bumper stickers in Hebrew. Click here for moreMenorah joins holiday display
This year's holiday display at the Leon County Public Library will include a Xmas tree and - for the first time ever - a menorah.Click here for moreHasidic rabbi brings Jews closer to faith
Every Friday night, anywhere between 10 and 20 students, mostly Jews, assemble in Rabbi Moshe Leib Gray's condominium for prayer, a home-cooked meal and lots of conversation about politics, religion and life.Click here for moreTorah kept hidden under Soviet communism is the star of a Brooklyn parade
A 150-year-old Torah, hidden for a half-century in the former Soviet Union, was paraded through New York's streets Sunday on its way to its new home at a Brooklyn synagogue.Click here for moreFunds to be raised in fun fashion for Jewish museum in Alaska
There may be more to Seward's Folly than most Alaskans know, and the local Jewish community wants to tell that story, not with just words, but with a museum.Click here for moreThe Bottom Line / A deal to make the Rebbe proud
It is hard to stay apathetic about the tender results for purchasing properties in Kfar Chabad, which were published last week.Click here for moreBush aide balances politics, religion
During a presidential election, the words 'day off' aren't often heard, but when it's the Sabbath, campaigning can be difficult.Click here for moreTalmidei Hashluchim Depart – Well Prepared
This Wednesday 250 Shluchim headed off to 45 Lubavitcher Yeshivos across the globe. Their task: to instill warmth and motivation to thousands of Bochurim during the upcoming year, empowering their Yeshiva experience to guide them in the proper direction for the rest of their lives.Click here for moreDuke ready for conference
DURHAM, NC - The picturesque façade of Duke Chapel will share the main quad today with the skeletal frame of a bombed-out bus from Jerusalem.
Click here for moreTeenagers take their faith on the road
To some, it might look like an ice-fishing shanty on a trailer. Click here for moreSHEMINI ATZERES, SIMCHAS TORAH & SHABBOS BEREISHIS 5765 IN CROWN HEIGHTS
CROWN HEIGHTS (SNS) – B”H the wonderful weather we had all Sukkos long continued for Shemini Atzeres, Simchas Torah and Shabbos Bereishis and was very much appreciated and enjoyed by everyone.Click here for moreTo ignite the soul
Yitzhak Rabin was a straight-as-a-die agnostic, and shy to a fault. So, when on a spring day in 1972 he was kept waiting at 770 Eastern Parkway, Crown Heights, Brooklyn, for his appointment with the Lubavitcher Rebbe, he became fidgety. Click here for moreJewish students celebrate Sukkot
At Illini Tower, 409 E. Chalmers St., Tuesday, a rabbi stands by his red pickup truck holding some branches and a citrus fruit. On the bed of the truck, the rabbi has a makeshift Sukkah - a hut with three plywood walls and a bamboo mat on top. He calls the truck the "Sukkah mobile."
RACING against a deadline with the setting sun on a recent Friday afternoon, Rochel Butman drove back to Westchester from Brooklyn along the Van Wyck Expressway, her five children in the back of the family van listening to the Yeshiva Boys' Choir on the CD player.
Click here for moreMaking a place in the Poconos for Orthodox Jews - Rabbi & family create Jewish outreach center Shterni Bendet doesn't have the time to be this busy. She's packing up to move their family to a new home in a few days, preparing for Shabbat, handling two young children, getting ready for the upcoming High Holidays and starting Hebrew school classes at their Chabad Center. Her youth and energy are necessary at a time like this.
Along with her husband, Rabbi Mendel Bendet, and daughter Mushka, Shterni moved to East Stroudsburg last September — the only outwardly Orthodox Jews living here full time — to set up the Chabad of the Poconos, a Jewish outreach center to help meet the needs of Jews living in the area who are unaffiliated with any particular synagogue or religious center.
Miriam and Rabbi Zushe Greenberg celebrate opening of $3 million Chabad synagogue in Solon.
When Randi Mashmoor bids L'Shana Tova to worshippers attending Rosh Hashana services at Chabad of Solon's new synagogue next week, she will add her own silent prayer of gratitude.
Click here for moreWith Rebbe's Blessing, Israeli Drills for Oil
Jerusalem, Sept. 10--(AP) - An ultra-Orthodox Jew is trying to do what no one has done in Israel since 1955 - find a new source of oil in a land more associated with Jaffa oranges and Merkava tanks.Click here for moreChabad Jewish Center of Issaquah, WA ready to share its wisdom
If you want to stop by to hear a little Kabbala, Rabbi Shalom D. (Berry) Farkash’s Klahanie house is always open. Kabbala, for those unfamiliar with the term, is an esoteric wisdom that explains the secrets of the cosmos and illuminates the practices of Judaism.
Click here for moreCrash course in Hebrew begins Tuesday With Judaism's High Holidays of Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur approaching, a rabbi in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida is offering a crash course in reading Hebrew.
THERE has already been an opening ceremony here in the host city of this month's Summer Olympic Games.
Click here for moreLubavitcher rabbi is a true inspiration Who knew? Inspiration in Minnesota? A state colloquially known to Jews worldwide as the Land of the Frozen Chosen. My personal one-time award for inspiration goes to Rabbi Moshe Feller, director of Chabad Lubavitch of the Upper Midwest and his team of Shluchim, or emissaries.
Camp: Children at the Lubavitch Center for Jewish Education in Columbia take a pretend trip to learn more about the culture.
Click here for moreGames bring kosher food back to Athens ATHENS, July 15 — The moussaka served in the shadow of the Acropolis is as Greek as a black-robed priest. Its fine brown crust over rich bechamel will also be Athens' first taste of kosher food in more than half a century.Click here for moreInspiring goodwill, NYC rabbinical students promote faith, good deeds
Rabbinical students Yehuda Blotner and Dovid Baumgarten are spending July visiting Jewish residents throughout the Wyoming Valley as part of an annual mission by the Merkos L'Inyonei Chinuch, the educational arm of the Chabad Lubavitch movement. Blotner and Baumgarten still have a year and a half of study before they'll be ordained.
Click here for moreWHO IS DESERVING TO LEAD? - A TALE OF TWO YAHRZEITS
(This is a reedited version of a sermon by Rabbi Haskel Lookstein,
delivered from the pulpit of Congregation Kehilath Jeshurun on June 19,
2004, Shabbat Korach, four days before the 3rd of Tammuz, which was the
10th yahrzeit of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, and 19 days before the 18th of
Tammuz, which was the 25th yahrzeit of the Rabbi's father, Rabbi
Joseph H. Lookstein.)Click here for moreAnger flares at Hollywood's lawsuit against Orthodox Jewish group
HOLLYWOOD, FL -- The city commission's surprise decision to ask a court to stop the Chabad Lubavitch from worshipping in a residential neighborhood has angered temple leaders, caught the attention of federal investigators and left a commissioner scrambling to explain what he called "misunderstood comments." With no notice or public input, commissioners last week voted 4-3 to file a lawsuit against the Orthodox Jewish group. It was a sharp contrast to the previous three years of debate, which featured public hearings that twice lasted past 6 a.m.Click here for moreRebbe with a cause 10 years after his death, charismatic Hasidic leader still casts a long shadow
Most Hasidic Jews live their lives within the confines of insular communities.
Click here for moreFriendship Circle teaches the meaning of mitzvot and Torah
Rabbi Dovid Goldstein, youth activities director for Chabad Lubavitch Outreach of Houston, Texas is heading a new initiative that merits much attention. A vast number of children – nearly one out of 10 – are born with special needs, Rabbi Goldstein said. According to Brown University’s Demographic Studies of Children with Disabilities, 12 percent of U.S. school-age children are functionally limited or disabled.Click here for moreFamily Tradition in the Grindel A young Lubavitch Rabbi went to Hamburg, Germany and found himself retracing the trails of his grandfather and great-grandfatherClick here for moreNew Chelsea Morning
Ziv Sidi and his wife, Natalia, thought they were leaving Jewish civilization when they moved four years ago from the Upper West Side to a brand-new luxury condo in the Chelsea Mercantile. But as they began meeting their neighbors in the Seventh Avenue building with a Whole Foods on the ground floor, the couple discovered that, according to their estimate, more than half the residents were Jewish.
Click here for moreA Nobel Laureate Recalls a Friend and ‘Shepherd’ Arriving in Philadelphia just hours after addressing the U.N. Conference on Anti-Semitism held Monday in New York, Nobel laureate and Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel spoke about a seemingly unrelated topic — the life of Lubavitcher Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson.
Click here for moreFollowers mark rebbe's death
They came to the cemetery in southern Queens as the sun sank low over Manhattan Monday night, men in beards and black suits and women holding children's hands, who traveled there from every corner of the globe.Click here for moreLubavitcher Jews Pay Respects To Late Leader Tens of thousands of Jews from around the world gathered in Queens to pay their respects to the late Rebbe Menachem Schneerson on Tuesday, the 10th anniversary of the Lubavitcher leader’s death.
Click here for moreLife of Rabbi who led Chabad is remembered Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the charismatic and sometimes controversial leader of the Jewish Chabad-Lubavitch movement, will be remembered by followers worldwide Tuesday on the 10th anniversary of his death.
Click here for moreRecalling rebbe a decade later
Upwards of 20,000 people are expected to flock to the Cambria Heights grave of Lubavitcher Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson today, the 10th anniversary of his death.Click here for moreJudaism's Thriving Concern Chabad-Lubavitch is a successful, inviting branch of the faith with worldwide reach. But the issue of a Messiah is no small matter.Click here for moreDecade after rebbe, Chabad alive and well Eleven years ago, Prof. Menaham Friedman expressed doubts as to whether the Lubavitch movement would survive the death of the group's then stroke-stricken leader, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson. And in the event that Chabad did survive, the most recognized authority on haredi sociology predicted, it would be as an "entirely different sect."
Click here for moreRemembering the rebbe on his 10th ‘yahrtzeit’ JERUSALEM — Histalkut, a Hebrew word meaning “leaving” or “disappearance,” would be, in the case of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson and his followers, the proper term for describing what most of the world calls “death.” The terminology is important because for a long while after it occurred to the man his followers call the rebbe — on 3 Tammuz 5764, which this year falls on June 22 — there were questions as to what really happened. Some even spoke of the rebbe’s imminent return as the Messiah.
Click here for moreDecamping for Russia Like his parents, Rabbi Yossi Marozov was born and raised in Brooklyn, but his grandparents all lived in the former Soviet Union.
Click here for moreTen Years After Schneerson's Death, Lubavitch Movement Flourishes This is the first in a series about the progress of the Lubavitch movement since the death of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson.
Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the charismatic head of the Lubavitch chasidic movement, died 10 years ago this week, leaving both followers and observers wondering about the future of the highly successful religious organization.
Click here for moreLubavitchers Mark 10 Years Since Death of Revered Rabbi Last week, on a residential street in eastern Queens, large trucks pulled up to a modest one-story house with food and supplies for thousands of people.
Click here for moreAn Orthodox rabbi keeps, spreads faith
With his full black beard, suit to match and--on the Sabbath--a long black frock coat, Rabbi Meir Moscowitz stands out amid the suburbia of the North Shore.Click here for moreHasidim mark milestone - 1st wedding held with life members
NORTHEAST VALLEY, AZ - The local Hasidic community celebrated this week.Click here for moreChabad goes high-tech with Internet site If you'd like to know the exact time to light Shabbat candles, or maybe find
a Jewish summer camp or pre-school for your child, or even shop a Judaica
store from the comfort of your home, "the only click you'll ever need, is
chabadpalmbeach.org," says Rabbi Shlomo Ezagui, spiritual leader of Chabad
of Palm Beach, Florida.Click here for moreChabad will mark 25th anniversary
AGOURA HILLS, CA - It was 20 years ago, recalled Rabbi Moshe D. Bryski, that a Holocaust survivor approached him as he lighted an eight-foot-tall menorah at a Thousand Oaks mall.Click here for moreChabad expanding Jewish life in Russia
Years ago, when Russia was Communist, officially atheistic and headed by diehard Stalinists, state-sanctioned discrimination against Jews was commonplace, as was hostility towards the State of Israel.Click here for morePrivate army guards terror target Gutnick
A MILLIONAIRE Australian businessman who was the target of an al-Qaida assassination plot has turned his home into a fortress with levels of security usually reserved for heads of state.Click here for more'We're out there to promote Judaism and bring Jewish awareness to all people'
BELLEVUE, TN — Sporting tzitzit, the fringes on a Jewish ritual garment, on his side, and a kipah, or Jewish skullcap, on his head, Rabbi Yitzchok Tiechtel talked about how '' 'The Rebbe' taught the concept of loving every Jew and every human being for who they are.''Click here for moreHat tricks? No, Chabadniks
The men wear dark suits and black fedoras, no matter how hot it is.
Rabbi Mendel Solomon jokes about the pace of his life and how it’s only possible because of e-mail, Palm Pilots, and video – conferencing, but he clearly delights in all the aspects of his work.
Click here for moreThe rabbi and Mad Anthony Wayne
Locals were looking for a savior to reopen the General Wayne Inn, a 300-year-old landmark among Main Line taverns where steak dinners came drenched in colonial ambience, before a 1996 murder and a string of subsequent business failures left it derelict.Click here for moreUtah’s Jews unite in celebrating their heritage For Utah's estimated 5,000 Jews, living in such a predominately Mormon state can be isolating and frustrating at times.
Hotels and mail order brides are mostly what the Internet, font of information on all and sundry, has to tell me about this remote town in iberia. Trip organizers joke with dark humor that if no one turns up to meet me at the airport, I'll certainly have something interesting to write about.
Click here for moreNew congregation's Torah to be dedicated in Sunday ceremony
There's a telling scene in the 1979 Gene Wilder-Harrison Ford movie, "The Frisco Kid," that illustrates, in a scene that is both emotionally moving and perversely amusing, the significance of the Torah for the Jewish people.
Click here for moreCity, Chabad draft settlement proposal The Board of Aldermen is on the verge of ending its four-month dispute with Beth Menachem Chabad, an orthodox Jewish synagogue which has sought a 45-space parking waiver for its Dedham Street location.
Click here for moreKosher Meat Plant Sets Off Iowa Feud
Postville, Iowa, may seem an unlikely site for a showdown between a group of Hasidic Jews and local farmers. But the construction of a wastewater treatment plant with $7.5 million in federal funds has sparked a contentious legal battle, with a citizens group challenging the right of a kosher slaughterhouse to dump heavily salted water into the local river. Click here for moreRabbi's home is an open haven
When the uninitiated walk through the always-wide-open front door at the University City home of Moishe and Sura Leider, they can't help but ask two prime questions: "Who are all these people? And why do they come here?" Click here for moreChabad offers students new spiritual community
Jewish students on campus have begun discovering a new way to participate in campus religious life, thanks to the Rabbi Hershey Novack and the Washington University Chabad chapter. An organization based on furthering knowledge of the Jewish faith, Chabad is an international project with chapters in 45 states and 70 countries worldwide.Click here for moreTorah Amid Corn After nearly two decades, the Jews in Postville, Iowa, are beginning to blend into the fabric of small-town lifeClick here for moreTown wants answers from temple
NEEDHAM, MA - After meeting with town employees, Rabbi Mendel Krinsky was given until today, April 15, to acknowledge whether there has been a change in use of his residence to a house of worship.Click here for moreBirthright Israel's Legacy
As it begins its fifth and most successful year of operation, the future of Birthright Israel—the organization that provides free trips to Israel for 18 to 26 year-olds who have never visited the country on an organized trip before—is unclear.
Click here for moreRabbi criticizes composer's new work as unfair to Israel
Philip Munger's new musical composition, "The Skies Are Weeping," hasn't yet been performed in public but is already drawing mixed reviews. So mixed that Munger and an Anchorage rabbi are co-hosting a public meeting today to discuss the work, which some in the Jewish community believe unfairly portrays the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.Click here for moreThe art of spiritual preparation
With the coming of spring, Jews worldwide are beginning to prepare for the Passover holiday, which celebrates the liberation of Jews from bondage in Egypt more than 3,000 years ago.Click here for morePassover begins - Area Jews celebrate sacred festival
VINELAND, NJ -- Jack Kalaiman flew up from Florida and away from sunny, 70-degree weather just to be there. Click here for morePassover filled with food, frenzy for local Jews in Hawaii
If you walk into the Chabad of Hawai'i headquarters before Passover, be prepared to encounter Whirlwind Pearl.Click here for moreA Relative Peace for Those in Tunisia
Throughout much of the Arab world and Europe, three and a half years of intensive Israeli-Palestinian violence has deepened anti-Israeli and even anti-Semitic sentiment among populations, recent polls have shown. But in Tunisia, home to one of the last significant Jewish populations in the Arab world, Jews there say their lives have continued peacefully. Click here for moreRabbi's Passover joy special
FAIRLAWN, OH - Rabbi Mendy Sasonkin has seen G-D work a miracle.
And that miracle will be the impetus for his most joyous Passover celebration ever.
PALM CITY, FL — The search for a new place to worship that led a Jewish congregation into court has ended with a judge ruling in its favor in a disputed land deal.
Click here for moreChabad Brings Brooklyn to L.A.
Amid the kosher restaurants, Judaica stores and storefront synagogues on a particular stretch of Pico Boulevard, a little piece of Brooklyn has just been built.Click here for moreContract flap halts Jewish center STUART, FL -- Attorneys for a Treasure Coast Jewish center accused a wealthy New York businessman Thursday of illegally backing out of a $420,000 contract to sell a home and guest house on 2 1/2 acres in Palm City to convert into its new house of worship.
Click here for moreSchools Debut With Fanfare An Orthodox Jewish group unveils three state-of-the-art facilities for girls in West L.A.
Perched on one of the scores of white folding chairs set out along a closed-off stretch of West Pico Boulevard, 8-year-old Adeli Shabtay waited in the blazing noon sunshine Sunday, eager for a first look inside her new school.
Click here for moreUNITED IN TRADITION Shterna Loschak and Zalmy Kudan star in Santa Barbara's first Hasidic wedding
From start to finish, the courtship and marriage of Shterna Loschak and Zalmy Kudan was a study in contrasts with modern culture.
MILFORD, MA -- Martha Stewart, George Bush and Superman -- or at least people dressed like them -- attended the Chabad Center's celebration of Purim last night at the Radisson.
Click here for moreBris ceremony shared - Little Hobokenite undergoes ancient Jewish tradition in public
A Lubavitch Rabbi invited the Hoboken community to witness the ancient rite of circumcision Tuesday, which was performed before 150 family members, friends and others at a hall in Marineview Plaza.Click here for moreFeds investigating if Hollywood discriminated against Jewish sect HOLLYWOOD, FL -- Justice Department lawyers are questioning past and current Hollywood employees, reviewing videotapes of commission meetings and examining building code records to determine whether the city discriminated against an Orthodox Jewish sect.
Click here for moreBrooklyn, N.Y., Jewish Children's Museum Fund Drive Falls Short of Goal The long-delayed Jewish Children's Museum being built in Brooklyn needs $5 million more before it can open by summer, and officials say if their prayers aren't answered through private donations they will resort to taking out loans. The interactive museum, believed to be the first of its kind and more than 10 years in the making, intends to be a model for other kid-centered cultural institutions revolving around different beliefs.
Click here for moreTeens help kids with disabilities have fun
The Jewish holiday of Purim is about having fun, and a pre-Purim party Sunday in Agoura Hills seemed to do the trick for some special-needs children and their friends.Click here for moreSynagogue gives food for bodies and souls
Dressed in warm winter clothing and holding on to their shopping carts, hundreds of Russian immigrants crowded into Chabad Lubavitch of Kensington last week to receive food for both body and soul.Click here for moreLithuania's Jews rebuke Metzger
Dr. Shimon Alperovitch, the president of the Jewish community of Lithuania, sent a scathing letter of rebuke to Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger last week, accusing him of interfering in his community's internal affairs. Click here for more Click here for moreBerkeley Heights’, New Jersey top cop probes his Jewish heritage thanks to Chabad
As David Zager sits in his office at the Berkeley Heights Police Department and tells stories about his great-grandfather’s Newark saloon, his speech is peppered with Yiddish phrases.Click here for moreOn Shabbat, Yalies find home away from home
When the dining hall fare becomes dreary, Yale gentiles have a tendency to turn to the Jews. And when Slifka becomes boring with the same old crowd, even the Jews want to get their gefilte fish somewhere with a little more kick.Click here for moreWatching the art of challah
It's an unusually warm February afternoon and nine-month-old Levi Tiechtel is slung on his mother's hip, surveying the hive of activity that is the family kitchen.Click here for moreJewish brides presented in show
Thursday, February 19, 2004 - Selena Treister, 26, graduated from Claremont McKenna College in 1999. During the four years she attended school here, she made her way to the Chabad of the Inland Empire, CA where she could network with other Jewish women and make friends while she earned her degree. Click here for moreIsrael Trip Open Eyes, and Hearts, of Local Group
Wednesday, February 18, 2004 - Israel may seem like an unlikely travel destination to some, but a group of local men recently completed a journey to the Middle Eastern country. The travelers returned from their one-week trip with a new perspective about their Jewish roots and the human spirit.Click here for moreHasidic wedding in the bay area attracts hundreds
Tuesday, February 10, 2004 - FOSTER CITY, CA -- Rabbi Yosef Levin welcomed his daughter, Rivkie, into married life with a traditional Hasidic wedding -- almost exactly like his own 24 years ago and the one held five months ago for Rivkie's twin, Chanie.Click here for moreChabad Lubavitch opens new Markham mikvah
The new mikvah at Chabad Lubavitch of Markham (in Ontario) is a far cry from the frozen Siberian lake used by the grandmother of the synagogue’s rebbitzen to prepare for her marriage many years ago. Click here for moreRabbi advocates inner balance, peace
When Rabbi Laibl Wolf told his audience, "Judaism teaches that you are never allowed to express anger," some people gasped, others grumbled and whispers consumed the crowd. Click here for moreChabad to Make L.A. a Yeshiva City
On Waring Avenue, west of La Brea Avenue, Yeshiva Ohr Elchonon Chabad is undergoing a $5 million expansion. Under construction is 35,000 square feet of dormitories and study rooms, including a light and airy beis midrash (study hall) that will double as a synagogue. Click here for moreNYC-based Jewish group branches out to Poconos
Perhaps in December you caught a glimpse of a large, electric Hanukkah menorah strapped to the roof of an otherwise nondescript silver Buick motoring around the area.
Click here for moreNew center serves ASU Jewish students
Instead of hitting the bars on a Friday night, some Jewish students gather every Sabbath at Chabad - a new Orthodox Jewish student center opened in response to requests by ASU's Jewish community.Click here for moreCHABAD LUBAVITCH OF TAMPA BAY, FLORIDA CELEBRATES 20 YEARS
Chabad of Tampa Bay, Florida recently celebrated twenty years of dedicated service by Rabbi Yossie and Sulha Dubrowski, and their partners with a gala dinner. Click here for moreChabad Proposes Smaller Building; KP Residents Wary
Three years of public hearings regarding the proposal of Chabad of Great Neck to construct a sanctuary, school and community center on an eight-acre slice of land in the Village of Kings Point, abutting 10 residences on East Shore Road, has resulted in a drastically reduced building plan that was unveiled on Jan. 26 at the continued hearing. Along with a reduction from the 87,000 square foot building plan originally proposed to a more modest 23,500 square foot plan, additional concessions, contained in a nine-page proposed document of covenants and restrictions between the Chabad and the village, were distributed. The new plan would also not request a variance to exceed height restrictions. Click here for moreRabbis gather to explore reviving Jewish life in ex-communist states
VIENNA, Austria (AP) -- Working to revive Jewish life in the former Soviet bloc, dozens of Orthodox rabbis on Monday inaugurated an academy that will train a new generation to lead communities devastated by World War II and decades of communism.Click here for moreNew Chabad Rabbi For JHU
He's studied in Israeli and Australian yeshivas. He's visited Jewish prison inmates in South Dakota and Wyoming. He even presided over a seder in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.Click here for moreFederal snafu shocks philanthropic rabbi Try to do a mitzvah and what do you get?
Rabbi Chaim Adelman found out recently when he learned the U.S. government had placed a lien on Chabad House, a community for Hassidic Jews in Amherst, under the Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996.
Click here for moreSynagogue parking tiff sparks debate beyond zoning
What began as a seemingly straightforward zoning issue has sparked a debate that has rubbed nerves raw as charges of anti-Semitism were hurled in a city with a sizable Jewish population. Click here for moreThe Blue Jet Minyan
In honor of the first Yahrtzeit of my mother of blessed memory, I share this story reflecting my year’s journey to recite Kaddish three times a day in my Shlichus-town of Satellite Beach.
Click here for morePrayer Amid the Office Machines
In the bustle and clamor of a Manhattan workday, thousands of New Yorkers take time out from their jobs to pray with one another, often in unlikely places.Click here for moreUnited in Tradition
It was a wedding with an emcee, a rabbi from Pasadena, Calif., who stood under the canopy in the Portland Marriott Downtown breezeway and told the 520 guests exactly what was happening. Click here for moreShabbat draws nearly 200 to Wellesley Inn
Since the arrival of Rabbi and Mrs. Moshe Bleich to Wellesley three years ago, the Jewish Community, and indeed the community at large, has been energized and inspired by their dedication and their vision. They've worked tirelessly to deliver their message in a variety of ways according to each season and each holiday. They've led us to the duck pond to symbolically cast away our sins; they've blown the shofar to inspire our hearts; and we've dwelled in their sukkah in the sun and rain. Last spring, the Bleichs invited 101 people to the Wellesley Inn for a Shabbaton in honor of the Lubavitcher Rebbe's 101st birthday.
Click here for moreTucson rabbi attends recent White House briefing
As the United States Marine band played Chanukah music, Rabbi Yossie Shemtov of Tucson, Arizona waited in line with his wife, Chanie. They were about to be introduced to President George W. Bush and the first lady at a Chanukah event held in Washington last month.Click here for moreVOLUNTEERS HELP SPECIAL-NEEDS CHILDREN AT COMPANION PROGRAM
WHIPPANY, N.J. (AP) - Max and Melissa Goldberg are 7-year-old twins, but not identical.Click here for moreSpiritual growth - Jewish center will have more space for its programs
Little more than a decade after an Italian immigrant with a dream made his way to Salt Lake City, plans are in the works for Utah's newest Jewish synagogue and religious school.Click here for morePlanners hear plans for new synagogue in New Hampshire
MANCHESTER, NH — A Lubavitch synagogue planned for the North End of Manchester could eventually draw 200 people, a representative of Chabad Lubavitch New Hampshire said yesterday.Click here for moreQueens Jewish community protests menorah toppling
The toppling of a 16-foot menorah in Rego Park and a 12-foot menorah in Forest Hills prompted local rabbis, leaders of the Queens Jewish Community Council and elected officials to hold a protest condemning the anti-Semitic acts last week. Click here for moreThe Lubavitcher Rebbe's legacy keeps rolling across America
NEW YORK - The belief that the Lubavitch rabbi who died 10 years ago is the messiah, no longer holds water for most of the movement's Hasids in America. The messianic stream slightly damaged the image of the Chabad movement there at the time, but now only distant echoes remain.Click here for moreSynagogue sues Newton after standoff
NEWTON, MASS -- He is not your typical scofflaw. Soft-spoken but determined, Rabbi Chaim Prus follows Jewish tenets to the letter. He does not shop or cook during the Sabbath, watch television or use the telephone. And he won't carry anything or drive to Beth Menachem Chabad in Newton, a single-family house where he has conducted Sabbath services and other rituals for 3 1/2 years.Click here for moreAt this synagogue, the flood's not biblical
The walls are just about tumbling down at the Jewish community center in Brighton.Click here for moreThere was a Hasid who had a farm
With interest in environmental sustainability burgeoning, organic farmers are finding more and more buyers - with kosher-keeping consumers among them. It's all possible thanks in part to a growing number of Hasidic Jews who are swapping their black coats for overalls, citing the Torah and a Jewish farming tradition as their mandate.Click here for moreChabad Academy in Port Washington, NY awarded $250,000 grant for new computer lab
Wearing state of the art headphones, Tova Nissan’s bright, eager eyes are peeled at the animated scene on her display terminal. Tova looks like she is enjoying a video game or ‘Surfing the Net’ during a recent class at Chabad Academy of Science and the Humanities (C.A.S.H.) in Port Washington. But Tova and the rest of her fifth-grade class at the Port Washington elementary school are engaged in an intensive and personalized experience in reading.Click here for moreWORLD’S LARGEST CHANUKAH MENORAH LIT DESPITE THE “CODE ORANGE” SECURITY ALERT
The World’s Largest Chanukah Menorah located on 5th Avenue and 59th Street in Manhattan was lit nightly despite the nations “Code Orange” security status. Media outlets in Israel as well as some in the US aired a report that a female terrorist planned to disguise herself as Jewish and attack the Menorah in Manhattan R”L.
Click here for more'Mitzvah machine' plans a good deed indeed
Oy, vey! Hanukkah went fast this year, didn't it? I dropped by the Gold Coast just a few days before it started last Friday to shoot the breeze with Rabbi Meir Chai Benhiyoun. His friends call him Meir Chai (pronounced Mayor hi!) or "MCB" down in the Loop at his office. Rabbi presides over the Lubavitch Chabad House for the Gold Coast, Lincoln Park and the Loop. He's the guy who put up the huge menorah at Daley Center Plaza. "It's one of the biggest menorahs in the world, a replica of the one in the White House. It's a symbol of freedom." Rabbi gave me the skinny on Hanukkah.Click here for moreMen in black
With thousands of emissaries in over 100 countries, Chabad is now taking its message to hip, young Israelis - in India
The three black-clad haredim appeared incongruous among a busload of footloose backpackers en route to the sacred Hindu town of Rishikesh on the banks of the river Ganges.
Click here for moreSenator Ted Stevens Honored by the Alaskan Jewish Community
ANCHORAGE, ALASKA - Attended by a crowd of nearly 700 supporters, Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Senator Ted Stevens was honored at the Thirteenth Annual Chanukah Arts Festival, sponsored by the Lubavitch Jewish Center of Alaska.Click here for moreJewish day camp offered As Ursula Chodosh helped a young girl color a "Happy Hanukkah" card, the 12-year-old from Edmond recalled a time when she was sitting in a similar spot doing much the same thing at Camp Gan Israel.
Click here for moreChanukah Shtetel Wonderland in Arizona
The enthusiasm of the children bounding from one end of the field to the other was undiminished by the nip in the air on the fourth night of Chanukah. They were attending the first annual Chanukah Shtetel Wonderland, an event co-sponsored by Yeshivah High School and Chabad of Tucson, and held at the Jewish Community Center’s soccer field.
A defiant Orthodox Jewish congregation on Dedham Street (SNS ED. in Boston, MA) may be headed for a showdown with the city after choosing to ignore a vote that would have effectively closed its synagogue.
Click here for moreChief rabbi praises revival of Jewish community in Budapest
Israel's chief Ashkenazi rabbi praised the revival of Hungary's Jewish community during Hanukkah celebrations in the capital Budapest on Monday.Click here for moreHundreds turn out for menorah lighting
Hundreds of people came to the Ellipse yesterday to take part in the American Friends of Lubavitch's 25th annual menorah-lighting ceremony, marking the festival of Hanukkah.Click here for moreRabbi tells history of dreidel
Rabbi Sholom Leverton of Chabad of the Windsors explains the significance of the dreidel. Click here for moreMenorah marks Hanukkah
As Fed Ex trucks rumbled past and holiday shoppers bustled by, area residents gathered in the pedestrian mall Tuesday night to light a menorah and celebrate Hanukkah.Click here for moreCounty Executive Spano, lights Westchester's largest Menorah and Proclaims Chanukah as 8 Days of Goodness and Kindness
During a visit to his office by the 4 Chabad Lubavitch Rabbis in Westchester County, NY,the County Executive, Mr. Andrew Spano, proclaimed the 8 days of Chanukah as 8 Days of Goodness and Kindness. Click here for moreThousands at Florida’s Chanukah Festival with Avraham Fried
They came from as far away as South Africa, Israel and England. They came from Miami Beach, Boca Raton and Kendall. They came from all over North America and the world. Thousands of Avraham Fried fans, local and those on winter/Chanukah vacation, converged on Young Circle Park and the Amphitheater in downtown Hollywood Florida, to the biggest and best of the 24 South Florida Chassidic Chanukah Festivals sponsored and organized by Chabad of South Broward, leaders in Jewish education, outreach and social services. The event is traditionally the largest annual Chanukah happening in Florida and perhaps North America and beyond. Click here for moreLego menorah brings delight to students
ORANGE, CT — When it was finished Monday night after hours of work — the nearly 11-foot high "World’s Largest Lego Menorah" stood like a fairy-tale skyscraper towering above the more than 250 students, teachers and parents at the New Haven Hebrew Day School.Click here for moreLighting up the holiday (in Champaign-Urbana, IL)
Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights, will be celebrated through mall events in Champaign-Urbana this year.
Click here for moreRevisiting miracle of light (in Santa Rosa, CA)
The second annual public Hanukkah celebration in Santa Rosa drew about 150 people Monday night to watch the lighting of a large menorah and hear a message of hope. Click here for moreUniting for Hanukkah in Gainesville, Florida
The flames of multicolored candles flickered in the cool air as adults and children raced a wintry breeze to keep their Hanukkah lights from burning out.Click here for moreMenorah at Tennessee Capitol believed to be a first A large menorah is on display on the grounds of the Tennessee state Capitol for what is believed to be the first time.<
Click here for moreGiant candles glow on the Green
MORRISTOWN, NJ - People of all faiths joined together Sunday to celebrate Hanukkah and kindle the lights of a giant menorah on the Morristown Green.Click here for moreCHILDREN, ADULTS USE 6,000 LEGOS BLOCKS TO BUILD MENORAH FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP, NJ -- Elimelech Bialo, 11, is no stranger to creating works of art out of blocks of Legos.
Click here for moreCongregation files lawsuit over Palm City land deal
December 21, 2003 - PALM CITY — Instead of a new temple, a Jewish congregation's two-year search for a new place of worship has led it to a Martin County courtroom, amid allegations of a forged signature and a broken contract.Click here for moreChocolate menorah truly takes the cake
Joey Bishop had to go on after the chocolate. That's a tough act to follow, even for the Rat Pack comedian who has worked everywhere from the Catskills to Vegas.Click here for moreChabad meets with Australian PM John Howard
In honor of Chanukah, the Prime Minister of Australia, the Hon. Mr John Howard MP was presented with a Chanukah Menorah by a delegation of Rabbis from the Chabad Lubavitch community in Sydney. The delegation was led by Rabbi Pinchus Feldman OAM Head of Chabad in New South Wales, who made the presentation in recognition of Australia’s moral stance and response to tyranny.Click here for moreCalifornia Gov. Schwarzenegger dances with the Shluchim at Menorah lighting ceremony at the State Capitol
A late Friday morning Menorah Lighting at California's State Capitol, sponsored by Chabad of Sacramento and Chabad of California and with the participation of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger was a big Kiddush Hashem, Kiddush Shem Lubavitch.
SAN DIEGO – The Chabad Hebrew Academy celebrated the first day of Hanukkah on Friday in a new synagogue – nearly two months after one of the most destructive wildfires in modern California history burned within 10 feet of its doorstep.
Click here for moreFor now, faith holds fast against world's rising waters
Almost every Friday afternoon for the last few months, I've been visited at the office by a pair of young Hasidic Jews -- high school students in big black hats and sporting the wispy beginnings of what I am certain will someday be fine beards. "Howdy boys,'' I say, welcoming them. They are exercising that peculiarity of the Lubavitch sect of Hasidism that, perhaps unique among religions, holds the door of faith open to those who care to walk in, without criticism or condemnation. They want to speak about the Torah and want me to daven, or put on prayer boxes. Click here for moreChanukah for the Troops
Miami (December 18, 2003) - The Aleph Institute, a Chabad-Lubavitch program that serves the spiritual needs of Jewish military personnel all over the world, announced that it distributed Chanukah kits to over 1,300 Jewish troops serving in the U.S. military. The kits included a Menorah, a Dreidel and sufficient candles for the entire eight-day Chanukah festival.Click here for moreRabbi drops lawsuit: Town allows menorah
HOLLISTON, MA -- Rabbi Mendy Kivman said yesterday he "peacefully" withdrew a federal lawsuit he had filed to allow him to erect a Jewish menorah on town property.
Click here for moreCHABAD CELEBRATES ITS BAR MITZVAH YEAR IN LAS VEGAS WITH A GALA BANQUET AND SILENT AUCTION
On Yud Tes Kislev 5764, December 14, 2003, at the luxurious Venetian Hotel, approximately 360 friends and supporters of Chabad joined together in the celebration of their Bar Mitzvah banquet. The evening demarcated the outstanding growth of the Chabad community in the previous 13 years. Chabad in Las Vegas, Nevada has flourished from a single-family unit to 4 major Chabad Centers with 7 full-time Rabbi’s serving nearly 80,000 Jewish residents in the Las Vegas Valley. Click here for moreCandles and human luminaries light up the darkness on Duke's West Campus
Candles and human luminaries light up the darkness on Duke's West Campus ushering in the Chanukah Celebrations, the Festival of Lights. Michal Harris, a Duke law student welcomed over 150 people from Duke, the Mayor's office and the surrounding community who gathered to witness the largest outdoor menorah lighting ceremony in the Triangle.
Click here for moreCounty money for menorah causes dispute
Leon County commissioners have called a special meeting to reconsider giving $7,000 to a local Jewish group toward construction of a 22-foot-high menorahClick here for moreMenorah sparks controversy
HOLLISTON, MASS. -- Rabbi Mendy Kivman believes a Jewish menorah on the Town Hall lawn would celebrate the holiday season as well as religious freedom, and he is ready to take legal action to prove it.
Click here for moreSIYUM HORAMBAM HO'OLOMI Grand Celebration of Torah and Unity This year's Siyum HoRaMBaM Ho'olomi, as the Rebbe has called it, was celebrated enthusiastically at Oholei Menachem in Crown Heights.
Click here for moreSynagogue marks 5th year
VALENCIA, CA -- Israeli-born Naomi Young has taught Hebrew in the Santa Clarita Valley for 20 years and in that time has watched the evolution of the local Jewish community.Click here for moreBlizzard Didn't Beat Them
With the unexpected snowstorm behind them, Long Islanders surfaced yesterday with shovels, snowblowers, and tales of triumph. From the milkman who managed to make all of his deliveries to the group of Orthodox Jewish youths who walked two miles in observance of the Sabbath, it was clear that a little blizzard couldn't break their stride.Click here for moreAnd you thought Kaballah was the only game in town - Chabad house popularity grows around its philosophy
Tufts students now have a new place to go to explore their Jewish identitiy. The Chabad House arrived on campus last fall and aims to help students learn about Judaism through education programs.
ASHLAND, OREGON — Judging this city as a spiritual capital on par with Jerusalem, Rabbi Avi Zwiebel moved here a few months ago to establish services in Orthodox Judaism and classes in the Kaballa, the ancient tradition of Jewish mysticism.
Click here for morePACKED HOUSE FOR NCFJE’S 63RD ANNUAL DINNER @ THE NEW YORK HILTON
On Sunday night, a crowd of 500 supporters of the National Committee for the Furtherance of Jewish Education (NCFJE) including many family and friends of the evenings distinguished honorees were on hand @ The New York Hilton hotel for the organizations 63rd annual dinner.Click here for moreUniversity Toledo, OH Hillel - L’Chaim ,To life!
Jewish Student life has been renewed at UT Hillel. Whether participating in “Life Cycle” celebrations, bringing celebration into the week with Shabbat dinners, or simply being the life of the party – students have a warm home away from home at Hillel-Chai Jewish Student Center.
Click here for moreJewish history exhibit isn't just for kids
BRIGHTON, NY - Children of all ages can get a hands-on view of Jewish history,
traditions and culture through exhibits and activities at the Great Jewish
Children's Expo this week.Click here for moreKeeping kosher becomes easier
On any Friday morning, you will probably find Rabbi Boruch Greenwald busy in the kitchen preparing kosher meals for the coming Sabbath.Click here for moreNCFJE's Annual Dinner Guest of Honor is "Aishes Chayil" Lucy Rosenzweig
This Sunday, at its 63rd Annual Awards Dinner, the National Committee for the Furtherance of Jewish Education pays tribute to a very special woman, Lucy (Leah) Rosenzweig. Hers is a story of a young woman who prevailed over enormous challenges and provided opportunities for hundreds of Jewish refugees to rebuild their lives. It’s also the story of a remarkable "Aishes Chayil" who emerged out of the ashes of Nazi-occupied Europe to build a Jewish life for herself and her descendants.Click here for moreTEFILLIN BROCHURE Click here for moreVictoria's chief Rabbi Chaim Gutnick dies AUSTRALIAN Jewry is this week mourning the death of one of its leading rabbis.
Rabbi Chaim Gutnick, the president of the Rabbinical Council of Victoria (RCV) and longstanding rabbi at Elwood Hebrew Congregation, died on Saturday evening at approximately 6.30pm from a stroke.
Click here for moreA Rabbi Who Loves G-D and the Minnesota Vikings
Rochester, MN -- You see him sometimes flying down Second Street, heading from Saint Marys to the Mayo Clinic with the tails of his long black coat flapping behind him, a calm smile on his bearded face, a lidded cup of Starbucks coffee in one hand, a black fedora on his head and a Torah under his arm.Click here for moreChabad Rabbis Help Celebrate Passing of Canada's Holocaust Memorial Bill
Less than a week after Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad received a standing
ovation from the leaders of fifty seven Muslim states for claiming that "Today the Jews
rule this world by proxy", Canada's Parliament passed a rare all party motion
commemorating the Holocaust. Click here for moreAdaptation helps diners enjoy Jewish holiday Portable sukkah at restaurants allows faithful
to commemorate exodus from ancient Egypt
Being a good businessman means catering to customers' needs, said Chao Lin, owner of Lin's Kosher Chinese Kitchen on South Main Street in Manville.
Click here for moreGroundbreaking is Sunday for Center for Jewish Life in Mequon
Mequon, WI - A Jewish congregation will honor its past and lay the foundation for the future when it breaks ground Sunday on a new $4.5 million facility.Click here for moreRejoicing of the Torah
Gainesville, Florida area Jews will honor the Torah, or the five books of Moses in the Old Testament, on the holiday of Simchat Torah, which begins today.Click here for moreSukkot holiday winds down There's a new rabbi in town. You may have seen him this week driving a car hauling a flatbed trailer carrying a little house with lattice walls and a roof of pine branches.
Click here for moreTop rabbi praises pro-Jewish Putin
A top leader of Russia's Jewish community has said President Vladimir Putin has sent out a clear signal against official anti-Semitism in a country with a long history of persecuting Jews. Click here for moreSHEMINI ATZERES & SIMCHAS TORAH 5764 ROUNDUP
CROWN HEIGHTS (SNS) – After mostly wonderful weather all Sukkos long the rain began to fall on Shemini Atzeres night. Depending on when people ate they either got a little less or a little more wet but they didn’t leave the Sukkah dry. Click here for moreHasidic congregation harvests some fun with fall festival of Sukkot
Max Cohen, 6, of Upper St. Clair, loves to sing and dance, but his favorite part of the Mommy and Me program at Chabad of the South Hills, PA is pumping his fist in the air during the songs.Click here for moreRabbi a hit with sukkah in a truck
Typically during the Jewish festival of Sukkot, observants eat their meals in a sukkah, a temporary building made especially for the holiday.Click here for moreSukkot Honors Unity: Jewish harvest festival remembers exodus from Egypt
As her three children darted around the Hazel Dell home of Schmulik and Tzivie Greenberg on Tuesday evening, Michelle Hersh of Camas talked about the celebration of Sukkot. Click here for moreMobilizing prayer
Students leaving Barnard College yesterday encountered an unusual welcome wagon: A rickety, wooden succah, or booth, perched atop an 18-foot flatbed truck manned by six black-hatted Hasidim from Crown Heights. Click here for moreLearning to make their moves early
Chess instructor Dmitry Frenklakh picks up a knight and holds it over the board, demonstrating basic strategy to a class of eight at the Shaloh House Jewish Russian Center and Synagogue in Brighton Center.
Click here for moreHe's the sound man for the high holy days
WARWICK, RI - The Shofar Man is hard at work, his power drill tearing into the ram's horn, and he's cracking jokes as he turns the bony sheath into a musical instrument. Click here for moreKAPOROS, EREV & YOM KIPPUR 5764 IN CROWN HEIGHTS
CROWN HEIGHTS (SNS) –Kaporos @ The National Committee for Furtherance of Jewish Education, the only Kaporos operation serving Crown Heights for the last 20+ years consecutively was once again Boruch Hashem very successful.
The proceeds from the 7500 chickens sold for Kaporos on Thursday and Erev Yom Kippur as well as the koshered chickens themselves will be going to Hadar Hatorah - Yeshivas Kol Yaakov Yehuda, Released Time and the many other projects that are under the auspices of the NCFJE.
Click here for moreRabbi ministers to new Russian immigrants' spiritual needs
When Yury Ronzhes arrived in the United States from his home in Krivoy Rog, Ukraine, he was proud of his Jewish heritage, but he knew nothing about the history, traditions or customs of his own religion.
Click here for moreShofar, so good ...
With a peanut-butter sandwich in one hand and a goat's horn in another, Ratner School middle-schooler Rebecca Gilman had a blast during a recent lunch hour.Click here for moreFaith grows in kids' hands - Shofar workshop inspires youth
This year, to get into the spirit of Rosh Hashanah, 12-year-olds Julie Leventhal and Eva Hoffman of Bayside did something they'd never done - they crafted their own shofar. Click here for moreThe roaring twenties / Traveling light
It's a familiar sight - young people fresh out of
the army leaving the country for an indeterminate
amount of time, in an attempt to find a different,
temporary, non-Israeli home. I've wondered for a
long time about what motivates this search, which
for some reason seems to occur only in the Far
East and South America. Why, two minutes after
being discharged, do we already hop onto another
enlistment track - to the travel agency, the
camping store, inoculations, and then off to the
airport - without stopping for a moment to think
whether we may really want something else.
Click here for moreSynagogue puts out welcome mat
The corner of Bathurst St. and Flamingo Rd. in Thornhill was an empty field five years ago when Mendel Kaplan went knocking on doors in new subdivisions, introducing himself as the neighbourhood Lubavitch rabbi. Click here for moreEnriching Lives For more than half a century, Chabad-Lubavitch rabbinical students have gone on the road to teach people about Judaism. 'That's the best preparation I could have for Rosh Hashanah,' one says.
For Mordechai Grossbaum of Stony Brook, a chance meeting this past summer on the streets of Novgorod, a city in the Ukraine, illustrates the joys of being a Jewish Peace Corpsvolunteer.
Click here for moreChabad Lubavitchers open Hanover center
The Chabad Lubavitch Organization -- a Hassidic Jewish group -- recently opened a new Jewish center in Hanover as part of its founder's vision to "bring Judaism to as many Jews as possible."Click here for moreMore young Jews embracing faith
Sitting under neon lights, grey-haired couples and married women wearing bouffant wigs are listening intently to Rabbi Moishe New. They are the minority. Many trendy Louis Vuitton-purse-carrying-girls and Von Dutch trucker-cap-wearing boys have also come to hear the rabbi speak.Click here for moreArea Jews prepare for Rosh Hashanah
All over the world, Jews are stocking up on candy, pastries and red apples dipped in honey, in anticipation of Rosh Hashanah -- the Jewish new year -- which begins tonight at sundown.
DURHAM, NC -- Zach Balleisen leaned over the table, floppy hat over his eyes, sanding the rough ridges of a ram's horn into smooth curves to make a shofar.
Although it may appear restrictive, Southern Nevadans say following Orthodox Judaism enriching
When people learn that Hal Goldblatt follows the laws of Orthodox Judaism, their thoughts seldom take an immediate turn to Orthodox Judaism's rich traditions and practices.
Levi Matusof spent a part of this summer in the Bourgogne region of France, known for its farms and vineyards.
Click here for moreMazel Tov!
A traditional Hasidic wedding, uncommon in Bay Area, ushers out the old year and celebrates a new beginning
When Rabbi Yosef Levin was married in New York, he had a traditional Hasidic wedding. Just like his father and his father before him.
Click here for moreWaiting for the Messiah of Eastern Parkway
The synagogue in the basement of the Lubavitch headquarters at 770 Eastern Parkway in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, is the closest thing to holy ground for the Hasidic movement, though with its peeling paint, dirty linoleum floors, wooden benches and unidentifiable odor, it feels more like a junior-high-school cafeteria than your average Jewish sanctuary. But at a little before 10 p.m. on a recent Friday night, the place is thick with spirituality. Small clusters of bearded men bob furiously in prayer, while a smattering of women watch from behind the plexiglass in the balcony above. Click here for moreJewish Congregation Forms in Tysons - Chabad at Tysons aims to reach out to the unaffiliated
As Armin Khanzadeh grew older, he felt that the search for life's meaning grew more urgent. Describing his religious upbringing as "jumbled," the Reston resident hadn't gone to Jewish prayer services regularly. He held agnostic beliefs at one point, and taught in a Jewish Reform school at another point in life.Click here for moreChabad seeks to rent worship space
The Lubavitch Chabad of Northbrook,IL, forbidden last fall to worship in offices it had rented in the Sky Harbor business park, has found a new place to pray - in the Center on Deafness building at 3444 Dundee Road. Click here for moreThe Best Kept Secret in Bel-Air
We have heard great things about Rabbi Chaim Mentz and his friendly one on one warm approach. Many people in the Bel-Air and across adjacent Westside communities attend his synagogue and also send their children to him based upon his down-to-earth nurturing approach in teaching and guiding people towards Judiasm or just spirituality. So, this month, I decided to interview him as an integral member of the Bel-Air landscape.Click here for moreChief rabbi's Russia, Ukraine visit funded by businessman
Russian-Israeli businessman Lev Leviev hosted Chief
Ashkenazi Rabbi Yona Metzger last week on a visit
to Russia and the Ukraine. During the four-day
visit, Metzger met with senior politicians,
including Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma, and
other public figures, such as the chief mufti of
Russia. Leviev - who, in addition to running a
globe-spanning diamond business, also serves as
president of the Association of Jewish Communities
in Russia - paid for the trip. Click here for moreThe Tenant vs. the Rabbi
At a graceful town house on East 38th Street, landlord and tenant are locked in a fight as familiar to New York as yellow cabs and knishes. But this struggle has some unusual twists. Click here for moreFort Worth Texas Chabad revitalized
North Texans in the western sector of the Metroplex have another place to learn and study with the official opening of Chabad of Fort Worth and Tarrant County led by Rabbi Dov and Rebbetzin Chana Tovah Mandel. Click here for moreChabad takes solidarity mission to Israel
When a bus near Jerusalem was blown up by a suicide bomber last week, killing 20 passengers and injuring more than 100, Rabbi Shneur Zalman Wolowik of the Chabad Center of the Five Towns was on a solidarity mission in Tel Aviv.
Click here for moreBat mitzvah pioneer ready to raise voice -Highland Park girl to read `maamar'
At her bat mitzvah ceremony this Sunday (SNS ED. It was last Sunday 3 Elul), 12-year-old Shayna Otis will stand before the congregation and recite--from memory--a 10-minute passage about the importance of performing a "mitzvah," or good deed, and what it means to a Jew's efforts to connect to G-d.Click here for moreCHABAD ZOOMS INTO THE 21ST CENTURY WITH CREATIVE PROGRAMS FOR CHILDREN AND WOMEN
“Chabad has always been at the forefront of change,” says Rabbi Raphael Tennenhaus, dean of the Broward C.H.A.I. Center and senior rabbi of Congregation Levi Yitzchok-Lubavitch on Hallandale Beach Boulevard. “Our philosophy is to note those changes and apply them to making the world a better place.” He cites the countless community-based programs in which Chabad Lubavitch Centers worldwide participate, such as Chabad’s Project P.R.I.D.E. in Broward County that works with local government in targeting areas that need drug prevention education, and introduces programs that build self-esteem for those at risk.
Click here for moreCROWN HEIGHTS HOTEL TO OPEN IN TIME FOR ROSH HASHANAH Click here for morePreserving a symbol
After unrolling parchment the size of his palm, Rabbi Hillel Baron used a magnifying glass to read over the ornate Hebrew lettering, checking for fading, smudging, misshapen letters and missing words.Click here for moreCracked De Beers
Lev Leviev is taking on the most successful cartel in the world.
The police are waiting for Lev Leviev when his gulfstream 2000 jet lands in Kiev after a three-hour flight from Tel Aviv. This is no criminal extradition, but a welcoming committee, including a caravan of limousines and Mercedes-Benzes, each with two armed bodyguards. The entourage speeds along Ukraine's pockmarked highways, through traffic lights, past lonely farms and dusty roads to the village of Zhitomir.
The 22-year-old Morristown, N.J. rabbinical seminary students with the
Chabad-Lubavitch movement will spend the next nine days meeting with mid
Michigan Jewish families and individuals to encourage them to keep the
faith.
This past Wednesday afternoon, July 9th, I attended a funeral of three fellow community members: A mother of seven young children, and her parents, who were killed a day earlier in a car accident in the Catskill Mountains of New York. Some 1500 members of the Crown Heights Jewish community of Brooklyn came to bid farewell to Yitzchak Scheinfeld, 65; his wife, Rose, 62, and their daughter, Bella Raksin, 42.
The pain was raw. People were just standing and sobbing, in utter disbelief how in a single instance an entire family can be turned upside-down. Some tragedies leave you with a silent tongue, a lump in your throat and a stab in your heart. Even tears could not capture the intensity of the grief and shock.
Returning home from the funeral, gazing at the stunned and horrified faces of friends and community members, my mind flashed back to a Thursday evening, fifteen years ago, when I heard my Rebbe address the issue of death and pain. Incidentally, his talk that evening was based on this week's Torah portion, Chukas.
Click here for moreCrash kills 3 in mountains An elderly Crown Heights couple and their daughter - a mother of seven - were mourned yesterday, one day after their lives abruptly ended in a car crash upstate.Isaac Scheinfeld, 65; his wife, Rose, 62, and their daughter, Bella Raksin, 42, were driving from upstate Monticello to a relative's home in nearby White Lake about noon Tuesday when the deadly accident occurred.
Click here for moreRabbi’s arms open wider with campus
Even the real-life experiences of humble Rabbi Yonah Fradkin register like a way-clearing parable.
Consider this: For more than a quarter century, this man of G-D and great faith has, in countless ways, helped thousands of people throughout the community.
Click here for moreA True Chossid Rabbi Bentzion Shemtov together with his wife Esther Golda tirelessly laid the foundations for Lubavitch in Great Britain. Throughout his life Rabbi Shemtov was a devoted Chossid, committed to carrying out the Rebbe’s instruction to the smallest detail. He passed away on Tamuz 5, 5735 / 14 June 1975. The following is a brief account of his life and some of the lessons he shared with us.
Bentzion was born in Druye, Byelorussia in 1901 to Kasriel and Bassie Shemtov. They were an industrious couple with a successful business in the lumber industry.
Click here for moreYou Don't Have to Be Jewish to Eat Kosher Standing six feet tall, with a reddish-brown beard, Yakov M. Yarmove cuts an impressive figure as he whizzes through the aisles of Albertsons grocery stores.
Click here for moreSIE SPECIAL SALE Click here for moreChabad at Yitzhar
Yitzhar is a quiet town of about eighty families, living in harmony, many of whom are Chabad. The town itself consists of a cluster of homes and caravans on a beautiful hilltop in the Shmoron with warm sun, refreshing breezes and incredible views. It is located in the area of Shechem, and is surrounded, not by a security fence, but by a number of outposts. The outposts are constructed with various levels of permanency: a tent, caravans, temporary structures and well constructed, albeit simple, homes.Click here for moreJune 29 groundbreaking set for new Solon Chabad
The Chabad Jewish Center of Solon is ready to party.
On June 29, the 500-family congregation expects a celebratory atmosphere for a groundbreaking at the site of their new facility on Harper Road in Solon. The 3-acre plot will hold a 19,000-square-foot synagogue, which will house a sanctuary, pre-school and Hebrew school classrooms, and offices.
Click here for moreLubavitcher Yeshiva Academy Teachers win the Joseph Zola Holocaust Educator Award
Lubavitcher Yeshiva Academy (LYA) in Longmeadow, MA is proud to announce that two of its teachers, Rochel Leah Kosofsky and Jean Therrien, have been awarded the 2003 Joseph Zola Holocaust Educator Award presented by the Maurice Greenberg Center for Judaic Studies of the University of Hartford. Kosofsky and Therrien received this recognition for their efforts in furthering tolerance and understanding through the development of “Holocaust in the Context of 20th Century History”. Click here for moreYeshiva Academy paying homage to 60-year past – Rabbi Fogelman to receive special honors
WORCESTER, MA - Founded 60 years ago by the Rabbi Joseph Isaac Schneerson, partly to address the decline of Judaism in Worcester, the Yeshiva Academy of Central Massachusetts has been a mainstay in Jewish life in Worcester ever since.Click here for moreSHAVUOS 5763 IN CROWN HEIGHTS
CROWN HEIGHTS, NY (SNS) - Hundreds of guests from around the world and many Rabbonim including Rabbis’ Ashkenazi, Yeruslavski, Dubrowski, Lipsker & Gluckowsky from Israel and Kantor from Thailand came to celebrate Shavuos in Crown Heights.
Click here for moreRemodeling, Answering to a Higher Authority
HOW Michael Cetera, an architect of Italian descent and Catholic upbringing, came to be the go-to guy for Lubavitchers in Crown Heights who want to build additions to their homes is a long story. Here is the short version:Click here for moreHollywood synagogue loses bid to remain in neighborhood
HOLLYWOOD -- The City Commission rejected an orthodox Jewish group's bid to keep holding services in two Hollywood Hills homes, giving neighbors a rousing victory and setting the stage for an appeal that will pit religious freedom against the city's right toClick here for moreTzeddakah campaign aids those in need WEST BOYNTON, FL • A rainbow-colored container sits with prominence on Jack Katz's kitchen table.
There, it won't be forgotten.
Every morning Katz and wife Christel each drop a quarter in its mouth-like slot. It's as routine as their morning pot of coffee and the hug they share as they wake.
Click here for moreDeep Thoughts The ancient Jewish teachings of Kabbalah have attracted knowledge-seekers for centuries. Today, the likes of Madonna and Elton John add a new-agey celebrity dimension. Kabbalah is also drawing Montrealers in a serious search for what it all meansClick here for moreIn Twist, Defendant Admits to Stabbing in '91 Racial Unrest Through almost 12 years and two previous trials, lawyers for Lemrick Nelson Jr. denied that he was involved in the killing of an Orthodox Jew named Yankel Rosenbaum during the racial unrest in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, in 1991.
Click here for moreNY’S GOVERNOR, ASSEMBLY AND SENATE HONOR THE REBBE
Although the mood in Albany is not very cheerful everyone came with a smile. “Now we are not Republicans or Democrats, now we all came to celebrate the Rebbe’s birthday” said New York State Governor George Pataki as he came to personally participate in the celebration for the Rebbe’s birthday.Click here for moreTanks Roll Down Eastern Parkway
Sometimes a religious road trip is better measured in mitzvahs instead of mileage - especially when the ecclesiastical excursion involves a dozen Lubavitcher Jews in a mobile home that trundles along at only eight miles to the gallon, compared to the full 613 mitzvahs, or good deeds, enshrined in their holy Torah bible.Click here for moreFIRST DAYS PESACH 5763 IN CROWN HEIGHTS
CROWN HEIGHTS, NY (SNS) -- Hundreds of guests from around the world spent the first days of Pesach & Shabbos Chol Hamoed with family & friends in Crown Heights.
Click here for moreStudents respond to seder
LONGMEADOW, MA - It's a holiday that emphasizes some very adult-sounding concepts - slavery, deliverance, freedom - but for educators at the Lubavitcher Yeshiva Academy, Passover begins with the children. Click here for moreEugene open to new approach
Rabbi Asi Spiegel says he first heard of Eugene when he attended a Rainbow Family gathering of vagabond travelers in Central Oregon's Ochoco National Forest in the mid-1990s.Click here for more'The Rebbe's Army': G-d's Salesmen Several chapters into ''The Rebbe's Army,'' Sue Fishkoff describes a group of Hasidic teenagers making their weekly search for Jewish passers-by, in this case in a Portland, Ore., mall favored by purple-haired, body-pierced skate punks. One of them, with a backward baseball cap atop his head, spots the yeshiva students in their black coats and fedoras and asks, ''Hey, you guys Mormon?''
Click here for moreHarvard Chabad Dedicates New Home
Harvard Chabad, an organization coordinating a broad outreach to the University’s Jewish community, celebrated its new $1.5 million Banks Street campus center yesterday, with speeches from students, rabbis and Frankfurter Professor of Law Alan M. Dershowitz. Click here for morePURIM IN OKLAHOMA CITY
As the more than 150 party goers left the Coles Gardens, many asked when Chabad is hosting the next party. Purim in the Shtetl is now the talk of town.Click here for moreGroup begins Torah's journey
NORTH BRUNSWICK, NJ - With a few strokes of a quill, Dennis Jakubovitz helped further the progress of a new Jewish community.
Click here for moreKosher food following flourishes
A Jewish organization and a Giant supermarket in Reisterstown are co-sponsoring a "Kosher Week" to promote kosher foods and products.Click here for moreIn Israel, Faith Wields Divine Shield for Some
Kfar Chabad, Israel - Rabbi Tuvia Bolton's home in a lush citron grove here doesn't have a sealed room, and though his family has gas masks stowed somewhere, they haven't taken them out or replaced them with new ones like most Israelis.
Click here for moreConstruction begins @ Chabad of SW Broward, FL
COOPER CITY -- The Nur Ul Islam Islamic Center is getting a new neighbor -- an ultra-Orthodox Jewish temple.Click here for moreRabbi seeks to bring youth program to Wilkes-Barre
WILKES-BARRE - A program that helps teenage boys struggling with traditional Jewish education wants to make a home in a downtown building.Click here for moreFriendship Circle's 1st banquet pays tribute to volunteers
It was not the usual nonprofit, black-tie event. The honorees were 300 local teens who regularly volunteer for the Friendship Circle, a project of the Rabbinical College of America, helping children with special needs and their families. Six hundred fifty guests filled the atrium at the Alex Aidekman Family Jewish Community Campus in Whippany for the organization’s inaugural banquet on Saturday evening, March 1. The festivities featured a decided tilt toward the teens, in addition to the elaborate buffet, selections of hot dogs, hamburgers, French fries, and colored lights, decorated the room.
Click here for moreSomething for all at Chabad site
Sometimes a Jewish organization puts something together that¡¦s right on the money! The navigation system makes sense, the content is deep and useful, and it is plain fun to browse. Chabad of Fox Chapel, PA is such a site.
Jewish outreach movement spreads throughout Ventura County
The rabbi wears a black fedora, covering his head to show he believes something exists "above us."
A wreath of unruly, untrimmed brown hair frames his jaw in a growth that symbolizes energy from the soul. The tassels that dangle from the vest under his shirt are said to represent the 613 Hebrew commandments in the Torah.
The lights were dimmed in the Grand Ballroom at the Brooklyn Marriott, but two things were still visible--a sea of black coats and hats crowded around more than a hundred linen-bedecked tables, and a makeshift mechitza separating dozens of elegantly dressed women from their husbands. It was the gala Sunday night banquet of the International Conference of Chabad-Lubavitch Shlichim, or "emissaries," and more than 1,300 Lubavitcher rabbis had flown in from their postings around the world for a weekend of study, networking, and morale-boosting.
EAST WINDSOR — One hundred sixty members of the Jewish community were on hand at the Ramada Inn on Sunday to witness the beginning of a yearlong process of handwriting the Torah for Chabad of the Windsors.
Click here for morePacked house at Ramon memorial ceremony
More than 200 people filled an auditorium in Jerusalem's Inbal Hotel Tuesday night as part of a shloshim memorial ceremony for Israeli astronaut
Col. Ilan Ramon. Click here for moreSMOKE & WATER DAMAGE @ CHABAD OF BETHESDA, MD
Officials at a small Bethesda shul this week were assessing the smoke and water damage to the synagogue -- the result of a fire last week in a deli just above them. Click here for moreAn Extraordinary Evening at Chabad of Greater Boynton, FL
On rare occasions you experience a feeling that is just beyond words. In fact, if you attempt to capture the depths of this emotion in words, it simply sounds hollow and its potency diluted.Click here for moreAM YISROEL CHAI; ERETZ YISROEL ‘HIGH’
“We did not feel fear the entire trip. All of us who went on the trip are still on a high, and those who were afraid to come are now regretting that they stayed home,” reports Rabbi Baumgarten of the Hamptons, New York.
Click here for moreChief Rabbi of Morocco visits the Ohel
On Tuesday, Rabbi Aaron Monsenego, Chief Rabbi of Morocco, who is in New York for a family wedding spent the entire day visiting Crown Heights.
ON VALENTINE'S DAY, let me tell you the most romantic love story I know. It's about a couple named Yehuda and Miriam Ferris.
Click here for moreGrand Chanukas Habayis in Tzfas
Excitement and joy filled the hearts of many as preparations for a Chanukas Habayis celebration took place in Tzfas, Israel. This was no ordinary event. The Grand Inauguration of Yeshivas Tzeirei Hashluchim’s new location in Tzfas scheduled to open its doors on Sunday, Purim Katan when friends and family would come from all over Israel to celebrate in unison.
Click here for moreMAYANOT, A 5-STAR YESHIVA FOR BAALEI TESHUVA
There are many Lubavitcher Yeshivos in the world for Baalei Teshuva. However, there’s only one that’s located in the heart of the Geula neighborhood in Jerusalem and that’s the MAYANOT Yeshiva and Institute of Jewish studies.
Click here for moreTZIVOS HASHEM REPRESENTS JEWISH IDENTITY @ THE WORLD SCOUT JAMBOREE IN THAILAND The 14 year old Jewish boy from New Zealand came to the World Scout Jamboree without proper arrangements for Kosher food. Uncompromising in his convictions, he survived by eating coconuts for the first few days. When he spotted the Tzivos Hashem contingent, he came to life. He spent time with them, ate with them and of course, joined in for Shabbos.
Click here for moreMY VISIT WITH VICTIMS OF TERROR
Earlier this week I got a personal and upfront look at what Tzeirei Chabad is doing for victims of terror and their families in Israel.
Although it is impossible for a Chosid to call one Farbrengen more important than another, there are certain Farbrengens when it is evident that the Rebbe is discussing monumental events on a global level.
Click here for moreRamon's remains to arrive Monday CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida - The remains of Col. Ilan Ramon will leave the United States for Israel today and arrive tomorrow.
Click here for moreAM YISRAEL CHAI A number of months ago, I wrote an article specifying what the Lubavitcher Rebbe instructed Jews to do to help our brethren in Israel in times of peril. One of the things the Rebbe stressed was performing the Mitzvah of Tefillin, citing the scriptural passage (Duet. 28:10) “Then all the peoples of the earth will see that the name of G-d is proclaimed over you and they will fear you.”
Click here for moreFaithful Fans Rabbis and sports are odd mix, but devotion carries over to games they love
LAS VEGAS -- Flickering flames cut through dark thoughts of the struggle ahead. The sweet smell of spices mix with the acrid smell of sweat. Prayers drown out trash talk.
Click here for moreChabad of West Hempstead guides girls toward adulthood
Karla Solomon, a member of "The Club," stands poised and confident and in her best French accent reads her ideas to her audience. Everyone laughs and enjoys and Karla, at the end of the presentation, is flushed with pride from the many compliments she has received. The group leader praises Karla for her efforts as the next girl stands up to share her thoughts.
Click here for moreChabad of Tidewater - Shabbaton to CH
Chabad of Tidewater's first ever Crown Heights
Shabbaton was this past Shabbos. Attended by more than
20 people, the participants enjoyed themselves from
beginning to end! The wonderful trip started off in
front of the Chabad House where the bus departed from.
On the bus ride, the passengers enjoyed two wonderful
video presentations, Embers, and Cornerstones. Our
first stop was J2 pizza in Borough Park where everyone
including the bus driver enjoyed the delicious pizza.
We then proceeded to Crown Heights where everyone
checked in to the homes of the hosts they were staying
with. Click here for moreLocal rabbi feels loss of Jewish crewmember
ORMOND BEACH, FL -- When Rabbi Pinchas Ezagui met Israel's first astronaut, he gave him a special present to carry into space.
The present -- a blessed dollar bill -- was supposed to bring Ilan Ramon safety. But it didn't.
Click here for moreOrthodox Jews Hold Mass Bar Mitzvah in Russia
MOSCOW (RNS) In what was billed as the first event of its kind in
Russia, 52 boys in black bowties took part in a mass bar mitzvah celebration
Sunday (Jan. 12) as an ultra-Orthodox group embarked on a yearlong program
offering free group bar and bat mitzvahs.
Click here for moreRebbe’s dollars lead to arrest of thief
Drawing close to its eighth anniversary, the Broughton Park Citizens’ Patrol (BPCP) Shomrim team of Salford, Manchester has in recent weeks been engaged in one of its most fierce operations.
Click here for moreCGI TZEIREI HASHLUCHIM FINAL ROUNDUP
Tuesday
Finally! A normal day in camp, well, almost. The day started with a late wake up being that we went to sleep very late after the grand trip (especially bunk Kuf Gimmel who stayed up extra late)! After Shachris we had a delicious breakfast of French toast and scrambled eggs. Everything was fine until we had a very special night activity of charades and staff Litzanus!<
Click here for moreChabad Rushes to Aid Survivors, Families of Victims, From Tel Aviv Twin Bombing
Immediately after Sunday night’s double suicide bombing in Tel Aviv which left 23 dead and more than 100 wounded, Tzeirei Chabad's Program for Terror Victims and Their Families mobilized its resources.
Click here for moreKOSHER FARMING
They say you are what you eat. "They" in this case being Jewish people who try to keep strictly Kosher. Click here for moreCamp Gan Yisroel - Tzeirei Hashluchim 5763 DAY #1
On Monday, the dedicated staff of CGI were seen running from terminal to terminal and from gate to gate in Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix, Arizona. Picking up the children arriving from every corner of the world. Even with all the delays the busses left a record one hour and fifteen minutes late. Meanwhile in camp the staff WERE welcoming all the “Drive-Ins” from Southern California and the other surrounding areas. As the buses left, two staff stayed behind to welcome all the International campers from South Africa, Australia, Sweden and Argentina. Click here for moreTzivos Hashem Holds 22nd Annual Dinner
At the Tzivos Hashem Banquet on December 8th the attendees were buzzing from the moment the reception doors opened in Manhattan’s glitzy Grand Hyatt ballroom. Only an organization as vast and creative as Tzivos Hashem could bring together a technology wizard, a toy magnate, and ten Jewish teenagers from the former Soviet Union to celebrate the importance of reaching out to Jewish children around the world.Click here for moreLIGHTING UP CENTRAL AFRICA
In such places like Kampala and Libreville, the notion of a Jewish holiday is barely known. These small but significant Jewish communities experience the true definition of Jewish isolation. This year Chabad of Central Africa, under the directorship of Rabbi Shlomo Bentolila, the shliach in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, organized Chanukah activities in ten African countries. The program, sponsored by the United Jewish Communities of Central Africa, sent four pairs of yeshiva students and one couple to ten African countries - Congo Republic (Pointe Noire), Ethiopia (addis Ababa), Gabon (Libreville), Ghana (Accra), Kenya (Nairobi), Namibia (Windhoek), Nigeria (Abuja and Lagos), Rwanda (Kigali), Uganda (Kampala), and Zamibia (Lusaka). Click here for moreEmbarrassed students return stolen menorah
A nine-foot menorah purloined from a Penn State University sidewalk is home safe, little worse for wear.
And a pair of contrite thieves yesterday turned themselves in, then -- in sort of a personal day of atonement -- apologized last night to leaders of the Jewish student group that owns the menorah.
Click here for moreTHE WORLD'S LARGEST MENORAH
What do you do when Shabbos starts at 4:12 p.m., the Menorah
at Fifth Avenue, corner 59th Street, in Manhattan, can't be lit
before 3:39 p.m., and you've got to get from there back to Brooklyn
in time for Shabbos?
(The following was translated from Rabbi Shmuel M. Butman's opening words)
Welcome to the "Worldwide Completion of Rambam Study" - as the
Rebbe termed it. Welcome to the "celebration of concluding the
Torah," the completion of the 20th cycle of study.
But for those who attended the Hanukkah celebration at Amwell Mall on Sunday, the holiday spirit was much the same.
Click here for moreFair Lawn declines to vote on menorah FAIR LAWN, NJ - S. Claus made an appearance at the annual lighting and caroling ceremony in front of Borough Hall on Tuesday evening, before council members retired into the building and debated the merits of adding a menorah to the town's holiday display.
Click here for moreMenorah erected on downtown square
CINCINNATI (AP) -- An 18-foot-tall menorah and a Hanukkah greeting sign have been placed on Fountain Square, a downtown focal point where the city had tried to prohibit holiday displays by private groups. Click here for moreMenorah-lighting ceremony spreads spirit of Hanukkah Rabbi Daniel Moscowitz, who helped organize Sunday's lighting of the menorah in Daley Plaza, is always looking for ways to focus attention on Hanukkah and to encourage the spirit of kindness.
Click here for moreRudolphs give thanks for son’s life, donate new Torah
When Mordechai Rudolph’s car careened off the Pennsylvania Turnpike and flipped over, parents Bill and Lieba Rudolph were only thinking about him.
Click here for moreJewish co-op plans Sunderland farm
November 30, 2002 -- SUNDERLAND - When Rabbi Chaim Adelman looks at the land tucked behind the Pioneer Auction House, just past the Sunderland town line on Route 116, he sees more than two empty fish troughs and a fairly new barn.Click here for moreSome Jews objecting to menorah ceremony When a 6-foot electric menorah is lit on Westford Common tomorrow afternoon, it will be with the blessing of the town's Board of Selectmen and the community's Christian clergy. It's some of the town's Jewish residents and at least one area rabbi who would like to see the public ceremony canceled.
Click here for moreHanukkah Olive Oil Bottled in Manhattan
This year, more than 2000 Manhattan children will witness the miracle of Chanukah for themselves.Click here for moreMenorah Evokes Parallels in History Moments before the ceremonial lighting of the National Menorah, the collective attention of hundreds gathered on the Ellipse south of the White House yesterday veered upward from the U.S. Army Band performing on stage to the skies. President Bush's helicopter was preparing to land on the nearby South Lawn.
Click here for moreJews thankful for religious freedom
Jews should be proud of America, where the freedom to worship is better than at times in the past, a rabbi told the congregation of Chabad Lubavitch on the third night of Hanukkah.Click here for moreLocal Jews add their light to sum of lights For one memorable holiday moment last night, the corner of Greene and Duval streets was transformed into a tribute to Chanukah.
Rabbi Yaakov Zucker of Chabad Jewish Center lit the second candle on a giant electric menorah hung on a pillar above a Duval clothing shop, and the 10th annual ceremonial lighting of Key West's public menorah -- the only ceremony of its kind in the Keys -- was underway.
Click here for moreChanukah, White House fill Greenbergs' season
Esty Greenberg has one small problem as Chanukah approaches. She can't find time to go shopping -- for an outfit to wear to meet the president of the United States.
Click here for moreBRUSSELS RABBIS AT HEART OF EU
A YOUNG Lubavitch-trained rabbi has set up a Jewish learning centre at the heart of European Union power — while stressing that pro-Israeli lobbying or other political issues are not on his agenda. Click here for moreItzhak Perlman Concert a Sold Out Success
On November 20, the sweet sounds of Itzhak Perlman’s violin filled the Shubert Performing Arts Center in downtown New Haven, CT to a sold-out audience of 1700 k"ah.Click here for moreMenorah lighting opens eight days of Hanukkah As the sun slips below the horizon Friday, observant Jews will light the first of eight candles on their menorahs.
Click here for moreOFFICIALS VOW NO REPEAT OF MENORAH VANDALISM
A giant menorah that was repeatedly vandalized last year, its Star of David splintered beyond recognition, will be replaced this year on Lincoln Road with an even larger symbol of Hanukkah.Click here for moreMall sets Menorah lighting
A tree may grow in Brooklyn, N.Y., but some are hoping it is a 6-foot-tall Menorah that will symbolize the holiday season this year in Bakersfield. Click here for more100 Sifrei Tanya Printed + 19 Kislev Farbrengen @ Kikar HaGiborim Tes Kislev was Wednesday night. A group of Chassidim traveled from Rehovot to Chevron to celebrate the birthday and yartzeit of the Mittler Rebbe near the resting place of Rebbetizin Menucha Rochel, the Mittler Rebbe's legendary daughter.
Click here for moreHanukkah to shed light on Morris
The Festival of Lights begins Friday at sundown and a host of public menorah lightings are scheduled to celebrate Hanuk-kah.
"It is no mere coincidence that Hanukkah starts during Thanksgiving weekend this year," said Rabbi Mordechai Baumgarten, program director at the Chabad Center of Northwest New Jersey.
Click here for moreOVER 400 @ CHABAD OF SOUTHERN NEVADA GALA BANQUET On Sunday, November 17th, over 400 guests were on hand as Chabad of Southern Nevada, Summerlin and Green Valley celebrated their "Seeds of Growth" Banquet honoring Mr. Bob Arum, a world-renowned boxing promoter. The banquet took place at the magnificent Venetian Hotel, which is owned by Dr. Miriam and Mr. Sheldon G. Adelson, well-known philanthropists and supporters of Chabad.
Click here for moreChabad’s Program for Victims of Terror and their Families
Holidays are the hardest time for families suffering the loss or severe injury of a loved one. The empty chair at the table, the missing voice during singing, the memories of holidays past when the family was whole and together - all cast a pall of sadness and grief on a terror victim’s family at a time when everyone around them is celebrating in joy.
Click here for moreHADASSAH APOLOGIZES TO CHABAD-LUBAVITCH
The cover of the November issue of Hadassah magazine blared "IS CHABAD JEWISH?". Inside the magazine there was an article that cited the calumnies propagated in an infamous book written by David Berger who for many years has been engaged in a pathological pursuit to discredit the worldwide movement of Chabad. Berger's falsehoods and distortions have already been exposed and refuted by reputable scholars in many publications, but for some reason or another, the author of said article provided him with another platform.
FREE stands for Friends of Refugees of Eastern Europe, and the center at 7685 Reading Road in Roselawn is at the heart of Cincinnati's growing community of Russian and Ukrainian immigrants, who began to arrive in the mid-1980s, with a surge coming after the collapse of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s.
Click here for moreBaltika Has a Kosher Plan on Tap
Baltika fans in the Holy Land could soon be quaffing kashrut-compliant beer as Russia's No. 1 brewer prepares to go kosher.
Rabbi Berl Lazar, one of Russia's two chief rabbis, was given a personal, two-hour tour of Baltika's sprawling St. Petersburg plant by company president Taimuraz Bolloyev two weeks ago, and they discussed the certification of Baltika's many labels.
The following is a transcript
of the Keynote Address delivered by Rabbi Yossy Goldman – Johannesburg South
Africa @ the Kinus Hashluchim Banquet 5763/2002
101 Years – A Quantum Leap
Click here for moreOVER 2000 @ KINNUS HASHLUCHIM GALA BANQUET
CROWN HEIGHTS (SNS) - The International Kinnus HaShluchim lasts for only 5 days, but it inspires and gives the Shluchim the “Koichos” to fulfill their Shlichus during the 360 days that follow. This year the Kinnus ran from October 30th – November 4th and over 1500 Shluchim, the largest gathering ever, came from the four corners of the world to participate.
Click here for moreFor Orthodox Jews, an Experiment in Farming and Faith
SUNDERLAND, Mass. - The newest farmers in this quiet valley
will not milk their cows on Saturdays. Every seventh year,
they will let their land lie fallow. Following biblical
injunctions, they will not pick fruit from their orchards
for the first three years, or plant certain vegetables next
to certain fruits.Click here for moreTZIVOS HASHEM UNITES THOUSANDS OF CHILDREN WORLDWIDE WITH TEHILLIM
This Shabbos Mevorchim will be the kickoff of a brand new Tzivos Hashem project. It is called WWTC; The World Wide Tehillim Club.
Click here for moreBRIS AVROHOM CELEBRATES 23 YEARS OF SUCCESS At 5:00 this past Sunday evening, the 21st of Cheshvan, over 300 guests gathered @ the Sheraton Hotel of Newark, NJ to celebrate Bris Avrohom’s
23rd Anniversary Dinner.
As is known, the Mitteler Rebbe (Rabbi DovBer), together with the Alter Rebbe, came twice to his granddaughter Rebbitzin Rivkah in a dream and informed her that she would be blessed with a son. At that time the Mitteler Rebbe also requested that the child be named after him.
Click here for moreTHE REBBE'S CHUMASH ARRIVES!
The news is traveling fast to every corner of the globe of a new sefer which every Lubavitcher Chosid will be proud to own.
For many years, Shluchim and Mechanchim around the world have been thirsting for a Chumash containing insights from the Rebbe's sichos - and now its finally here.
Each letter must be painstakingly written by a single scribe, and in the proper in order - except for the last few words. It is a meticulous job requiring about a year of work. It is an art that intrigued Rabbi Moshe Liberow by the time he was 12.
Click here for moreSenator Lieberman Celebrates Simchas Torah with Chabad
The Shul, in Bal Harbour, FL had a special guest this Simchas Torah: Senator Joe Lieberman, Connecticut democrat and the first Jewish-American to be nominated for Vice President.Click here for moreSIMCHAS BEIS HASHOAYVA IN NATICK, MA
This year, for the first time, S.B.H. farbrengens were
arranged for each night of Sukkos in Natick. THe first
night was hosted by the Chabad Center in the Grand
Chabad Center Sukkah, and included a full dinner
served to over 100 people. Rabbi Levi Fogelman led the
evening, with T'mimim Mendy Shechter, Zalman Hackner,
and Benyomin Zilberstein putting on a program for the
kids. After the meal, as the farbrengen was coming to
a close, those baalei batim who had been home with the
kids showed up and re-energized the farbrengen, which
continued on until the wee hours. Click here for more47th INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION OF LUBAVITCH YOUTH ORGANIZATION
The Forty Seventh International convention of the Lubavitch Youth Organization took place on Chol Hamoed Succos in 770.
The convention opened with a videotape of the Rebbe concerning the special mission of each individual to do his utmost to prepare the world for the coming of Moshiach.
Click here for moreGREETING MOSHIACH IN THE SUNSHINE STATE
With great pride and gratitude to Hashem, N'shei Chabad of Greater Miami will be hosting this year's 41st N'shei U'Bnos Chabad International Mid-Winter Convention. To be held at the luxurious Eden Roc Resort and Spa on beautiful Miami Beach, November 15 - 17, the convention's theme "As the power of the sun bursts forth, so do the righteous shine" will have special meaning.Click here for moreSHEMINI ATZERES & SIMCHAS TORAH 5763 ROUNDUP
CROWN HEIGHTS (SNS) – After raining all day Thursday, the rain stayed away on Friday.
On Friday night there were 3 Sholom Zochors k”ah. The Sholom Zochors took place after Hakofos.
Although the holiday has ancient roots, members of local Chabad houses are putting a decidedly modern spin on the holiday by creating a fleet of mobile booths.
Tuesday, the 18th of Tishray, will officially mark the 5th anniversary of Shmais News Service. It was on this day 5 years ago, that the first Chabad-Lubavitch news story was sent via-email from an e-mail address now world famous, SHMAIS@aol.com.
Click here for moreYOM KIPPUR AROUND THE WORLD WITH CHABAD #2
FOR LAUDERDALE, FL
Yom Kippur was once again a resounding success at the Wyndham Resort & Spa in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida with nearly 500 adults staying and davening at the hotel under the spiritual leadership of Rabbi Pinny Andrusier. Click here for moreYOM KIPPUR AROUND THE WORLD WITH CHABAD #1 RANCHO MIRAGE, CA
Name: Chabad of Rancho Mirage - The Torah Oasis
Location: Hilton Garden Inn - Rancho Mirage
Attendance: 85 people
Kol Nidray: Rabbi Yisroel Gurary
Shachris: Rabbi Moshe Palace
Mussaf: Rabbi Yisroel Gurary
Neila: Rabbi Yisroel Gurary
Maftir Yonah: Rabbi Moshe Palace Click here for moreBEIT CHABAD OF KIRYAT ARBA - CHEVRON WELCOMES NEW SHLUCHIM
During the 100 years up until the Hevron massacre of 1929, Hevron was the Chabad capital of Eretz Yisroel. For many years now, since Jews have again moved into the area, Rabbi Victor Atyah has been the Chabad Shliach to Kiryat Arba and Hevron. Operating from Kiryat Arba, he has kept a Chabad presence in Hevron. With the growing needs of both communities, Atyah realized time was right for a Chabad Shliach actually living inside Hevron. He invited Rabbi Danny Cohen, his wife Batsheva, and their three sons to take up the post.Click here for moreKAPOROS, EREV & YOM KIPPUR 5763 IN CROWN HEIGHTS
CROWN HEIGHTS (SNS) – Once again, this year, Kaporos @ The National Committee for Furtherance of Jewish Education was Boruch Hashem very successful, with enough chickens for everyone.
Click here for moreLubavitch Rabbis to spend Yom Kippur In Guantanamo Bay, Cuba
An estimated 15,000 Jews once lived in Cuba, before the 1959 revolution. Today, there are thought to be about 1,700 - make that 1,740. Last week, some forty Jewish US Service men and women stationed at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, showed up for Rosh Hashana services, but found no one there to lead them and no provisions for any of the necessary holiday items. Thanks to cooperation between members of Congress, the US Military, and "Operation: Enduring Traditions," there will be Yom Kippur services on Sunday evening and Monday at the "Camp GITMO" Naval Base after all.Click here for moreGrowing Jewish community no longer has to worry about finding a minyan
Rabbi Mendy Uminer is working against the clock these days, what with Yom Kippur less than a week away and dozens of shofars yet to be made. Then again, the young rabbi has no one to blame but himself, for it was his decision, after all, to assign the children of his synagogue their latest arts and crafts project - their own ceremonial ram's horns. Click here for moreROSH HASHANA AROUND THE WORLD WITH CHABAD #4 NORTHERN, VA
Location: @ the Embassy Suites Hotel Tysons Corner
Attendance: There was over 75 people both days
Shachris: Chessy Deitsch
Mussaf: Mendy Telzner
Shofar: Rabbi Levi Deitsch
Notes: Childrens program was ran by Sruli Mayer. There where over 18 people every meal!
The sermons where very inspiring. This was the first major peulah because the Shluchim Levi and Miriam Deitsch just moved out three months ago and BH it was a great success.
Click here for moreYarchei Kallah @ The Shul The following is a brief overview of the highly successful Yarchei Kallah 5762 that took place @ THE SHUL in Bal Harbour, FL before Rosh Hashana.
Click here for moreChabad of Fox Chapel holds inaugural event
More than 60 people came to Chabad of Fox Chapel’s inaugural event, a lecture by Rabbi Abraham Twerski, M.D., held at the Holiday Inn-RIDC Park last week.
They were attracted by the speaker, and the topic, “Kabbalah and Psychology,” but they also wanted to learn more about Chabad and how its presence in their community would contribute to the fabric of Jewish life.
As Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur approach, Rabbi Moshe Shapiro and his wife Shaindel are busy preparing for the Jewish New Year.
Click here for moreTishrei with the Rebbe Volume Two
Tishrei with the Rebbe Volume Two, a new video from JEM, covers the second half of Tishrei -- from after Yom Kippur until the end of Tishrei.
On any Friday night, they host as many as 15 guests for Shabbat dinner in
their apartment, also known as Chabad House. Guests enjoy a homemade kosher
meal, Sabbath prayers and a chance to read from the rabbi's extensive
collection of Hebrew and English books that line the dining room walls.
" It's a nice environment, allowing us involvement with students and the
community as well," said Blesofsky, 26, who completed rabbinical training in
New Jersey, New York and Melbourne, Australia.
The students were joined by Rabbis Shlomo Gestetner and Kasriel Shemtov of Mayanot, Zeev Boneh COO of birthright Israel and Arnon Katz of the Jewish Agency, to honor the President of the Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS, Mr. Lev Leviev, a major sponsor of the group. Other Israeli business people included CEO of Africa Israel Mr. Pinchus Cohen, Mr. Avremel Silver, Mr. Shmuel Melman and Dr. Shlomo Kalish.
Click here for moreSynagogue study offers fresh data, but few surprises after half-century
NEW YORK, Aug. 13 (JTA) - The Orthodox movement claims the lion’s share of synagogues in the United States, despite being the smallest of the three major branches, according to a new census by the American Jewish Committee.
Click here for moreStanford's new Chabad rabbi hopes to nurture students
Many college students want to know, "Why should I be a Jew today?" says Dov Greenberg. Stanford University students are getting the opportunity to discuss this question and many other topics in one-on-one sessions with the Chabad rabbi, who arrived on campus recently. Click here for moreChabad Lubavitch Shluchim team’s newest additions The Chabad Lubavitch Center joins the Houston community in welcoming Rabbi Chaim & Mrs. Chanie Lazaroff and their daughter Chaya Mushka as the newest addition to the team of Chabad Lubavitch Shluchim of Texas.
Click here for moreCounter terrorism for Jewish Kids in Russia Tzivos Hashem and Ohr Avner's Multimedia Hands-On Presentation Shows 6,000 Soviet Jewish Children the Flip Side to Media Images of Israel
Grim. Grisly. Fearsome. Russian media's penchant for broadcasting a steady diet of gruesome footage of Israel's war on terrorism have caused Jewish children living within former Soviet borders to regard Israel as yet another depressing entry into the Jewish catalog of suffering and oppression.
Click here for moreDEVASTATING FIRE IN YESHIVAS CHABAD OF ARGENTINA
In the Chabad Lubavitch Yeshiva building on Aguero and Paraguay in Argentina nothing ever earth shattering happens. However this past Shabbos it was different. On Friday night at 9 o’clock, a devastating fire broke out on the top 2 floors of the yeshiva dormitory .Click here for moreMorris I. 'Morrie' Steiman, 83; philanthropist to Jewish causes
When Beth Jacob Congregation moved from North Park to the College Area in 1976, Morris I. Steiman was concerned that some of the older members of the synagogue might be left behind.Click here for moreSHLAIMOS HA’ARETZ AWARENESS THE REBBE AND THE GROUND BREAKING CEREMONY FOR THE COMMUNITY OF EFRAT IN GUSH ETZION
Moshe Moskovitz’s efforts to contact Rabbi Shlomo Riskin were in vain. The purpose for their flight to Israel had been nixed and he needed to reach Rabbi Riskin in time to stop him from boarding their scheduled flight in the pre-dawn hours the next morning. In 1980 there were no cell phones, and Rabbi Riskin seemed to have disappeared into thin air.
Click here for moreRabbi offers faith to unaffiliated in Duke, Durham communities
DURHAM, NC - Rabbi Zalman Bluming's living room still looks bare and on Friday nights his black oblong dinner table could use a few more people -- eating, singing and celebrating the arrival of G-d's given day of rest, Shabbos. Click here for moreStudents looking to spread fervor
Last summer, Yossi Rapoport and Elchonon Tenenbaum, rabbinical students from Brooklyn, traveled to Asheville, NC.This summer the 24-year-olds in broad-brimmed black hats have stopped in Huntington and now in Charleston as they spend three weeks working West Virginia.Click here for moreChabad synagogue defaced NORTH PALM BEACH -- Vandals sprayed hate graffiti on the walls of a synagogue and a car early Tuesday morning, and police said they would canvass the neighborhood Tuesday night seeking clues to their identity.
Click here for moreChabad@Tysons Lubavitch continues Va. growth Virginia has more than a half-dozen Chabad Lubavitch institutions in places such as Alexandria, Fairfax, Virginia Beach and Richmond. Now, there is one more, with a name fitting the Chabad's location in Virginia's technology corridor: Chabad@Tysons.
Click here for moreFINALLY: CHABAD CENTERS ONLINE SHLUCHIM SITES!
SNS has just learned that the all-new Chabad Centers Online Shluchim websites will be rolled out to all Shluchim by email on Monday in conjunction with Chof Av.Click here for moreYarchei Kallah at Yeshiva Ohr Elchonon Chabad a smashing success Imagine walking into an ordinary Beis Medrash to find close to 100 Baalei Batim sitting and learning like full time Yeshiva bochurim. This was common during the week of Yarchei Kallah at Yeshiva Ohr Elchonon Chabad in Los Angeles. Rabbis, doctors, lawyers, professors, and all types of business professionals, joined the intensive Yeshiva style learning.
Click here for moreYoung, Jewish and thirsty? Pull up a pew
With young people increasingly finding religious services dull and dissatisfying, one group has taken to handing out free strawberry and mango daiquiris to lure them back. Click here for moreKINNUS MECHANCHIM IN AUSTRALIA In Melbourne, for 4 days last week, there was a Kinus Mechanchim, organized by the local teachers for all Lubavitcher Mechanchim in Australia.
Click here for moreSaturn Rising: Shmully Hecht builds a real estate empire.
The man from Saturn was walking by a shabby brick apartment building on New Haven's Park Street when he encountered a water authority worker. He asked what the worker was doing.
I just shut off the building's water, the worker replied. They're coming to tear the building down.
Excitement takes over as 13 people ages 13-60 get ready to board a plane for a two-day visit to Queens and Brooklyn. At the top of their agenda is a visit to the ohel (tent) or gravesite of the revered late Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the seventh and last great Lubavitcher Rebbe.
With more celebrants than seats, Chabad of Plano/Collin County dedicated its aron kodesh Sunday, June 30. Until then, the congregation at the Lang Chabad Center, completed in 2001, had been using a temporary ark for the Torah scrolls previously dedicated by Abe Lang, Stan Rothstein and their families.
Click here for moreConference Looks at Jewish Law in War, Life
With the war on terrorism continuing daily and with the capture of American citizens fighting for al Qaida, the American justice system is facing hard questions about what are the rights of Americans who plot to harm America and its citizens in the name of a foreign agency.Click here for moreGrowing Chabad movement is 'religion through joy' Sometimes Aliice Golub would visit Jewish patients at Delray Beach Medical Center, announcing she's from the local Chabad-Lubavitch center and asking if they'd like to pray.
Click here for more12 TAMMUZ LETTER
The following Letter was Sent By The Frierdiker Rebbe For The
First Anniversary Celebration Of Yud-Beis Tammuz
In 5688 (1928) Special thanks To AnashNews of Chicago,IL
By the Grace of G-d
Sunday, 15 Sivan, 5688, Riga.
To our friends, the members of the chassidic brotherhood, and to all those who love the Torah and study it - wherever you may be:
Click here for moreWHAT DID YOU LEARN FROM THE OPENING SESSION OF STAFFWEEK?
Rabbi Dovid Grossman concluded the opening session of STAFFWEEK 5762 by asking the attending bochurim what valuable lessons they had learned during the evening. The answers came swiftly: “that you can be provocative in any scenario,” “once you ask WHY, you are accusing,” “every situation is deeper than it appears,” “you can get everyone in the group to enjoy helping the problem kids work out their problems” and “being positive and finding the good.” Click here for moreGEMARA BAAL PEH IN TZFAS
Throughout the year the Bochurim of Yeshivas Tzerei Hashluchim in Tzfas, Israel -- under the auspices of their Rosh Yeshiva, Rabbi Sholom Ber Hertzel -- have been studying with great figure and diligence Meseches Bava Kama.
Click here for moreThe big hearted part of Lev Leviev
Reports on poverty levels in Israel consistently list immigrants from the former Soviet Union as being among the worst affected.
Many are senior citizens who came to the country after retirement age with no savings or pension plans. There are also younger immigrants, who came with impressive academic credentials, but who have been unable to find suitable employment. They are either unemployed or engaged in low- paying menial jobs.
Click here for moreMivtzoim Dinner Unites London For the first time in the history of the Yeshiva Gedola Lubavitch of London, all the weekly Mivtzoyim routes gathered together for Grand Farbrengen Celebration. Last Wednesday night’s “Evening of Unity” brought together the bochurim and their Mivtzoim routes at the O2 Center, a hall in the high class entertainment and shopping center in Central London. In a spirit of Achdus and Ahavas Yisroel, they celebrated 100 years since the birth of the Rebbe.
Click here for moreALERT: STAFFWEEK 5762 IS UNDERWAY
All camp directors are urged to alert their staff to attend STAFFWEEK 5762. The annual Camp training seminar in Crown Heights will feature sessions for BOYS'/GIRLS’ Staff which will be held separately. The purpose of STAFFWEEK is to make the counselor more effective as a teacher and a guide to “Build Chassidim in the Rebbe’s camps.” Click here for moreJewish Leaders Plan Precautions After Report of Brooklyn Targets
A news report that Jewish neighborhoods in Brooklyn were the original targets of the terrorists responsible for the 1993 World Trade Center bombing has prompted community leaders in Williamsburg and Crown Heights to plan extra security precautions.Click here for morePresident Prodi meets with Chief Rabbi Lazar and others The President of the European commission Romano Prodi met with leaders of the Jewish community of Russia and the CIS on the eve of the European Union summit with Russia, to discuss ways of partnership and coordination with the community leaders in their important work today in the region.
Click here for more4 MILLION DOLLAR CHABAD HOUSE DEDICATED IN FLORIDA
Over the last ten years, a little known, well-kept secret has been developing
in a city called Boynton Beach in the State of Florida. At last count the
current Jewish population is 40,000 k”ah and growing rapidly. Statistically,
this is the fastest growing Jewish population in the entire North America.
Click here for moreBush's tour of synagogue marks first for a U.S. president
ST. PETERSBURG -- For many years, the Grand Choral Synagogue here in Russia's old imperial capital represented death and darkness to Rabbi Itzhak Kogan.
Kogan's grandfather was killed by Soviet authorities inside the synagogue for baking matzo. His father was told he would be fired from his job if he entered the building. As the 19th-century house of worship fell into disrepair, Kogan fled to Israel.
Click here for moreVisiting Synagogue, Bush Praises Russian Religious Tolerance
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia, May 26 - President Bush, who last week compressed a scheduled half-hour of Kremlin sightseeing into a seven-minute blur, was supposed to spend 20 minutes this morning at the Grand Choral Synagogue here before leaving for tea with President Vladimir V. Putin and an Air Force One flight to France.Click here for moreSymbolism is heavy as Bush visits S. Petersburg shul ST. PETERSBURG, May 27 (JTA) – President Bush closed his eyes, listening intently as Rabbi Itzhak Kogan recited the ancient priestly blessing.
Then Bush shook Kogan’s hand and said, “G-d bless you.”
Click here for moreBush sees rebirth of Jewish activity in Russia ST PETERSBURG, Russia, May 26 (Reuters) - U.S. President George W. Bush toured a Russian synagogue on Sunday and Jewish leaders said he had praised the post-Soviet rebirth of religious activity among the country's million-strong community.<
Click here for moreN'Shei Chabad Chitas Campaign....
Rabbi Yitzhak Cohen, Shliach of Alon Shvut and Karmei Tzur in Gush Etzion, near Hebron, is expecting the arrival of the latest shipment of 800 Segula L'shmira in the coming week. He will distribute them amongst the Shluchim in Yesha, who work together on the Chitas Campaign, and expects the total supply to be depleted within a few days.Click here for moreSHAVUOS 5762 IN CROWN HEIGHTS CROWN HEIGHTS, NY (SNS) -- Hundreds of guests and many Rabbonim from around the world came to celebrate Shavuos in Crown Heights.
@ about 12:00am the first night Yom Tov, people began coming to 770 to say Tikkun however, it was very very warm. B”H by 12:45am it was “miraculously” very comfortable
Click here for moreMachon Bnos Menachem winds up its SEM BEIS prog.
After much planning and effort MBM Seminary in Toronto is about to complete it’s first one year fully-accredited B.A. program. MBM is the only Chabad seminary in the world currently offering this amazing opportunity. A fortunate group of girls who spent their Sem Bais year, learning, teaching and growing, are about to receive a prestigious Bachelor’s degree accredited by the Canadian Government and recognized world wide.
Click here for more'WELCOME TO THE WAKS FAMILY' 'WELCOME TO THE WAKS FAMILY' is a one hour documentary produced under
Film Australia's National Interest Program It will be screened later
this year on SBS, an Australian national tv station which specialises in
multicultural programming. SBS is particularly interested in films which
reflect the diversity of cultures in Australian society. The film will
also be entered into International film festivals and has its premiere
screenings in May at the REAL LIFE ON FILM documentary festival in
Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Adelaide. The film will also be promoted
to educational audiences in various curriculum areas such as religious
study, social issues, women's issues and so on.
Click here for moreMr. Elie Horn visits the Machon L'Shlichus
Nearly 100 yungeleit who attend courses at the Machon L'Shlichus, founded by Merkos L’Inyonei Chnuch to help better prepare future Shluchim to assume their Shlichus roles successfully, greeted Mr. Elie Horn, from Brazil, at a breakfast in his honor on Sunday. Click here for moreNew Exhibition @ the Library of Aguch
In honor of Lag B'Omer a new Exhibition is opening in the Exhibition Hall of the Library of Agudas Chassidei Chabad.
The exhibition will feature rare Books & Manuscripts
from the Library archives artifacts and writings of the Chabad Rebbes.
Click here for moreDIDAN NOTZACH IN DELAWARE
Judge upholds variance for synagogue
House of worship permitted to expand despite protests from civic groups
A Superior Court judge has upheld exceptions to New Castle County law that allow plans for a Brandywine Hundred synagogue.
Click here for moreProud grandpa had good fortune The last time I saw Phil Newman was at his grandson Dov's wedding last year. Hundreds of men wearing black hats and an equal number of women on the other side of the dance floor watched as Mr. Newman threw a wine bottle in the air.
Click here for moreA SEDER IN BERSHADT, UKRAINE The Shliach in Zhitomer, Ukraine, Rabbi Wilhelm, sent Tmimim Yosef Muchnik and Yisroel Stein to make a seder in a small city called Bershadt (about an hour-and-a-half from Uman). Following is the report as delivered by Yosef Muchnik:
Click here for moreLAST DAYS OF PESACH IN CROWN HEIGHTS
Crown Heights, NY (SNS) -- A couple hundred extra guests and bochurim
returning from countries around the world where they spent the first days of Pesach, were back in Crown Heights for the last days of Pesach.
The weather was B"H pretty nice on both days, except for some off & on rain during Tahalucha. Click here for moreR' Adin Even-Israel - Library of Congress Speech
March 11, 2002
We are celebrating 100 years since the birthday of the Lubavitcher Rebbe. One hundred years is a long time. It is an interval that marks change in many ways. It is a very significant number in Jewish lore, because 100 years marks a full cycle of life. One hundred years also defines a unit, a century, and I want to give it the recognition it deserves. I want to speak a little about that century, the century of the Rebbe.
The extra baggage is not for souvenirs. A mandatory stop is a kosher food store, where she loads up on delicacies she can't find in Alaska.
Click here for moreFIRST DAYS PESACH IN CROWN HEIGHTS
CROWN HEIGHTS, NY (SNS) -- Hundreds of guests from around the world spent the first days of Pesach with family & friends in Crown Heights. Notwithstanding all the guests that came in, judging by the amount of parking spaces on the streets & extra room in 770 there were apparently more people that went away for Yom Tov, than came in.Click here for moreEverything But the Mikvah!
Mikvah – a word once whispered behind closed doors, has emerged from the closet, once again, with a bang!Click here for moreT.H. Club opens in Nikolayev, Ukraine on 11 Nissan
What do a Deputy Head teacher in Rostov, Russia, a returnee to Judaism in Cherson, Ukraine and a college student in Chernigov, Ukraine all have in common?
They are all part of the new Tzivos Hashem network of clubs around the C.I.S.
Click here for moreCHABAD OF SUMMERLIN TO BREAK GROUND FOR NEW SHUL
Chabad of Summerlin in Nevada will break ground on Sunday, March 24 for construction of a $1.5 million single story synagogue and Chabad center embracing approximately 9000 square fee, which will serve as its permanent home in the Desert Shores section of Las Vegas.Click here for more5000 GIRLS JOIN IN HAKHEL TEL. CONFERENCE CALL On Wednesday afternoon, in connection with 11 Nissan Shnas Hameah, 5000 girls k"ah from 20 schools throughout the U.S. and Canada, participated in a Hakhel telephone conference call that originated from Bais Rivkah - Campus Chomesh.
Click here for moreFILLING THE VOID
Eight years ago, I spent Pesach - Zman Cheiruseinu, mind you - like a homeless man, roaming the streets of Manhattan. Along with many others, I slept on the floor of a public school gymnasium or the cold tiled sloped floor of the mezzanine in the auditorium, my coat serving as a sheet, pillow and blanket. The usual limitation of what and where we usually eat on Pesach, was somehow heightened by the need to eat whatever (Kosher LePesach) food became available, to keep body and soul together.Click here for moreA Matzo Airlift and More Religion: Importing the kosher bread is part of one ultra-Orthodox group's efforts to revive Judaism in the former Soviet Union.
MOSCOW -- At age 8, Itzak Kogan was up to his arms in illegal flour, helping his mother bake matzo, which was banned in the Soviet Union.
Click here for moreHUNDREDS @ CHABAD OF SOUTH BROWARD, FL DINNER On Sunday, March 10th, some 300 men and women participated at Chabad of South Broward Florida 21st Annual Dinner. The Dinner took place at the brand new Westin Diplomat Resort and Spa in Hollywood.
Click here for moreVaad T.H.H. Holds Grand 11 Nissan Raffle
The International Yud Alef Nissan Campaign entered it’s final stages with
the Grand Raffle held on Thursday Rosh Chodesh Nissan for the 100 Bochurim
from all over the world to come to New York for Yud Alef Nissan Meah Shana! Click here for moreCoat is key evidence in attempted murder trial
WAUKON -- A coat allegedly worn by a Postville man accused of stabbing a
fellow member of the town's Orthodox Jewish community will be a key item of
evidence in the attempted murder trial of Roni Kachanes, which got under way
here Thursday.Click here for moreFriendship Circle brings teenagers... Friendship Circle brings teenagers into the lives of special children
Sunday mornings are special for Mirabell Soll.
The 8-year-old autistic youngster from Budd Lake has no friends her own age. But every other Sunday, her special friends Sarah Marcus, 17, and Ricki Neidich, 15, both of White Meadow Lake in Rockaway Township, ring the bell and almost get knocked over with an effusive hug from Mirabell.
Click here for moreBoynton welcomes synagogue
WEST BOYNTON, FLORIDA - Just in time for Passover, the first Orthodox synagogue in suburban Boynton Beach will open on a $4 million campus Sunday with a ceremony that celebrates new buildings as much as additional options for the area's thriving Jewish population.Click here for more“FROM BROADWAY WITH LOVE”
Last week, Liam Neeson, Matthew Broderick, Mandy Patinkin, Donna McKechnie, Jerry Stiller and many more Broadway stars and luminaries gathered in the theatre district in an ongoing effort to keep the dreams of Joseph Papp alive. Click here for morePURIM AROUND THE WORLD WITH CHABAD #2
Purim in Virginia Beach, VA Over 200 people came to participate in the Chabad Persian Purim Extravaganza. With the help of some very talented Persian chefs, the guests were wined and dined with some of Persia's finest delicacies. There was lively dancing accompanied by live music provided by a very musical Shaya Lieberman from Crown Heights. The atmosphere of the Seudah was enhanced by the visiting bochurim from Crown Heights and New Haven.
It's morning and Getzel Merkowitz and Yossi Ginsborg, both 16, are about to begin their 16-hour school day. ''Let's go,'' says Merkowitz, clutching a large Talmud which nearly fills the top of his wooden desk. He opens the oversized tome of Jewish law, and reads the first line in Hebrew, stroking his beard while rocking back and forth in meditation.
Click here for moreSpeaking real to the Jewish soul For the last 17 years, Rabbi Shmuel Posner has been singing Hebrew and Yiddish melodies every Friday night in the basement of Chabad House, his educational center that sits between a funeral home and a tanning parlor in the heart of Kenmore Square. Step out of the streets and into the warmth of the room, and you'll find up to 75 people sitting at long row tables, welcoming the Jewish Sabbath with Hasidic songs as they eat challah, sip wine, and pass along trays of gefilte fish, chicken, noodle pudding, and sweet cake.
Click here for morePurim gets a touch of salsa
It started with the whole megillah and ended with the whole enchilada.
To celebrate the ancient Jewish holiday of Purim on Monday night, hundreds of people attended a party at the Chabad Community Center in Redondo Beach, California wearing traditional costumes. But instead of yarmulkes and shawls, they dressed in sombreros and serapes.
Click here for moreAttack on Lubavitch – A Response
In the last few months a series of published attacks on the Chabad-Lubavitch movement has not only challenged its legitimacy as a Jewish religious organization, but have also condemned Chabad-Lubavitch Chasidim as idol worshippers, believers in Christian theology and Jews that need to be excommunicated—expelled, from the organized Orthodox Jewish community.
Click here for moreY.K. Tzeirei Hashluchim Conference Call
Today, Sunday the 12th of Adar @ 2:00 PM (NY time) there was a Conference Call/Farbrengen Between all Talmidim and staff of Yeshivas Kayitz-Tzeirei Hashluchim summer 5761.Click here for moreFinding Some Peace SALT LAKE CITY - "AMERICAN journalists only print lies," Jun Myung Kyu, the South Korean short- track speedskating coach, said after his man, Kim Dong Sung, was disqualified in the men's 1,500 meters Wednesday night for what looked like a cheap touch foul against Apolo Anton Ohno of the United States.
Click here for moreWelcoming the Word @ Chabad of La Costa, CA Chabad at La Costa California celebrated the dedication of its fifth Torah on Feb. 17 with special prayers, music, Hasidic dancing and a professional scribe completing the final lines of the 100-yard scroll.
Click here for more600 @ KINUS HAKHEL - SHNAS HAMEAH IN O.T. On Motzei Shabbos Terumah, a crowd of six hundred people, including students of grades 5-8 Oholei Torah and their fathers or family member gathered in the main ballroom of Oholei Torah for a Kinus Hakhel - Shnas Hameah.
Click here for moreELI DORFMAN OBM Eliezer Aaron ben Yibadel Lechaim Tovim - Mordechai Reuven
The Almighty entrusts us with His children to raise. Children are not ours to keep. On Friday evening, Shabbos Parshas Terumah, the 4th of Adar 5762 (February 15th, 2002) Eli returned his soul to his Father in heaven.
The Mattanos Levyonim collected in your Chabad Center can help the eight Shluchim in Yesha who face danger daily.
Click here for moreClose to 100 Rabbis @ 1st European Halachic Sem.
On Sunday - Tuesday the 28-30 Shevat, the First European Halachic Seminar for Chabad Rabbis servicing communities in Europe took place, in conjunction with the OU and with a grant from the European Commission.
Click here for moreUpdate on Celebration 100 in Washington, DC
The Celebration 100 Vaad was in Washington DC on Wednesday Rosh Chodesh Adar, to meet and help plan the upcoming events in honor of Shnas Hameah to be held in the nation's capitol on March 11-12, 27-28 Adar.
Click here for moreBOCHURIM DO YOU WANT TO GO TO RUSSIA FOR PESACH?
In honor of the Rebbe's 100th birthday on 11 Nissan, we are proud to announce the launching of the Pesach Program to Russia in conjunction with Merkos L'Inyonei Chinuch and Ohr Avner-Chabad.
Click here for moreRABBI WILHELM ADDRESSES HOUSE OF REP. IN MINN.
Last Wednesday, Rabbi Nachman Wilhelm, Dean and Rosh Yeshiva of the Lubavitch Yeshiva of Minnesota-Wexler Learning Institute opened up a session of the House of Representatives of the State of Minnesota. Click here for moreMeeting with Russian president seen as historic... MOSCOW, Feb. 11 (JTA) — Rabbi Berel Lazar has met many times with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Until last week, however, all their meetings took place with others present and were linked to a particular event — such as last winter, when Lazar made the Kremlin kitchen kosher and then dined in a Kremlin palace with Putin, Israeli President Moshe Katsav and some other Jewish VIPs.
Click here for moreChabad keeps Jewish spark burning Throw away any preconceived notions about the black-hatted, long-bearded, Hasidic rabbis of Chabad.
Click here for moreRabbi Moshe Lazar Farbrengs in Budapest, Hungary In honor of Chof Beis Shevat Rabbi Moshe Lazar Shliach of the Rebbe to Milan Italy came to Budapest to Farbreng with the Community and the Bochurim Shluchim. It all began on Thursday night in Hotel Unio in Budapest where many women gathered together to commemorate the Yahrtzeit of the Rebbetzin and Rabbi Lazar spoke about the Rebbetzin and her legacy.
Click here for moreHundreds Attend Renaming of Square after the Rebbe
Wednesday, February 6, 2001, Lod, Israel—Hundreds attended a ceremony renaming the central square at the entrance to the city of Lod after the Lubavitcher Rebbe, marking the 100th year since the Rebbe’s birth. Click here for moreAleph Institute sends Purim 2 Jews in mil. & jail
Young volunteers with The Aleph Institue are packing thousands of Purim packages to assure that every single Jewish member in the armed services (as well as their family members) receive Shalach Manot (a Purim package containing 2 small hamantaschen, a granola bar and candy). It will be shipped to stationed Jewish members of the U.S. military free of charge, as well as printed Hebrew/English copies of the Megillah (the complete story from the Book of Esther of the victory over the terrorist [Haman] and his wicked followers).Click here for moreRabbinical College Students Reach Out
For more than 20 years, students from the Rabbinical College of America in Morris Township have been visiting neighborhoods in Dover.Click here for moreA response to terror Chabad Jewish Center is passing out small donation boxes to give people a chance to do a little good.
NEWPORT BEACH, CA -- Defy darkness with light.
The message is simple and printed on the front of 10,000 boxes being sent all over the city by the Chabad Jewish Center of Newport Beach.
Click here for moreJEM Premiers 2 Films on Israel @ the Kinnus
SNS Shluchos correspondents have reported that at the International Convention of Shluchos, two new films from JEM were screened.Click here for moreBEIS MENACHEM OF BORO PARK BUYS NEW BUILDING
With the help of Hashem, Beis Menachem of Boro Park recently completed the purchase of a new building. The new shul, located at 4814 16th Ave, is another step in the continued growth of Chabad in the world over and specifically the spreading of Chassidus within the Charedishe community since Gimmel Tammuz.
Click here for moreThousands @ the annual Shluchos Convention Banquet
Nearly 2000 Shluchos, teachers, guests, and post seminary girls participated at the annual banquet / Melava Malka of the Shluchos convention that was held Motzei Shabbos Parshas Yisro in the Brooklyn Marriot grand ballroom.Click here for moreSPECIAL CAMPAIGN FOR SHNAS HAMEAH UNDERWAY The special "Horeinu Midrochov" campaign organized by the Vaad Talmidei Hatmimim Haolami and under the auspices of the Hanholo of The Central Yeshiva Tomchei Tmimim - 770, is B"H off to a tremedous start. Over 50 Lubavitcher Yeshivos have already joined this massive show of Achdus and study of the Rebbe's Torah as a present for the Rebbe's 100th birthday.
Click here for morePlanting Roots In The Gardens
Rabbinical student works to establish first synagogue in Forest Hills enclave with Waspy image.
Pass under the train station on 71st Street/Continental Avenue toward Burns Street and you enter another world. Stone and Tudor homes sit behind pebbled sidewalks and brick streets. This is a neighborhood with a private patrol, sloping lawns, old-fashioned lampposts. You could be in the English countryside.
Click here for moreCHABAD CONFERENCE – A PERSONAL VIEW
The recent conference at the Jolson Centre for Study of Israel, Judaism and Democracy at Bar-Ilan University was a tribute to the significance of Chabad-Lubavitch for Judaism today. Last year the Jolson center put on a conference about the Israeli legal system, thus dealing with ‘Israel’. Next year it will present a conference on the Kneset, thus dealing with ‘Democracy’. Its choice of topic for ‘Judaism’ was this year’s conference on Chabad, suggesting we are seen as having a central role with a central responsibility.
Click here for moreLubavitch School Aid Comm. M.M. in London
The Annual Lubavitch School Aid Committee Melave Malka took place this past
Motzei Shabbos Parshat Beshalach. The fund raising event was held in the hall
of Lubavitch House, Headquarters of Lubavitch UK, London, Stamford Hill. Click here for moreGAN IZZY – CAPE TOWN 5762 At the hottest time of year when others spent time on the beaches of Cape Town, SA, Chabad of Cape Town ran it’s 18th successful year of Camp Gan Israel! With an exciting three week program, stunning camp grounds, and enthusiastic counsellors from Johannesburg, New York, California and Cape Town, we B’’H managed to attract 120 lovely children! Kids from the Hebrew Academy, the local Chabad School, mixed with kids from Herzlia and Public Schools, who really learned how to share, inspire and have some serious fun together.
Click here for moreCHABAD SYMPHONY IN THE JEWISH PRESS! This week's Jewish Press had a major write up abut the upcoming Chabad
Symphony, produced by Zalman Goldstein of "Chabad Classics." Over
30,000 readers in the Tri-State area received a beautiful full color
insert about the event.
Click here for moreGirls club combines fun with lessons on faith A dozen young teen and preteen girls are giggling, talking, crafting and
singing their way to a deeper understanding of their Jewish heritage at
Chabad House in Overland Park.
To Anash, to the students of Tomchei Temimim, and to those
who have a bond or a relationship with my revered father-in-law,
the saintly Rebbe, of blessed memory:
Israel’s former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was the guest at two Jewish functions in Los Angeles last week, on a schedule that included a closed dinner in Palm Springs and a number of private meetings. Netanyahu, who served as Israel’s premier from 1996-1999, left for Denver on Tuesday, and was headed back to Israel this week.
Click here for moreOVER 500 @ CHEDER LUBAVITCH OF CHICAGO'S DINNER A large crowd of over 500 guest filled the Grand Ballroom of the Westin O'Hare in Chicago at the Seymour J. Abrams Cheder Lubavitch Hebrew Day School's 20th Annual Banquet held last week.
Click here for moreUS champ is set for golden days
BOXING’S latest young Jewish star is Dmitriy Salita — and he has his London-born rabbi to thank for launching his professional career.
Click here for moreA Moving Evening in Memory of a Special Girl
Monday evening marked 12 years since the passing of a special little girl Alta Mina Tiechtel A"H. In honor of this occasion, there was a gathering of over 150 people in her parents home in Crown Heights marking her 12th yahrtzeit. Click here for moreYESHIVA ONLINE OPEN NOW
The Yeshiva On Line uses the latest technology. Fun and creative lessons are uploaded to an online classroom. Once these lessons are uploaded both the Talmidim and the Rebbe can bring out a point by highlighting, using arrows, drawing lines, boxes, typing etc. Both the Talmidim and the Rebbe can talk over the Internet with a microphone.
Click here for more1500 @ Siyum HaRambam in Crown Heights
1500 men, women & children from Crown Heights & beyond gathered last Thursday night in the grand ballroom of Oholei Torah - Menachem @ 667 Eastern Parkway to celebrate the completion of studying the Rambam for the 19th time, for those who studied 3 chapters a day.
Click here for moreBOCHURIM INSPIRE WRITER TO WEAR YARMULKA FULL-TIME
Over the last year or so, I periodically discussed with my wife the possibility of my wearing a kipah full-time, always ending the conversation by wondering what would push me over the line or give me the courage — and that was the word I used — to do it. It finally happened, but in a way I would never have imagined.
Click here for morePostville mayor honored in NY
POSTVILLE, IOWA -- On the second night of the Jewish observance of Hanukkah earlier this month, Postville Mayor John Hyman stood before a crowd of nearly 1,000 in the grand ballroom of the New York Hilton as an honored guest of the Lubavitcher basic humanitarian charity Colel Chabad. Click here for moreCHABAD OF ALPHARETTA COMPLETES PURCHASE
On Friday Dec. 28th, Chabad of Alpharetta, GA completed the purchase of 4.5 acres in Alpharetta, for use as a new and permanent home for the Chabad Educational Center, serving the Jewish community in North Fulton. Click here for moreBuilding resumes on Chabad center Construction has resumed on the Waxman Chabad Center, which stalled last summer after more than a decade to pull the project together.
Click here for moreChanukah 5762 in Communist Cuba
Once again, Chanukah was celebrated this year in Cuba through the offices of the Chabad friends of Cuban Jewry who several times a year send Bochurim to help organize activities and programs for the Yomim Tovim.
Click here for moreAre You Jewish?
Are You Jewish? That is the question that many people on Mivtzoim ask when meeting somebody. When the answer is yes, we proceed further…. When the answer is no, we shrug our shoulders and figure, “better luck next time”.
Click here for moreR' SHEMTOV'S WORDS LEAVE IMPRESSION ON THE PREZ
On Monday, December 17, in honor of the just-begun Chanukah holiday,
President George Bush met with a group of Jewish leaders in the White House,
hours before hosting a Chanukah party in his residence. For half an hour the
president spoke forcefully about his war against terror and about the terror
perpetrated against Israel. As reported later in the media, the leaders were
both moved and very encouraged by the content and tone of the President’s
speech.Click here for moreThe Rebbe’s in His Corner A Russian immigrant kid is boxing his way to the top in America — and hasn't lost since he stopped fighting on Shabbat
TO THE 600 FIGHT FANS packed into a casino in the California desert near Palm Springs in mid-October, Dmitriy (The Star of David) Salita looks like a kid with close-cropped brown hair, a pasty complexion and a friendly, boyish face. Only the bright blue robes, emblazoned with large white Stars of David, worn by the 19-year-old super- lightweight from Brooklyn and his three handlers for the fight against Nelson (Street Fighter) Valle of Las Vegas, signal that Salita is Jewish.
In itself, that’s not so unusual. There have been a handful of Jewish fighters in the years following their golden age in the 20s and 30s, but no one of serious caliber.
Click here for moreStaten Island Taken by Storm
It has been more that a week since the holiday of Chanukah has left its mark on us, but the effects in Staten Island and still being felt.Click here for moreAspen's only full-time rabbi
Rabbi Mendel Mintz is reluctant to label himself, or his style of worship. "I like to call our services 'traditional,'" he said, eschewing the more common Jewish classifications of Orthodox, Conservative or Reform.
Click here for moreTHOUSANDS CELEBRATE CHANUKAH IN BELARUS "An unbelieveable success" is a good way to describe this years Chanukah activities in Minsk, and throughout Belarus.
Click here for moreChanukah in Umhlanga Rocks - S. Africa
Every night of Chanukah we had Giant Menorah Lighting at the Chabad House,
which is situated about 20m from the beach ocean. The Menorah is about
3meters wide and when standing about 4m high. We have had some difficulty in
previous years lighting while it was so high so we dropped it to about 2.5m
in height and it’s been a great success. Click here for moreCHANUKAH IN HUNGARY
This Chanuka in Budapest the capital of Hungary The Jewish community was yet again treated with Chabad’s famous programs and activities. Starting with a Public Menora lighting at Nugati Ter. (Square) where the Neo Nazi’s y"ms usually hold their gatherings. The brand new Menorah stood 6 meters tall with over 700 people standing around in the cold joining the celebration. The crowd heard words of blessing and the story and lessons of Chanuka by the Head Shliach to Hungary Rabbi Boruch Oberlander and Rabbi Shlomo Koves from Israel. Click here for moreAgudas Chasidei of U.S. v. Gourary
650 F.Supp. 1463
E.D.N.Y.,1987.
Jan. 6, 1987.
Religious corporation brought action seeking to establish that books held by defendants were property of corporation's library. The District Court, Sifton, J., held that evidence established that rabbi divested himself of private ownership of library prior to his death by making it the res of a charitable trust for benefit of religious community.
Judgment for plaintiff.
Click here for moreThe Story of Hey Teves - Didan Notzach! During Pesach time 5745 (1985) seforim were disappearing from the Lubavitch Library. This was discovered through a Lubavitcher rare book dealer who suddenly noticed seforim of the Agudas Chassidei Chabad Library for sale. He immediately informed the Rebbe's secretariat, and immediate plans were devised to catch those who secretly entered the library and stole the seforim. At the end of Sivan it was already known who was stealing the seforim. Then the Rebbe became actively involved in the matter. [ The Rebbe's relationship to the issue, the trial & appeals, the victory, & lessons to be learned - is discussed in the general overview presented below, compiled from several sources. ] The article helps answer the question, "What is the Yom Tov of "Hey Teves"?"Click here for moreThe Professor, Messiah, & Scandal of Calumnies The Rebbe - The Messiah - and the Scandal of Orthodox Indifference by David Berger. The Littman Library of Jewish Civilization, Portland 2001;195pp. Review Essay by Rabbi J. Immanuel Schochet
I
"When you hear something unseemly about another, be deeply grieved. For if the report is true, the one spoken about is not good. If the report is false, the one speaking is not good." (Baal Shem Tov)<
Click here for more7,500 CONCERT GOERS @ FLORIDA CHANUKAH FESTIVAL
In what was likely the largest Chanukah Festival ever in the United States, a police estimated crowd of 7,500 men, women and children jammed the Young Circle Bandshell and adjoining park area for the 22nd Annual South Florida Chanukah Festival in downtown Hollywood, Florida, on Sunday night, December 16th, the eighth and final night of Chanukah.Click here for moreOn Campus, Coach Helps Set Hanukah Ablaze
Between appearing on an ESPN awards show and preparing the 10-1 Terrapins for the Orange Bowl, University of Maryland Football Coach Ralph Friedgen paused Sunday to light a menorah for Hanukah.Click here for moreGetting into the spirit of Judaism in Shanghai
I NEVER dreamed that things would happen so suddenly. My associate, Professor John Fowler, who is also a senior manager of our international office, approached me urgently one Monday morning in November 2000. Click here for more107! cars @ parade in Pretoria South Africa
For the past month it has been in the planning - a massive Menorah Parade to take place in this town, a town with around 1000 Jews. This is truly an idea which would never even have been dreamt of, after all, this is South Africa, not New York!. As the date neared, many difficulties came and passed.
Click here for moreChanukah menorahs lit up from Moscow to Ground Z.
MOSCOW, Dec. 12 (JTA) — Unexpected chilly weather did not prevent roughly 1,000 people from gathering just a few hundred yards from the Kremlin for a Chanukah candlelighting. Click here for morePresident of Ukraine lights Menorah The President of Ukraine, Leonid Kutchma met Tuesday at the Ukrainian Presidential palace in Kiev with a delegation of 35 Lubavitch Rabbis from across Ukraine headed by the Chief Rabbi of Dnepropetrovsk Rabbi Shmuel Kaminetzki and the President of the Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS (former Soviet Union) Mr. Lev Leviev.
Click here for more500 @ NCFJE "LIGHT UP THE NIGHT" CONCERT & TRIBUTE On Sunday night, a crowd of 500, supporters, friends and employees of the National Committee for Furtherance of Jewish Education gathered at the world renown Brooklyn Museum for a special evening titled "LIGHT UP THE NIGHT". The evening featured a Chanukah Concert & Tribute to the Leaders & Heroes of New York.
Click here for moreCollege students light up soldiers' lives abroad
(U-WIRE) COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- University of Maryland students met Sunday night and Monday night to send some light to soldiers that are away from their families during Hanukkah by creating kits filled with menorahs, candles, dreidels and cards. Click here for moreHanukkah for children Rabbi Berl Goldman of the Lubavitch Jewish Center in Gainesville said he is deeply committed to getting the message of Hanukkah out - especially to children.
Click here for moreThe Spirit of Helping Grows on Campus
The words came in a rush as Rabbi Adam Stein talked about the possibilities of his "Good Campaign" to a roomful of SUNY Stony Brook students.Click here for more600 ON HAND FOR TZIVOS HASHEM DINNER
600 supporters, friends & employees of Tzivos Hashem were on hand Sunday night to celebrate the 21st anniversary of Tzivos Hashem, the worlds most successful Jewish Children's Organization. The festivities took place in the glamorous Grand Hyatt hotel in New York, NY.
Click here for moreWORLD'S LARGEST CHANUKAH MENORAH
The The World's Largest Chanukah Menorah will be erected at New York's most fashionable plaza, Fifth Avenue and 59th Street, by Central Park, between the Plaza and the Pierre Hotels. The Menorah will be lighted on all evenings of Chanukah. The first candle of Chanukah is lighted on Sunday, Dec. 9th and the last (eight) candles of Chanukah will be lighted on Sunday evening, December 16th, at 5:30 pm.Click here for moreRabbi takes to the streets to share faith It's usually difficult to stop historic development pioneer Mel Schlesser on the street to start a conversation -- but not for Rabbi Zev Katz.
Click here for moreMRS. LIEBERMAN @ DINNER 4 LUB. OF BUCKS COUNTY
Faith is the key to getting Americans beyond these difficult times, said Hadassah Lieberman, wife of Sen. Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.). Lieberman made her remarks during the 10th Anniversary Gala Dinner Celebration of the Lubavitch of Bucks County held last Sunday at Spring Mill Manor. Click here for moreThe Reawakening of Russia's Jews
Berl Lazar says he was following in the footsteps of his father, also a rabbi, when he came to Russia 11 years ago to serve as the rabbi for Moscow's Marina Roshcha synagogue. Lazar's parents worked as emissaries of the Lubavitcher rebbe, Menachem Schneerson, after World War II in Milan, Italy, where Lazar was born.
In the middle of last year Lazar, 37, was elected by representatives of Russia's Jewish communities to serve as the country's chief rabbi. Just before departing for a meeting in Washington last week with President Vladimir Putin and Russian and American Jews, Rabbi Lazar spoke with The Moscow Times about the state of Judaism in Russia. Click here for moreThe Rebbe Keeps On Chugging
Trains, for all that they are about transportation, have been every bit as much about transporting our spirit through magical names and scenery. This country’s been criss-crossed (as have suburban basements) with trains and model trains like the Silver Meteor, the Gulf Breeze, the Pocahontas, the Coast Starlight — the Lubavitcher Rebbe? Click here for more3 Special programs on 3 Kislev in Germany This past Sunday was a historic one in Germany. Chabad of Berlin hosted 3 special programs in honor of the Shnas Hameah of the Rebbe & 5 years of Chabad in Berlin.
Click here for moreA LETTER 2 PARENTS OF TEENAGERS FROM TORAHTECH
Dear Parent,
As Chabad parents, our greatest wish is to receive Chassidishe nachas from our children.
Click here for moreFrom French Fries to Friendship
Not long ago I was standing in a famed kosher Deli in Manhattan on a Friday
afternoon waiting on my order. Standing next to me were two black-hatted
yeshiva students whom I immediately identified as Chabadniks due to their
overly pinched hats.
Click here for moreJewish Community Enjoying a Renaissance in Russia
MOSCOW -- Anti-Semitism in Russia is on the wane, and synagogues, Hebrew schools and Jewish community centers are sprouting up again in scores of small towns and villages, said officials at the largest congress of Jewish communities in the country since before the 1917 Revolution.Click here for moreCommunication bridging Postville gap
IOWA CITY -- Better communications between members of Postville has led to more understanding between cultures and more respect for diversity, a Postville City Council member and Hasidic Jew Aaron Goldsmith said last night.
Click here for moreThe Story Of Rosh Chodesh Kislev
770 is jammed packed. Thousands of Chassidim from every corner of the earth, are here to celebrate with the Rebbe. All eyes focus on the Rebbe as the Hakofos begin. The Rebbe holds the Sefer Torah aloft. His face radiates the sheer joy of Yom-Tov as he dances with [his brother in-law,] the Rashag (o.h.), on the dais in the shul's centre. It is Shmini Atzeres, 5738.Click here for moreSin City Shaliach The table is sumptuously laid out for 16, with appetizer plates and enough silverware to promise a multicourse meal. With smells of chicken soup and sounds of seven children playing, it’s just a typical Friday night in ... Las Vegas.
Click here for moreMBD VISIT MAKES A GREAT DINNER AN AWESOME ONE
On Wednesday night the Wellesley-Weston, MA Chabad center held their 2nd annual dinner, in Boro Park. The dinner which was attended by over 200 friends, family and supporters, had an all star line up to keep the crowd entertained for 4 hours.
Click here for moreRussia Rabbi Confident in Putin
WASHINGTON (AP) - The chief rabbi of Russia flew home Wednesday convinced that Russian President Vladimir Putin intends to fight anti-Semitism and ``eradicate it completely.'' Click here for moreA MIRACLE TAKES PLACE IN PRETORIA SOUTH AFRICA
"It isn't always that dreams come true. What was a dream - a vision - is now reality" enthused Chief Rabbi Harris. Hailed as a "miracle", the Pretoria Hebrew Congregation (PHC) recently welcomed 17 Bochurim of the Machon L'Hora'a to the city at a ceremony attended by Chief Rabbi Cyril Harris, Rabbi Levy Wineberg, Rosh Yeshiva and Mrs Wineberg, Rabbi Michael Katz, Rabbi Shabsy Chaiton, Rabbi Michael Druin and Mrs Druin, the Bochurim and members of the Pretoria Hebrew Congregation.
Click here for more2000 @ KINNUS HASHLUCHIM GALA BANQUET
The yearly highlight of the five-day Shluchim convention is the gala banquet. On Sunday night, 2000 of the Shluchim, their supporters and friends gathered for the banquet at the Brooklyn Marriot hotel.
Click here for morePostville elects Goldsmith over write-in candidate Postville: A candidate whose midterm appointment raised national controversy this spring was easily elected Tuesday to fill a vacancy left when Dale “Whitey” Meyer died earlier this year.
Click here for moreJEWISH MUSEUM SUES CONTRACTORS
November 8, 2001 -- The founders of the Jewish Children's Museum, under construction in Crown Heights, are suing two contractors for $3.5 million, claiming they did shoddy work, delayed construction and interfered with the facility's ability to get city funding.Click here for moreBIBI IN THE UNITED KINGDOM
Former Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu dleivered speeches last week in Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool and Glasgow. SNS has obtained some excerpts from his speech to more than 600 guests at the Manchester UJIA (United Joint Israel Appeal) dinner.
Click here for moreKFI rabbi delivers Torah wisdom w/ a Brook. flair It’s late on Sunday evening at KFI 640 AM’s Koreatown station, and within the confines of an overly bright fluorescent-lit radio booth, a tall man with Phil Donahue-white hair and a scraggly reddish beard worthy of the Norse god Thor sits alone at the mike.
Click here for moreTradition takes to the road A “sukkah on wheels” visited local grocery stores recently, bringing a Jewish holiday tradition to Jews in Gurnee and Grayslake.
Click here for moreA Wolf working for world peace Rabbi Laibl Wolf is the product of an ancient tradition whose personal beliefs are identified with the New Age movement.
Soon after Rosh Hashanah rolls around, a new van sponsored by the Jewish community of Great Neck, NY, will be rolling around the cold Ukrainian avenues staffed with counselors from Tzivos Hashem's orphanages, who will feed street children and try to coax them off the streets.
Click here for moreLawyer charges Hollywood $39,000....
HOLLYWOOD, FL · The lawyer hired by Commissioner Sal Oliveri to help keep an Orthodox Jewish congregation out of Hollywood Hills has charged the city $39,000, including $1,600 for his conversations with Oliveri and $7,000 for an accident reconstruction expert.Click here for moreLIMITED EDITION MODEL OF 770 GOES ON SALE
Thanks to Tsadok and Shari Blok, now even the hobby of model railroading
has a Jewish angle. The couple have not only opened Israel's first model
railroad store, they are also starting to market models of buildings with
Jewish significance.
Click here for moreDual Loyalties? Why won't Jewish organizations call Bush on his terrorist hypocrisy?
America and Israel seemed to have made up in the last week after a serious diplomatic row. Prime Minister Sharon said that the world should repeat the dreadful mistake of 1938, when Europe decided to sacrifice Czechoslovakia to the Nazis. The White House reacted strongly to the remarks. Sharon made a conciliatory statement and the spat was resolved.
Click here for moreShmenee Atzeres & Simchas Torah Roundup CROWN HEIGHTS (SNS) -- What a difference a couple of hours makes. Up until the early afternoon on Hoyshana Rabba there was a large Hoyshanos-4-sale location on the corner of Eastern Parkway and Kingston Ave. doing business. Well, a few hours later, when everyone coming to Shul for Mincha, all one saw was a table with dozens of Hoyshanos and about 10 buckets filled with Hoyshanos, no sellers and no buyers. It was a stark contrast to Hoyshana Rabba 5761, when by mid morning there were no Hoyshanos to be found
Click here for moreSukkot-mobile brings holiday to you ``We dont wait for Jews to come to us to celebrate Sukkot, we come to them,'' says Rabbi Zev Katz, an enthusiastic 28-year-old, from his traveling Sukkot-mobile.
Click here for moreKosher in the 'city of fantasy' (October 10) - Some Jewish tourists find religious roots in a city more noted for romantic canals and splendid museums.
Click here for more‘Angel’ In A Black Hat Director of Coney Island JCC among those honored by borough president for exemplary public service.
On an average day, the Jewish Community Council of Greater Coney Island doles out about 1,000 meals to frail elderly clients at four senior centers. The agency provides some 75 seniors with transportation services to medical appointments or shopping. Another 45 seniors receive home-care assistance with laundry and housekeeping, while 25 others receive friendly visiting or telephone reassurance services.
Click here for moreYK WITH CHABAD AROUND THE WORLD #2
Aspen, CO
Chabad of Aspen, Colorado
Services were held @ the Historic Hotel Jerome
KN, S, M, N, Melly Light Click here for moreYom Kippur prayers have added meaning HOBOKEN - With the World Trade Center tragedy weighing heavily on their minds, about 30 members of the two-week-old Chabad of Hoboken joined in prayer to end Yom Kippur last night and break their fast communally.
Click here for moreYOM KIPPUR AROUND THE WORLD WITH CHABAD UPDATE #1
Southwest Broward, FL
Services were held @ Wyndham Resort & Spa
650 men, women, and children
KN - Cantor Binyomin Barsheshes
S - Rabbi Yerachmiel Andrusier
MU & N- Cantor Binyomin Barsheshes
MY - The President of the Shul David Amitov bought Maftir Yonah for 110 X Chai.Click here for moreKaporos, Erev & Yom Kippur in Crown Heights
CROWN HEIGHTS (SNS) -- Kaporos @ The National Committee for Furtherance of Jewish Education was Boruch Hashem very successful this year, with enough chickens for everyone. Click here for moreAn added focus for Yom Kippur The holiest of Jewish observances will remember victims of the terrorist attacks.
Yom Kippur, the most holy observance of the year for Jews, begins tonight at sundown, and one ancient tradition will take on extra meaning as America mourns.
Ahmed Rizk carefully unsheathed a glinting new boning knife for Rabbi Herschel Finman to inspect. Would it have nicks that would disqualify it from use?
Click here for moreROSH HASHANA AROUND THE WORLD WITH CHABAD UPDATE#2
Well, it took a couple of days but we're very happy to present you with our second update of Rosh Hashana around the world with Chabad. In this installment you'll get a very small glimpse of Rosh Hashana @ 47 more Chabad houses & Shuls around the world.
Click here for moreROSH HASHANA AROUND THE WORLD WITH CHABAD CROWN HEIGHTS (SNS) --Yesterday we brought you the news from 770, the Rebbe's room, the Ohel and the Kollel Minyan. Today, we are pleased to bring you our 1st installment of Rosh Hashana around the world with Chabad. In this installment you'll get a very small glimpse of Rosh Hashana @ 46 Chabad houses & Shuls around the world.
Click here for morePain, rebirth for Weston synagogue
Worshipers at Chabad of Weston will file into a new home today for a service intended to mark a new beginning.Click here for moreRosh Hashana in Crown Heights
CROWN HEIGHTS (SNS) -- It was a very nice Rosh Hashana around Crown Heights. The weather on both days was B"H good and all the Shuls, especially 770, were packed with people. In addition there were hundreds of guests from all over the world who came to spend the month of Tishray in the Rebbe's Daled Amos.Click here for moreSombre start to Jewish New Year Torah scholars contemplate questions of vengeance, retaliation and terrorism
In the story of Exodus, even after the Israelite slaves safely crossed the parted waters of the Red Sea, they weren't allowed to see their Egyptian captors dying behind them.
We have all been shocked and appalled by the horrifying actions of terrorists over the recent months. We have equally been wrenched with pain and overflowing with commiseration for the victims of these atrocities. We have mourned alongside the families of the fallen, for those who have been killed in these murderous outrages.
Chabad of the Lehigh Valley turned the ancient art of shofar-making into child's play Sunday, giving children an opportunity to saw, sand and shellac the horns of the High Holidays.
Click here for moreThe Paradox of the Rabbi's Wife
A week can easily pass without Doba Levin stepping off the front porch of her squat two-story Brooklyn home. There is little need to; the house, dense with the lives of her 14 children and any number of her neighborhood's large Russian immigrant population, constitutes, if not a world of its own, at least an ecosystem. Click here for moreSHARON MAKES HISTORIC VISIT TO MARINA ROSHA More then 2,000 guests filled the Shul in Marina Rosha on Wednesday along with 100 representatives of the Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS, The Chief Rabbi of Russia Rabbi Berel Lazar, Levi Leviev the President of the Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS along with many public officials and dignitaries were on hand to greet the prime minister of Israel Ariel Sharon during his historic visit to Marina Rosha.
Click here for moreA Kollel Comes To The East Village After successful kids’ program, Community Synagogue’s ‘Rabbi Naftali’ reaches out
For the past five years, Rabbi Naftali Rotenstreich focused on the Jewish children of the East Village. He established the Hi-Tech Talmud Torah at his synagogue on East Sixth Street and watched it blossom into several locations throughout Manhattan. He witnessed his synagogue membership growing fruitful and multiplying with young families.
Click here for moreYomim Noraim @ the Wyndham Resort
How can the High Holidays be meaningful, insightful and even fun? Chabad has an answer. For the seventh year Chabad will conduct High Holidays Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur at the beautiful Bonaventure Wyndham Resort and Spa in Ft. Lauderdale, FL.Click here for moreMerkos Shlichus in the Midlands, England This summer Lubavitch in the Midlands, England, arranged for two bochurim to go on Merkos
Shlichus around the sleepy towns of rural England.
Click here for moreEASTERN PARKWAY UPDATE
Here it is 2001, or 5761 by Jewish reckoning. Modern times indeed. Somehow life in this futuristic date still feels very much the same. We’re not zooming around in air cars or vacationing on Venus, nor are we living in a world vastly transformed by science and technology. Outside of computers and cell phones, everything else is pretty much as it was. World peace, an end to hunger and poverty and the defeat of the many diseases that plague humanity remain elusive dreams for a distant future. On the bright side, the sun still rises each morning on all G-d’s children and presents us all with a brand new day to do with as we please, a pretty neat arrangement.
Click here for moreDESERT TORAH ACADEMY OPENS WITH A BANG
August 27, 2001 marked the opening of a new school year at Chabad of Southern Nevada' Desert Torah Academy and Torah Tots Preschool. Mrs. Dina Harlig, School Director, happily announced that its enrollment this year is up 20% over last year bringing the total enrollment in only its 3rd year of operation to 115 children. When asked what she attributed the increase in enrollment to, she answered that word is spreading through the community about the high quality of the program at Desert Torah Academy.Click here for moreBochurim evicted from Novokachalensk, Russia
In the Far East of Russia, just a few kilometers away from the Chinese border, on the Khanka Lake, a beautiful Jewish Camp with 96 children was well underway. Like many such camps all over the former USSR sponsored by Or Avner, the camp was running beautifully. The children were learning about Judaism and having a great time with their counselors participating in many exciting activities, swimming, hikes etc.
Click here for moreRabbi finds anti-Semitic note on synagogue door
FORT LEE -- A note containing a depiction of Yasser Arafat and a threat to kill Jews was placed on the door of the Chabad of Fort Lee synagogue and found during Sabbath services Friday. Click here for moreBook of Tanya makes Jewish philosophy accessible It might take an average reader little more than a week to read an 814-page book.
Michael Doochin and Rabbi Yitzchok Tiechtel of Congregation Beit Tefilah in Bellevue took more than three years to read 814 pages.
The Shabbos Nachamu tradition continues as final plans are in place for the Moses and Aaron Foundation’s 5th Annual Chazak Concert. Close to 4000 people are expected to attend the concert Motzei Shabbos Nachamu, August 4, at the Monticello Raceway in the Catskills, in upstate New York.
Click here for more'My baby...my baby'
The 23-month-old son of a rabbi was safely reunited with his mother Tuesday afternoon after police chased down a minivan stolen on the Gold Coast.
''He stole my baby, my baby!'' Rivka Benhiyoun screamed after a thief drove off in her gold Plymouth Town & Country about 12:15 p.m. with her son, Levi, strapped in a car seat.
Click here for moreGLOBAL MITZVAH CAMPAIGN FOR ISRAEL LAUNCHED
At the Solidarity Rally held this past Sunday for the People of Israel today,
in Los Angeles, CA West Coast Chabad Lubavitch, championed the power
of mitzvahs as it launched a global campaign to unite the world through
acts of goodness and kindness. In this crucial time, when the very
existence of our people is being called into question, we must unite
through that which has kept us together throughout our history, exclaimed
Rabbi Boruch Shlomo Cunin, director of West Coast Chabad Lubavitch.Click here for moreDeputy Prime Minister Praises GJARN Humanitarian aid as a partnership for development with the American people
MoscowDeputy Prime Minister Valentina Matvienko presented an award on behalf of the Humanitarian Commission of the Russian Federation last week thanking and commending the Global Jewish Assistance and Relief Network (GJARN) for distributing significant humanitarian aid throughout Russia to those who most need additional food supplies.
Click here for morePUTIN PRESSURE ON RUSSIA'S JEWS RUSSIAN President Vladimir Putin's assault on his nation's fragile civic freedoms targets not just secular dissidents but religious believers. Consider his meddling in the Jewish community's internal affairs.
Click here for moreLove of God, Torah HISTORY: The Chabad of Rancho Mirage -- Torah Oasis was formed four years ago, with all services conducted at Rabbi Shimon Posner’s four-acre homesite. Services remain within the Talmud’s perimeter, yet are geared toward those with minimal knowledge of the Hebrew language. Contained within the prayer book are English translations as well as transliterations of the songs, enabling everyone to follow along. Click here for moreNewYork Heros in Hebron
Shalom,
I'd like to tell you this evening about an example of heroism.
Two weeks ago a group of seven young women associated with the Chabad
Lubavitch movement arrived here, all from Brooklyn, New York. Their
mission: to volunteer in Hebron for two weeks.
Click here for moreChabad's airport activities to be restricted
JERUSALEM (July 23) - The Airports Authority has made a commitment to restrict and supervise the activities of the Chabad representatives at Ben-Gurion Airport. Click here for moreWhere No Ultra-Orthodox Jew Has Gone Before His companies may have lost 90 percent of their value in recent setbacks, but Yossel Gutnick remains a formidable force in Australian society. And he may well have created a model for a whole new mode of ultra-Orthodox behavior.
Until now the primary impact that the ultra Orthodox Australian mining magnate Joseph Gutnick has had on Israel and the Jewish world has been political. The "Netanyahu Is Good for the Jews" campaign he financed will be remembered for employing one of the most controversial slogans of the 1996 Israeli elections and has even been credited by some analysts with turning the tide in Bibi's favor.
If you haven't heard of the Chabad-Lubavitch, you may soon.
The Chabad-Lubavitch is a Jewish movement with over 2,500 institutions, each usually including a synagogue, library and recreation rooms, in 60 countries.
For the last few years, it has sent rabbinical students and representatives from the Lubavitch World Headquarters in Brooklyn to the Saratoga County and Warren County areas in New York to help set up new synagogues and find ways to reach Jewish residents.
Click here for moreRabbis educate shoppers on keys to eating kosher TORRINGTON - Representatives from the Litchfield County Jewish Community Center have been on hand at the Price Chopper in Torrington all week to help celebrate Kosher Week.
Click here for moreRussian shul's revival St Petersburg's Jews can once again pray in the city's famed Choral Synagogue, after the first stage of a $5-million restoration project sponsored by the widow of Edmond Safra.
Click here for moreChatt Kosher
One of the best-known addresses for Web-surfers' queries is AskJeeves.com, whose mascot is a know-it-all butler in a pinstriped suit. Users type a question on virtually any topic ("Who built the pyramids?"), click on the "ask" button and receive a number of relevant links (www.gizapyramid.com, Nova Online, "Seven Wonders Home Page").Click here for moreJewish cohousing and farm planned Wednesday, July 11, 2001 -- AMHERST - A group of Jewish families is planning a cohousing community and farm that would use agricultural practices derived from the Old Testament.
Click here for morePROJECT SHLICHUS - IN THE REBBE’S CAMP It was Thursday 14 Tammuz @ 2:05 PM, the ground shook in Gan Yisroel as some 20 flags were proudly waved.
Gan Yisroel was announcing their latest event – “Project Shlichus”! A fiery speech was delivered by H.C.B.H. about the work of the Shluchim, immediately following, the camp was allowed to stand in their place and begin marching as they sang “From 770”. As the singing continued the stage curtains opened revealing the counselors waving flags of their newly “acquired” country or state.
Click here for moreA mini-melting pot in Iowa Diversity: Longtime residents of tiny Postville and their new Jewish and immigrant neighbors come to grips on how to come together
POSTVILLE, Iowa -- This is a town where on one side of the street, an Israeli can get halvah, while on the other a Mexican can wire money back home. A town where you can hear both the Norwegian uff da and the Yiddish oy vey in a single office. A town of just 2,300 residents, but more than 20 ethnic groups.
Click here for moreBibi to open Lubavitch 'HQ' FORMER Israeli Prime Minister Binyarnin Netanyahu will officially open
Melbourne's replica of the Luhavitch headquarters on Sunday, 12 August,
Rabbi Joseph Gutnick announced this week.Click here for moreAsk Moses and You Shall Receive Chabad’s new Web site provides answers to all things Jewish 24/6
According to the Rabbi Chaim Cunin, director of AskMoses.com, the late Lubavitcher Rebbe Menachem Schneerson anticipated the Internet and the role it would play in our everyday lives as far back as the late 1970s. But it was not until 1998, when Chabad Lubavitch supporter Yuri Pikover reiterated the importance of maintaining an online presence, that Cunin and his staff at Chabad’s headquarters took notice.
Click here for moreRussia's chief rabbi visits Toronto
TORONTO - Rabbi Berel Lazar has met Vladimir Putin 25 times and he believes he now can account for the Russian president's "strong feelings for the Jewish community."Click here for moreAnd the selectmen said, let there be lights
A menorah may be displayed on the downtown rotary during Hanukkah under a decision by the Board of Selectmen that also will allow the town to continue its annual tree-lighting ceremony, which includes appearances by Santa Claus and X-mas caroling. Click here for moreThe Visit to the Ohel "The righteous are greater after their death than in their lifetime." Talmud Chulin 7b
An estimated 40,000 Jews of every stripe came to Brooklyn, New York on June 24, 2001 to mark the seventh anniversary of the passing of Rebbe Menachem M. Schneerson. We came from Israel, Miami, Montreal, the metropolitan Washington, DC region and other places to visit the Ohel of the Rebbe. The term Ohel (lit. "tent") refers to the structure built over the resting place of a righteous person. We all came for the same reason – to pray at the Ohel, and to tap into the life energy of this Tzaddik who embodied faith, awe and love of G-d.
Click here for moreChabad's humanitarian aid plan in former USSR About 18,050 needy Jewish families throughout the former Soviet Union are to receive subsidised food packages under a $1.5-million aid project launched this month by the region’s Federation of Jewish Communities.
Click here for moreThe Rebbe, Seven Years After A gentle midnight rain fell over the Lubavitcher rebbe’s grave, streaking the ink on thousands of letters that blanketed him on his seventh yahrtzeit last Saturday night and Sunday. Small candles burned on narrow shelves, where as many as 40,000 visitors, said Lubavitch leaders, made the pilgrimage to the resting place of Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson.
Click here for moreRabbi's lawyer: This case is about First Amendment
Did you hear the one about the code-enforcement inspector who ordered an Orthodox Jewish family to stop praying in the privacy of its own home?
Click here for moreTHOUSANDS PARTICIPATE IN LEVI & MIRIAM'S CHASSUNA Last week, on Wednesday night the 29th of Sivan 5761, thousands of Shmais.com fans and subscribers logged on to Shmais.com, to watch a historic live webcast of the wedding of the CEO to Miriam Weiszner in Cleveland, OH. The webcast was made possible thanks to the hard work and effort of the Chosons close friend Moshe Berghoff.
Click here for moreGimmel Tammuz at the Ohel The NYPD estimated that in all, 30,000 Lubavitcher Hasidim, and admirers and supporters of the
Lubavitch movement from the world over, converged on Montefiore Cemetery in
the Cambria Heights section of Queens, New York on Friday, Motzei Shabbos, Sunday & Monday to pay their
respects to the late Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneersohn. The
day marked Gimmel Tammuz, or the third day of the Hebrew month of Tammuz,
and the seventh anniversary of the grand Rabbi’s passing in June of 1994.
Click here for moreIsrael, here they come (June 21) - Despite the security situation, thousands of American Jewish teenagers are still coming to visit Israel this summer.
Despite continued violence and the recent killings of more than 20 young club goers in Tel Aviv, thousands of teenagers are planning to visit Israel this summer on tours sponsored by Orthodox, Conservative and secular Zionist movements in the US.
"I was once privileged to hear from my father-in-law (the previous Lubavitcher Rebbe) that his father was once asked, ‘What is a Chabad-Lubavitch chasid?’
He replied, ‘A chasid is like a street- lamp lighter.’ In olden days, there was a person in every town who would light the street-lamps with a light he carried at the end of a long pole. On the street corners, the lamps were there in readiness, waiting to be lit; sometimes, however, the lamps are not as easily accessible. There are lamps in forsaken places, in deserts, or at sea. There must be someone to light even those lamps, so that they may fulfill their purpose and light up the paths of others.” Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the Lubavitcher Rebbe
Ben-Gurion University professor Velvel Green coined a phrase that became an instant classic several years ago when he said, “Sooner or later, we’ll land an astronaut on Mars, and he’ll be met there by a Lubavitcher shaliach.”
Click here for moreDirections from Crown Heights to Cleveland Holland tunnel to Interstate 280 West. When you exit the tunnel keep to your LEFT and you will be placed right away on the ‘1 - 9’ (One and nine), which will be the Pulasky Skyway.
Click here for moreGOV SEEKS STIFFER LAWS FOR DEADLY ASSAULTS
Gov. Pataki, citing the tragic death of a rabbi who was punched in the face at a Manhattan parking lot, is proposing a tough new law for certain assaults, The Post has learned.
Click here for moreI'm sending my children to Jerusalem If I forget Jerusalem let my right hand be severed." Those are the words of the great Jewish poet and philosopher Yehuda Halevi. It seems that many American-Jewish organizations have forgotten those immortal words.
Click here for moreMaking the cut: An upsherenish .... Making the cut: An upsherenish is one of the Jewish traditions a Chabad rabbi is bringing to the South Hills
Levi Rosenblum, 3, sat peacefully on the tiny podium made just for him and munched popcorn from a paper cup in the moments before his official birthday celebration was to begin at the Mt. Lebanon Recreation Center.
Click here for moreNY governor wants 'terrorism' as a new state crime
NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York State Gov. George Pataki Thursday proposed a new bill to make terrorism a state crime punishable by death, saying state prosecutors needed the same tools their federal counterparts now have. Click here for moreHandwritten scroll `defines' Jewish community
After 10 months of work by a scribe in Israel, the Ottawa
Torah Centre Chabad received its centrepiece -- a Torah -- that was
welcomed with reverence and celebration yesterday. Click here for moreFor Heaven's Sake - Revelation at 37,000 Feet
The other day I was returning from the Mid-West having attended the marriage of my niece in Detroit, Michigan. The wedding party returning consisted of my father, a prominent American Spiritual Leader for the past 50 years and my two older brothers, one, Joseph Isaac a Rabbi from Nice, France and the other, Eli, a Rabbi and writer from the South Bay area of California who is also a religion columnist for the Knight-Ridder Syndicate. My brother Eli, a very outgoing gentleman, struck up an animated conversation with his fellow traveler seated alongside who identified himself as Joshua from Anchorage, Alaska. Click here for moreWhat you can do to help Israel Did you know that since the unilateral ceasefire agreement between Israel and the PLO, 100 bombs went off in different parts of Israel? Every day, stones and bullets kill, maim and wound people in Israel?
Click here for moreLubavitch leading lights meet for 'lively debate'
Some of the leading lights of Lubavitch gathered in Britain at the weekend for a three-day learning fest.
Click here for moreQantas service not all kosher The Equal Opportunity Commission has ordered Qantas to meet one of Melbourne's most prominent orthodox Jewish families today to sort out a row about a kosher meal that never was.
Click here for moreSynagogue members celebrate new Torah
WALNUT CREEK -- The morning quiet of a well-tended neighborhood near downtown was transformed by rollicking celebration Sunday as members of a local synagogue rejoiced in their faith and unveiled a new handwritten Torah.Click here for moreKINNUS BOCHURIM SHLUCHIM TO ISRAEL IN TZFAS
This Motzei Shabbos concluded a highly successful and uplifting Kinnus
Hashluchim for the Shluchim in Yeshivas in Eretz Yisroel. The Shluchim were
sent this year from Oholei Torah, Morristown and Montreal and are in Kfar
Chabad, Toras Emes(Yerushalayim), Bnei Brak and Tzfas. Click here for moreSHAVUOS IN CROWN HEIGHTS - SNS EXCLUSIVE
CROWN HEIGHTS, NY (SNS) -- Despite raining a number of times during the two days it was a very nice Yom Tov here in Crown Heights. Hundreds of guests and many Rabbonim from around the world came to celebrate Shavuos.
Click here for moreMASSIVE KIDUSH LUBAVITCH IN ENGLAND At 10:00am last Tuesday morning, Lubavitch's Mobile center was seen puling in to the front gates of Buckingham palace just before the Changing of the Guard. Inside was Rabbi Nachman Sudak - The Rebbe's Shliach to Britain accompanied by his wife, His colleague Rabbi Faivish Vogel, And his son Rabbi Leivi Sudak. Rabbi Sudak was to be invested by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II as OBE (Officer British Empire).
Click here for moreThe wars of the Jews in Russia More than 110 years after Tsar Alexander III ordered the golden Magen David (Star of David) removed from the central Choral Synagogue in Moscow, it once again adorns the renovated building's domed roof.The opening ceremony of the renovated Choral Synagogue was attended by the Mayor of Moscow, Yuri Luzhkov, by the Israeli and American ambassadors to Russia, and by a Russian Orthodox priest.
Click here for moreHUNDREDS @ OHOLEI TORAH DINNER
An estimated crowd of 700 people participated Sunday night the 27th of Iyar in the Gala Dedication Dinner for the new Raitport Bais Medrash in Oholei Torah at 667 Eastern Parkway.
Click here for moreRussia's Lubavitch fights Facing "Messianic Jewish" challenge, Russia's Lubavitch swings into actionMOSCOW, May 21 (JTA) — When two youngsters blocked a bus traveling in downtown Minsk recently, they turned around so the passengers could read the words on the backs of their shirts: Jews for Jesus, written in Russian.
Click here for moreSHABBOS SHEKULO MOSHIACH
This past Shabbos saw a couple hundred Lubavitchers converge on the Homowack Hotel
in upstate New York for Shabbos Shekulo Moshiach. Featured speakers included Rabbi Yossi Jacobson and Rabbi Shloma Majeski.Click here for moreANOTHER NASTY ARTICLE BY NORMAN LE-BRECH-T Lubavitch: Judaism's global brand name
Let's face a few more facts about our good friends in Lubavitch, since they would appear to have some difficulty separating myth from reality. Five weeks ago, I argued that Chabad was turning hostile and antithetical to our faith - not least in its proclamation of the late Rebbe as the living Messiah.
Click here for moreChampagne Wishes & Literacy Dreams
So sacred is study in Jewish life that, throughout the ages, scholars have celebrated the conclusion of studying a tractate of the Talmud or Mishnah with a siyyum — literally, a “completion.” Click here for moreLAG B'OMER IN POSTVILLE
After a number of rainy days, Lag B'omer began with a barbeque at the
shul at 6:00pm Thursday evening. About 10 minutes after the barbeque was
lit, we had a deluge of rain that completely erased any hopes for an
early start. B"H after about an hour, the rain slowed down enough to be
able to light the fire again, and old and young enjoyed the hamburgers
and frankfurters (hot-dogs), courtesy of Agriprocessors, (also known as
The Rubashkin brothers).Click here for moreRABBI YITZCHOK MEIR KAGAN OBM In his position as Associate Director of Lubavitch of Michigan beginning in the late 1960's, Rabbi Kagan laid the groundwork, andworked with communities of the following cities to establish aLubavitch presence and bring their own Shluchim: Ann Arbor, Flint,Grand Rapids, West Bloomfield and Farmington, Michigan as well as Toledo, Ohio.Click here for moreMillionaire Rabbi Gutnik's empire totters
The future of the Rabbi Joseph Gutnik's Australian Centaur Mining Exploration - a company specializing in exploring for gold and nickel - hangs in the balance. Australian newspapers yesterday reported that receivers for the company were meeting to decide the company's fate. Click here for moreThousands @ Historic Lag B’omer Parade in B.P.
On Friday May 11, the children of Boro Park were treated to their first
Lag B’omer parade and outing. According to the custom instituted by the
Lubavitcher Rebbe.
Click here for moreMan who killed father of 8 sentenced to 4 years
NEW YORK (AP) - A man who punched a parking lot manager and father of eight, causing his death, was sentenced Monday to four years in prison after apologizing ''for the wrong I've done and the pain I've caused.''
Click here for moreDIDAN NOTZACH IN HOLLYWOOD! Jewish congregation wins right to worship in Hollywood house
HOLLYWOOD, FL · An Orthodox Jewish congregation won the right Thursday to worship in a residential home, overcoming questions about traffic, parking and its own shoddy treatment of the property.<
Click here for moreTO RUSSIA WITH LOVE
Detroit native is on a mission to awaken the dormant Jew inside many in the
former Soviet Union.
Last year, on a flight to Siberia, Detroit-area native Avraham Berkowitz did
something he usually does not like to do when in the former Soviet Union: He
davened in the open.
Click here for moreGroundbreaking set for new Jewish center
Groundbreaking is Sunday for a new Jewish center and mikvah (ceremonial spa) being built by the Lubavitch Jewish Center of Alaska/Congregation Shomrei Ohr. Click here for moreYoung victims - Chernobyl blast find hope in Israe KFAR CHABAD, Israel -- In a sparse white room with a single bed and an old table, the housemother hands the little girl the telephone. The girl puts the receiver up to her ear, brushing back long brown locks. Timidly, she speaks into a mouthpiece that covers most of her tiny face.
Click here for moreRabbi Chaim Mordechai Isaac Hodakov OBM Thursday the 3rd of Iyar marks 8 years since the passing of Rabbi Chaim Mordechai Isaac Hodakov. Rabbi Hodakov served as Menahel of "Machne Yisroel", "Merkos L'Inyonei Chinuch", Chief secretary of the Rebbe, and was the "Yoshev Rosh" of "Agudas Chassidei Chabad Ha'Olomis".
May his Neshama have an aliya. Vehukeetzu veranenu shochnay ufur vehu besochom!
POSTVILLE - After months of speculation, a flurry of hate mail and a record voting turnout, a city councilman kept his seat here Tuesday.
Voters streamed into the Citizen's Community Center all day, and by day's end, nearly 52 percent of the town's 1,047 registered voters cast ballots. Voters chose ultra-orthodox Lubavitcher Jew Aaron Goldsmith by a 325-to-216 margin.
After the tremendous success of last summer's
program, preparations are in full gear for an experience that every young
bochur, will enjoy and gain from tremendously.
Click here for moreBlacks, Jews Plan Riot Anniversary NEW YORK (AP) - A decade after Crown Heights was torn apart by rioting over the deaths of a black boy and a Jewish man, blacks and Jews are planning a joint commemoration to show that their neighborhood is no longer a symbol of racial and religious strife.
Click here for moreHISTORY IN CLEVELAND
Jewish leaders mend rift over Beachwood campus
BEACHWOOD - Bulldozers have finally begun to fulfill decades-old dreams of an Orthodox Jewish hub here, and a suburb once torn by the plan seems to be mending.
It would appear that it is not only the lunatic fringe of Lubavitch who are trying to resurrect the dead. The Jewish Chronicle too would wish us to believe that Chaim Bermant has been reincarnated in the form of Norman Lebrecht.<
(April 23) - Israeli backpackers pass a kosher Pessah in the Far East.
Israeli backpackers in the Far East know that Habad throws a wild Pessah Seder.
Rabbi Yosef Chaim Kantor leans forward in his chair, his sleeves rolled up against the 38¼C heat outside. "How many Haggadot do they need in Chiang Mai? 250?
Click here for moreIs There Truth in Archaeology?
Pack up your Passover dishes for good. The Exodus, according to some modern university scholars and liberal rabbis, never really happened. That’s what the Los Angeles Times told us in great detail last week in a long article published at the end of the holiday. But the piece, while raising some important questions, skirts some of the most fundamental issues.Click here for moreJewish leader blasts Russian MP for Holocaust rem.
MOSCOW (Reuters) - A prominent Russian Jewish leader denounced nationalist politician Vladimir Zhirinovsky on Thursday for comments in parliament when he tried to stop members honoring Holocaust victims. Click here for moreWe've the good, the Chabad and the ugly
The custom in my community is to remain seated for Kaddish - all, of course, except for the ones who recite it. The origins of this sedentary quirk are ancient and obscure. Some wags have suggested that it was designed to confuse visiting Chief Rabbis, one of whom eloquently graced our pulpit on the first morning of Passover.
With 4,500 institutions throughout the world, including Israel, Africa, Australia, the Far East and the Former Soviet Union, chances are that you're never too far away from a Chabad-Lubavitch center.
In Connecticut, there are more than a dozen centers throughout the state.
Click here for moreCrown H. Rears Its Head in N.Y. Mayor's Race
At a recent New York City mayoral forum hosted by a leading Orthodox organization, a worried audience member singled out the borough president of the Bronx, Fernando Ferrer.Click here for morePRICES IN CROWN HEIGHTS CONTINUED SNS ED. The response to the e-mail the other day regarding "Prices in Crown heights" has brought a bunch of responses & follow-ups. Below we are presenting a few of them. If you have comments on this issue please feel free to e-mail and we will Bli Neder post them.
E-MAIL#1
I am one of the lucky people who have a car. Once I'm in the car already
it's no big deal for me to shop out of the neighborhood...
Click here for moreIn Its Own Backyard
Chabad turns discerning eye to local needs.
Five years ago Richard Harrow, a 60-year-old management consultant in Hollis Hills, was a regular at his nearby Young Israel when a Chabad center opened next door. Soon he found himself getting to know Rabbi Yerachmiel Zalmanov, Chabad’s energetic young rabbi, who often sat next to him at Young Israel.
Click here for more DOMINICA HOLDS ITS FIRST PESACH SEDER The students at Ross University School of Medicine are studying hard for
their exams this week. As usual in Medical Schools throughout the world,
tensions run high before exams. But amidst all the turmoil, there was an
oasis of calm. About 35 Jewish students got together on Pesach evening to
celebrate a 3000 year old rite. The seder was welcomed by all with
enthusiasm and is considered by many to be the most inspirational event on
the Caribbean Island.
Click here for moreMiracles in Nepal The following Article was written by Moran Kushnir, one of the hundreds of Israeli backpackers who attended the world renowned Seder in Katmandu, Nepal. the artilced appeared on COL and was translated to English by Eli Chaimson.
Two miracles occurred in preparation for the Seder is Katmandu, Nepal.
The first: About a half a year ago, Rabbi Yechezkel Lifshitz - Shliach in Nepal, organized a container loaded with Kosher for Pesach items,
Click here for moreOrthodox seek variance for rabbi's home
TENAFLY -- Members of the borough's Orthodox Jewish community are asking that their rabbi be allowed to live across the street from the temple on Harold Street. Click here for morePESACH WITH CHABAD AROUND THE WORLD Zurich, Switzerland
There was a Huge seder on the "Gold Coast" side of Lake Zurich in the largest city in the Switzerland and a record 150 people showed up for the seder at the Chabad House. "we were only expecting 85" said Rabbi Shalom Ber Rosenfeld shliach of Chabad of the Gold Coast.
Click here for moreThousands @ Sedarim across the Crimean Republic
‘Never before have so many people celebrated Pesach in such a meaningful way,’ was the comment of the Yalta Head of Community at the end of the first night Seder! ‘Last year I was in Israel and made the Seder with my brother,’ commented the Yevpatoria Director of Privat Bank, ‘but it was this year, in Yevpatoria, that I really learned what Pesach means.’
Click here for moreKeeping kosher to be an out-of-this-world experien Kosher food is about to boldly go where kosher food has never gone before.
In NASA's 40 years flying into space, there have been a few Jewish astronauts -- such as Judith Resnick, who died in the Challenger shuttle explosion in 1986, and David Wolf, who just returned from the Endeavour flight. But no one has requested kosher food.
Click here for morePesach Comes Alive
(SNS ED. For two weeks from March 14-28, Chabad Headquarters in Westwood, California came alive as over 10,000 children k"ah from all over California experienced the journey out of Egypt with "EXODUS". B"H it was a massive Kiddush Lubavitch. Special thanks to Dov Newman, Yanky Benjaminson, Eitan Webb and the dozens of Bochurim many of them from 770, who helped out tremendously working day and night to ensure its success.)
The Circuit couldn’t wait for seders to relive the thrilling story of Exodus, so we went back in time to experience it in person.
Jews around the world will gather in homes at sunset Saturday to retell an event which occurred 33 centuries ago in Egypt.<
Click here for moreCenter To Serve Needs Of Jews GLASTONBURY - Just in time for Passover, the international Chabad-Lubavitch organization, with 4,500 institutions worldwide, has opened a center to serve Jews in eastern Connecticut.
Click here for moreA Seder meal in a Communist land Since the last night of my two-week business trip to China overlapped with the first night of Passover, I wanted to find a place where I could celebrate and, I hoped, meet Chinese Jews. I was thrilled when a friend gave me the e-mail address of Rabbi Shalom and Dina Greenberg in Shanghai. The next thing I knew, my colleagues and I had been invited to join the Jewish Community of Shanghai at its annual family Seder.
Click here for moreSHABBOS HAGADOL & FIRST DAYS PESACH IN CROWN HEIGHTS
SNS EXCLUSIVE
CROWN HEIGHTS, NY (SNS) -- Hundreds of guests from around the world spent Shabbos Hagadol and the first days of Pesach in Crown Heights.
There was 1 Sholom Zochor friday Night for the Gorman twin boys.
Shabbos Morning Shachris downstairs & in the Rebbe's room started @ 8:00am.
Click here for moreOrthodox Leader Shocked at Reform Call to Deny Mat The following was released by the National Council of Young Israel
A letter by a leader of Reform Judaism directing members of the
movement not to donate to the matzah fund of Russian Chief Rabbi Berel
Lazar was called "immoral" by the professional head of the Young Israel
movement. Rabbi Pesach Lerner, Executive Vice President of the National
Council of Young Israel, accused the Reform leadership of putting its
organizational interests ahead of the Jewish needs of Russian Jewry.Click here for moreStrictly Kosher Local Jewish community having an easier time sticking to dietary laws throughout the year and on Passover
As recently as a decade ago, keeping kosher in Southern Nevada wasn't easy.
There was the odd kosher restaurant -- or, more likely, the odd restaurant that might be able to throw together a quasi-kosher dish if asked. Supermarkets stocked a few kosher items, but mostly for Passover and usually just a token display of wine, matzo and other staples.
Click here for moreUS rabbi hits FSU Pessah campaign
NEW YORK (April 5) - A Pessah fundraising letter sent out by Russia's chief rabbi aimed at providing Jews with kosher chickens and matza has come under attack by a US Reform leader, who is telling Reform Jews to withhold all donations until the chief rabbi supports pluralism. Click here for moreStore fills Passover needs
Every few minutes, the rabbi's cell phone rings.
"It should be in tonight," he assures yet another customer awaiting the next shipment of kosher-for-Passover specialty items from New York.
He is sitting behind a table at the Passover Pantry, a temporary shop in a Scottsdale strip mall and the brainchild of some transplanted New Yorkers who were disappointed in the Valley's Passover selection.
Click here for moreTeen volunteers playing dual roles Alex Goldberg of Millburn has a new buddy. Someone to spend time with when his sisters are off doing whatever it is that sisters do. Someone he can play soccer and basketball with, and talk to about how much he loves penguins.
Click here for moreNo ‘Crown Heights’ In 2001 Race A decade after pogrom redefined local politics for Jewish community, there is no such pivotal issue on this year’s landscape.
Crown Heights is dead. That’s the consensus among a range of political observers and activists as the first mayoral race in a decade without an issue of pivotal concern in New York’s Jewish community takes shape.
MOSCOW — A feud between Russia's two chief rabbis took a turn for the worse this week when the Kremlin booted one of them off a prestigious national religious council in favor of the other.
Click here for moreA Seder for 4,000!!
You're nervous. Only a few short days until Pesach, and you still have to prepare a Seder
for 10 people. Or 20. Or even, boruch haShem, 30 or more!
Think about this. In a small office on the second floor of the Shul of Bal Harbour, Florida,
Rabbi Menachem Katz is methodically working to prepare a Seder for 4,000.
Click here for moreKINNUS TMIMIM HASHLUCHIM IN ROSTOV After a week of excitement, the Tmimim HaShluchim have now returned to New York after attending a “Kinus HaShluchim”. the Kinnus was for those Tmimim who had been on Shlichus for a time during the previous three years in Rostov-Na-Donu, Russia.
Click here for moreHampstead sued over synagogue Congregation seeks permit to put up building in the north end
A Chabad Lubavitch congregation has taken the town of Hampstead to court to get a permit to build a synagogue in the north end.
Click here for moreStudents learn to make matzah for Passover Most people, even those who don’t celebrate Passover, have heard of matzah. Those flat unleavened crackers known as "the bread of affliction" and "bread of faith" are the centerpiece of the Jewish holiday of Passover. The bread commemorates the Jews’ escape from slavery in Egypt — they didn’t have time to wait for the bread to rise.
Click here for moreSeminaries in Eretz Yisroel
Dear Shmais,
We would greatly appreciate it if you would post this on your website – it is an issue that we feel is extremely important and requires immediate attention. Thank you for your help.
The 10 plagues on Egypt -- including frogs, lice and ferocious beasts -- were being reenacted at the New Haven Hebrew Day School.
Click here for moreA Son's Death Shines Light on Terrorism Seven years ago this month, a gunman intent on hunting and killing Jews opened fire on a van of 15 rabbinical students crossing the Brooklyn Bridge, wounding four. Sixteen-year-old Aaron Halberstam — the oldest of five children, with a promising future in the Lubavitch community — was shot in the head. He died four days later.
Click here for morePart 1 of an Interview with Yossel Gutnick Shmais: You recently came back from a trip to Israel - why did you go to Israel?
Yossel: I have a Shlichus from the Rebbe since 1990 to do what ever I can to ensure a right wing government. There were a number of times in the past where I asked the Rebbe "should I go?" I got numerous answers amongst them was that the "Shluchan Aruch doesn’t change".
Click here for moreKremlin stirs up Jewish anger by naming Lubavitch MOSCOW, March 25 (JTA) — Russian Jewish leaders are speaking out against what is being seen as the Kremlin's most serious attempt yet to decide who represents the country's Jews.
When the Lubavitch movement's chief rabbi in Russia was named last week to a high-profile Kremlin advisory panel that includes leaders of all religions officially recognized by the Russian government, it might have seemed completely predictable.
Chai Center to expand programs with new $1.5 million facility in Dix Hills.
The little house on the prairie will soon be the grand meeting house in town.
After eight years operating in a cramped 800-square-foot building, the Chabad Lubavitch Chai Center in Dix Hills will break ground April 1 on a $1.5 million, 12,000-square-foot facility.
Click here for moreCLOSE TO 500 CELEBRATE @ YOEC Close to 500 people gathered @ Yeshivas Ohr Elchonon Chabad in Los Angeles this past Sunday for a Hachnosas Sefer Torah and Chanukas Bais Medrash for the High school.<
Click here for more'94 Bridge ShootingSurvivor Marries As Nachum Sasonkin lay in a coma — a bullet fired by a madman on the Brooklyn Bridge lodged in his head — his mother promised to someday invite his doctor to the teen's wedding.
Click here for moreFun rises at model bakery March 19, 2001) -- Children are making "fast food" this week in the Model Matzo Bakery at the Jewish Community Center in Brighton.<
Click here for moreHasidic Jews dedicate new synagogue Rain can't dampen the joy at music-filled celebration
The opening of a new Hasidic-Orthodox synagogue in Seattle's View Ridge neighborhood inspired people to sing and dance in the rain yesterday.
Click here for morePurim around the world with Chabad UPDATE#4 BAL HARBOUR, FLORIDA
There were 3 programs with over 500 men women and children for megilla reading and purim program. Before Megilla reading there was a kids program for about 100 children, where hamantashen and masks were made then a fabulous magic show. Afterward there were 2 seperate
megilla readings one for kids in the social hall, and one in the THE SHUL.
Click here for moreDiamond Joe Gutnick's gold mine strikes out SYDNEY, March 16 (Reuters) - With his thick beard, dark garb and controversial political views, mining magnate "Diamond" Joe Gutnick is unmistakeable in the stark Australian outback where he has made and lost fortunes.
Click here for morePurim with Chabad around the world UPDATE#3 ASPEN, COLORADO
Chabad of aspen had a Purim party at the Aspen Square Hotel at the Gondola at the Base of Aspen Mountain. (some of those in attendance skied straight to the party) there were 75 people who enjoyed the Purim slide show, Chinese buffet as well as a DJ and Magic show.
Click here for moreCelebrating history
To teach her students at The Growing Garden Preschool about Purim, teacher Esther Marcus used hand puppets that represented the various characters in the Megillah, the biblical story of the Jewish holiday.
Click here for moreYESHIVA GEDOLA OF LONDON FINED FOR TOO MUCH NOISE
A BOARDING school has been prosecuted for breaking “acceptable” noise levels after neighbours complained that pupils were keeping them awake at night.
Click here for morePurim with Chabad around the world UPDATE#2 SANTA FE, NEW MEXICO
About 120 people gathered in the Hilton Hotel of Santa Fe for a Chinese
Purim dinner Thursday Night.<
Click here for morePURIMFESTS PROLIFERATE INFECTIOUS JOY ON CRIMEA
Purim in the Crimea was an amazing success, due to the incredible organizational effort by HaTamim Rabbi Shmuel Brown. This year, complete Purim programs were run in Alushta, Sevastopol, Feodosia, Krasna Perekopsk, Saki, Simferopol, Yalta and Yevpatoria. Special Purimdik Shabbatons were also held in the latter three cities.
Click here for moreJewish festival a boisterous celebration When Purim, Judaism's most raucous holiday, bursts forth in New Orleans, it can arrive New Orleans-style: with a pickup group called the Jewbirth Brass Band playing in an Orthodox synagogue, with a dancing, black-hatted rabbi offering vodka all 'round, and with the band emerging into the night to parade noisily through the French Quarter past befuddled gentiles.
Click here for moreCasting Their Lots Looking around his congregation at the Sephardic Jewish Congregation and Center of Queens one Saturday morning, it struck Rabbi Sholem Hecht that there were a number of young, single worshippers — too many, in fact. Rabbi Hecht knew that these were observant, serious young people committed to a religious lifestyle, which includes marriage and children. So why were so many of these 30-somethings still single?
Click here for moreKids fete ancient festival
EAST HANOVER — Lori Solomon of North Caldwell knows that complexities arise when raising a child with special needs.
She always has to think about how a situation is going to work for her 7-year-old daughter, Hannah, who is multiply handicapped. But at Thursday night’s Purim celebration at Imagine That, a children’s discovery museum, Solomon said she and her daughter felt comfortable.
Click here for moreEmbattled head of Russian Jews finally buckles to
MOSCOW, March 4 (JTA) — The resignation by the president of the Russian Jewish Congress is being interpreted by many observers here as a capitulation to the Kremlin. Click here for moreStarting anew Women celebrate cyclical rebirth of
At the start of each month-long lunar cycle, the moon appears as a sliver of light, then swells with each passing day for two weeks, until it reaches fullness. Over the next two weeks it gradually wanes, returning to its crescent shape, only to begin growing at the advent of the next month.
Click here for moreInterns help to revive, sustain Jewish traditions
CALLING: Young women use experience to later become teachers.
In New York City's Crown Heights neighborhood, it's rare to see a Quonset hut, taste a salmon berry or see a bear. But here, or in that New York neighborhood, it's possible to hear the chanting of prayer.
Click here for moreIowa Torah Scroll Ceremony Held at State Capitol
DES MOINES, IA - MARCH 5, 2001 - Before a gathering of over 300,
including non-Jews who traveled for hundreds of miles just to witness
the event, Chabad Lubavitch of Iowa completed and crowned its new Torah
Scroll in the First Floor Rotunda of the Iowa State Capitol Building. Click here for moreOHOLEI TORAH ZAL MOVES After 32 years @ 417 Troy Ave. the Oholei Torah Zal moved to it's beautiful spacious new location on the 4th floor of Oholei Torah @ 667 Eastern Parkway. @ 2:15pm Sunday afternoon hundreds of Bochurim closed their Gemaras for the very last time on Troy Ave. Afterward everyone Davened the last Mincha, and proceeded to lunch with their bags of Seforim & Tefillin in tow.
Click here for moreGOP Retreat Ripped Yankel's brother slams.... The brother of Crown Heights riot victim Yankel Rosenbaum blasted Republican National Committee leaders yesterday for backing away from a letter attacking the Rev. Al Sharpton.
Click here for moreThis Side Of Paradise For Jews in the new South Africa, the urge to leave, the will to stay. Johannesburg — Standing beneath the graceful stucco arches of a convent that is now the Torah Academy day school, Rabbi Dovid Hazdan is speaking the language of the new South Africa.
Click here for moreThe moose in the mikve (March 1) - Life isn't easy when you're a Lubavitcher family in Alaska.
It's cold - 23 to 28 degrees below zero, with snow on the ground from October through May. It's dark in winter, with just a couple hours of daily sunlight.
Click here for moreJamboree Chaplain
Being a chaplain at the 19th Australian Jamboree was quite an experience. I
was chaplain for some 1800 scouts in Sub Camp Two which meant if any kids
were homesick or injured I had to visit them as well overseeing the
spiritual needs of scouts and leaders.
Click here for moreWeather doesn’t diminish wedding As she walked down the aisle, Chanie Deren glided across a white runner obscured by ice and snow. The snowflakes falling throughout the wedding ceremony Thursday night glistened like the crystals on her veil.
Click here for moreEscape from Idealab According to the Talmud, an olive doesn't release its oil until it has been crushed -- the metaphorical point being that people achieve their greatest objectives under the worst duress. Rabbi Shmuel Gniwisch and three of his rabbi brothers know this from personal experience. But now, after spending the last year launching an online jewelry company called Ice.com, they know it from business, too.
Click here for more$100,000 grant helps Chabad of S.F. get headmaster At 27, one might guess there would be misgivings voiced about Rabbi Yisroel Goldstein's tender age before he was tapped for the position of headmaster at Chabad's fledgling day school in San Francisco.
Click here for moreYOSSI SPALTER TO CHAYA SCHERA NEW
On Wednesday evening, despite temperatures in the single digits in Montreal, Canada, a couple hundred guests ventured outdoors for the Chuppa ceremony of Yossi Spalter & Chaya Schera New.
Click here for moreTHE POWER OF LUBAVITCH IN SYDNEY – 5761
33 years ago when Rabbi & Rebbetzin Pinchus Feldman arrived in Sydney, Australia, as Shluchim of the Rebbe, the two represented 33% of the entire Lubavitch population there at the time. Today B”H the Feldman’s are not alone. There are k”ah hundreds of Lubavitchers living in Sydney, and the entire state of Yiddishkeit in Sydney is a result of the hard work of the Feldman’s & the numerous Shluchim who have come since.
Click here for moreChabad Chassidim Attacked A group of 15 Chabad Chassidim were attacked at about 5:00 this afternoon
in Hebron. The group arrived in Hebron to pray by the grave of Menucha
Rachel Shneerson Slonim, at the ancient Ashkenazi cemetery, not far from
Tel Rumeida.
Click here for moreIn an Iowa town, still a few bumps as.....
POSTVILLE, IOWA -- From the beginning, they seemed an odd fit for the prairie.
The dark coats and hats. The long beards and wigs. The kosher food and unkept lawns. The oversized menorahs in the front yards.
Click here for moreGivatayim residents fight Chabad soup kitchen The mayor of Givatayim has decided to continue letting Chabad use a local apartment as a synagogue and soup kitchen. This defies opposition from the building's other residents who say they plan to sue both the city and Chabad.
Click here for moreM.B.D. @ CHEDER LUBAVITCH BANQUET A crowd of close to 500 guests filled the Grand Ballroom of the Westin
O'Hare on Tuesday evening celebrating the Cheder Lubavitch Hebrew Day School
Annual Banquet/Concert. The school honored Mr. Seymour J. Abrams a renowned
philanthropist, Dr. Inna Golber and Mr. and Mrs. Steve Goodman for their
ongoing assistance to this growing school.
Click here for moreIsraeli rabbi oversees Morris ordination MORRIS TWP. — When most rabbinical students are ordained, words of wisdom and good wishes are given by older local rabbis.
Click here for moreTorah Thought for Beshalach The name of this week's Parsha is 'Beshalach' which means 'he
sent'. The Sedra begins by telling us that Paro sent the Bnai
Yisroel out of Egypt to be a free nation, after they had been
subjected to the most brutal and degrading enslavement in his
land for over two centuries.
Click here for moreWINNERS FROM ULY CHINESE AUCTION
GRAND PRIZE: IDDO DEVRIES, LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA SPLIT THE POT: MASHA GLAZER, CROWN HEIGHTS DAZZLING DIAMONDS: LEAH GOLDBERG, CROWN HEIGHTS COMPUTER PACKAGE: DEVORAH HERSHKOP, CROWN HEIGHTS
Click here for moreJewish group donates books to public library DANBURY — Once upon a time there was a little Jewish girl named Shoshana who received a package containing a birthday present from her grandmother.
Shoshana, who was about to be 3, longed to know what was inside but she had to wait until her birthday to find out.
Click here for moreSharon PM is Gutnick's goal No one has the right to give away Jerusalem or the Temple Mount," says Joseph Gutnick. He is passionate. "They are an eternal gift from G-d to the Jewish people, forever. No one has the right to give them away. Not the Israeli Knesset, not an Israeli prime minister. They are the heart of the Jewish people. Nobody has the right to cut out the heart from anybody."
Click here for moreWork has begun in Boynton on Chabad-Lubavitch cent Construction has begun on the $3.5 million Chabad-Lubavitch center in Boynton Beach at 10655 El Claire Ranch Rd.
Click here for moreIowa Town Facing a Diversity Dilemma
Aaron Goldsmith is Jewish.
He sits on the City Council in Postville, Iowa.
And dozens of his fellow citizens want him off.
Those three facts--which may be related and, then again, may not--have of late ratcheted up tensions in Postville, a tiny farm town in far northeast Iowa that has been engaged in a remarkable experiment in diversity.
Click here for moreQantas advises: BYO kosher food
A JEWISH family were advised by Qantas that they should bring their own food on overseas flights after complaining about not receiving kosher meals on a trip to the US.Click here for moreTorah thought for parshas Bo
The name of this weeks Parsha is 'Bo' and begins with G-d's
words to Moshe, 'Bo' -'Go to Paro'- and warn him to allow the
Bnai Yisroel to leave Egypt, even though he has not yet shown
any sign of remorse, because "I (G-d) have made him stubborn,
to demonstrate these miraculous signs".
Click here for moreJEALOUS OF YOU Late on a Thursday night in Yerushalayim, I was ordering a slice of pizza,
when I overheard someone inviting others to join in a farbrengen. I glanced
about in an attempt to identify my fellow Chassid.
Click here for moreChabad Lubavitch centre okayed After more than three years of debate, Cote St. Luc city council has approved a proposal by the Chabad Lubavitch movement to build a $3-million community centre in the municipality.
Click here for moreHUNDREDS @ BAIS RIVKAH CELEBRATION 60
Last night, Motzei Shabbos Va'ayra, close to 700 men & women filled the beautiful grand ballroom @ Bais Rivkah Campus Chomesh for celebration 60. The evening marked 6 decades since The Rebbe founded - Bais Rivkah - the first school designated for and charged with the Zechus of educating and raising the Bas Yisroel of our generation. The guests of honor were Rabbi & Mrs. Yitzchok Raitport.
Click here for moreHAGAON REB YOEL KAHAN INSPIRES THE UK CHAREIDI COM The Chareidi Kehilla in England experienced a most inspiring weekend Parshas
Shemos with the visit of HaRav HaGaon Reb Yoel Kahan Shlita, internationally
renowned in the Chassidic world as a gifted genius in the teachings of
Chabad Chasidus. In a whirlwind tour, which included Manchester, North and
Northwest London, some 1500 people took the opportunity of hearing Reb Yoel
shlita during any one of 9 separate speaking and shiur engagements over 3
days.
Click here for moreWhy the Rabbi Blowtorched the Kremlin Kitchen MOSCOW, Jan. 23 — It was on the last day of Passover 51 years ago that the K.G.B. seized Yitzakh Kogan's grandfather for the high crime of baking kosher matzo.
"It was impossible to bake matzo in Leningrad," the grandson said. "It was the law of city. And he had made it for all the Jews.
Click here for moreCGINY CAMPERS HAVE A BLAST @ HISTORY MAKING WEST C TARZANA, CA (SNS) - The famous chant wherever you go, people want to know......"Campers of the Rebbe's camp", was echoing through of the valley in Southern California. How did this come about? Weeks of planning and meetings with Executive Camp Director Rabbi Avrohom Shemtov, Camp Director Rabbi Yossie Futerfas & the Head Staff resulted in an amazing reunion for campers of camp Gan Israel Parksville, NY.
Though Tarzana, CA is 2841.8 miles from Parksville, it was the site for the history making West Coast Reunion organized by CGINY. Head Counselors Yossi Spalter, Boruch Kaplan & Srully Altein along with longtime CGI Staff member and Shmais CEO Levi Sabol, with the help of Priceline.com, all flew out to California to help make the reunion the massive success it was.
MOSCOW, Jan. 11 (RNS) -- The attempted drowning of an American Jewish leader in a synagogue's ritual bath during Hanukkah is drawing fresh attention to an increasingly shrill feud between two Russian Jewish groups.<
Click here for moreSynagogue is vandalized for a third time Vandals have struck a synagogue in University City for the third time in 10 days, smashing glass panels on doors, scrawling a swastika on a window and tossing eggs and rocks at the building, police and temple leaders said.
Click here for moreDecision on menorah is handed off WESTBOROUGH - The Downtown Lighting Committee, which has been tossed the hot potato of a question regarding whether a menorah should be allowed on the downtown rotary, plans to meet at 11 a.m. Tuesday in the police department conference room.
Click here for moreDefense cites new grounds for Crown Heights appeal NEW YORK (AP) - A U.S. Supreme Court ruling last year barring a key provision of the Violence Against Women Act has created new grounds to overturn convictions of two men in the 1991 Crown Heights riots, defense attorneys argued Tuesday.
Click here for moreCGI MONTREAL WINTER CAMP A SUCCESS Generally people go to Florida or anywhere on the coast for a good
midwinter vacation, others from warm places go to the mountains to go
skiing and the like. Well, we had a little of both.
Gan Yisroel Montreal summer camp hosted the week-long
winter camp.
Click here for moreCAMP GAN ISRAEL - TZEIREI HASHLUCHIM UPDATES #6
The last few days in CGI - Tzeirei HaShluchim were so busy that there was barely any time to sit down and send an e-mail.
On Sunday a photographer visited camp was taking pictures all day. The highlight of the day when the entire camp was set up on the bleachers and a camp photo was taken.
Rabbi Avrohom Brashevitzky, director of Chabad of the South Shore, presented a Menorah to the mayor in his office at Town Hall.
Click here for moreHanukkah on River draws hundreds
In an overwhelmingly Christian community decorated for Xmas, a plaza beside the San Antonio River resembled a Jewish village for one brief night with a celebration of religious freedom more than 2,000 years old.<
Click here for moreRabbis gather to discuss blossoming Chabad Religious leaders meet in Ontario to plan ways to better serve their growing congregations.
ONTARIO -- Rabbi Yisrael Rice came all the way from Marin County on Sunday to talk to a group of fellow Chabad rabbis on how to keep people in their congregation.
At Chabad of Alabama, they heaved a sigh of relief, and continued with the preparations for the evening's event. "Chanukomedy" was about to begin, and the Bais Ariel Chabad Jewish Education Center was a scene of amazing transformation.
Rabbi Nachman Sudak, the Principal and founder of Lubavitch UK has been appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in this year's New Year's Honours List.
Hanukkah is clearly a holiday associated with flame. But on Sunday, at least in New Jersey, it will be a mixture of fire and ice.
Click here for moreChanukah in the Crimea
The Crimea is experiencing a Chanukah like never before! Over a month before Chanukah we already started planning our peulos, and the planning paid off. Every major community in the Crimea is having a Chanukah party, and some cities are asking that we come more than once during the holiday!
Click here for moreChanukah in Birmingham, UK Lubavitch in the Midlands has been organising a public menorah
lighting for a number of years. Traditionally the ceremony was always
attended by the Lord Mayor of Birmingham or their representative,
however for the past four years the City has declined to send a
representative so this year the Shliach Rabbi Shmuel Arkush decided
not to bother sending them an invitation.
Click here for moreCHANUKAH ON ICE A LIGHT FESTIVITY Fire and ice will take on a whole new meaning Sunday when the Living Legacy project of the Rabbinical College of America offers "Chanukah on Ice" at the South Mountain Arena in West Orange.<
Click here for moreCAMP GAN ISRAEL - TZEIREI HASHLUCHIM UPDATES#4 & 5 THURSDAY
Thursday, at about 12:30 P.M. all the boys boarded the bus and headed to Tucson.
The first stop was the bowling alley, where the boys spent 2 hours showing off their talents at the sport.<
Click here for moreCreating peaceful holiday memories
THORNYCROFT -While the Xmas tree becomes an important symbol
of the holidays for Christians, so does the menorah during Hanukkah for the
Jewish community.
Rabbi Simcha Backman of Chabad of Glendale and the
Foothill Communities will lead a "bullet-shell" arts and crafts menorah workshop
at 1:30 p.m. Sunday to give children a different holiday memory.
Click here for moreHateful pamphlets will not cloud local Hanukkah ce Two days after some local residents found a pamphlet written by one of the nation's most notorious hate groups in their driveways, area Jews begin Hanukkah festivities disturbed but undaunted by what leaders see as a low blow before a time of religious celebration.
Click here for moreRabbinical students help for Hanukkah - 6 give 'ne Six rabbinical college students visiting Jacksonville from California and New York are handing out menorahs, planning a series of public menorah lightings and teaching others about Hanukkah as part of their training program to become rabbis.<
Click here for moreSYNAGOGUE CELEBRATES NEW SCROLL'S COMPLETION Friends, family and members of the Central Avenue Synagogue, Chabad
House of Highland Park, gathered in Pam and Leonard Cohen's dining
room to witness the completion of a new Torah scroll.
Click here for moreWORLDS MOST SUCCESSFUL ARMY CELEBRATES 20 YEARS
On Sunday night, Tzivos Hashem, the worlds most successful army, celebrated 20 years of service to the world, and they did it in style. An estimated 500 supporters, friends & employees of Tzivos Hashem were on hand to celebrate in the grand ball room of the Grand Hyatt in Manhattan, NY.
Click here for moreLubavitch growing in New Hampshire As we go to press, Rabbi Levi Krinsky, Director of Lubavitch of New Hampshire has announced that Lubavitch of New Hampshire is in the final stages of purchasing a 13 acre parcel of land on North River Rd. in Manchester, NH. “We will now be in the position to build on this land a facility suitable for our needs.” Rabbi Krinsky said.
Click here for moreHAPPY NEW YEAR! - 19 KISLEV
The 19th of the Hebrew month of Kislev, is celebrated as the New Years of Chassidic philosophy. It was on this date, in 1798, that the founder of Chabad Chassidism, Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, was freed from his imprisonment in Czarist Russia. More than a personal liberation, this was a watershed event in the history of Jewish mysticism.
Click here for moreAdelsons Honored by Las Vegas' Jewish Community Chabad of Southern Nevada Dedicates Gala to Venetian Owners
LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 11, 2000--Dr. Miriam and Sheldon G. Adelson received the Founder's Award by Chabad of Southern Nevada on Sunday, Dec. 10, 2000, at a gala honoring their innumerable contributions to the Las Vegas community and to Chabad of Southern Nevada.
Click here for moreThe journey of the Mitteler Rebbe.... The journey of the Mitteler Rebbe, Reb Dov Ber, to Haditch was unusually
somber. The Rebbe, on his way to pray at the grave of his father, Rav Shneur
Zalman of Liadi, was not merely meditative, but reclusive. He not only
refrained from delivering the accustomed Chasidic discourses for which his
disciples thirsted, but he showed no interest or desire to converse at all
with the chasidim who formed his entourage. When he wished to commit some of
his Torah thoughts to paper he was unable to do so, and he indicated to his
close followers that he felt the approach of some impending harsh judgement
from Above.
Click here for moreChabad Starts the New Year in a New Home Drive about a half-mile down Waterloo Avenue, off Route 30 in Berwyn, past the sugar maples still clinging to a crimson leaf or two, past the stone and brick houses built before the area became such desired living space and on your left at No. 241, tucked away from the street, is the Chabad Chester County Jewish Center.
Click here for moreBlack Hat Blitz Five years ago, they said Lubavitch wouldn't survive without the Rebbe. But now, stronger than ever, Chabad's outreach is worldwide.
Click here for moreBook ... Skewered Portrayal of Postville Lubavitch
New Book Offers Skewered Portrayal of Postville Lubavitchers
Few people have heard of Postville, the Iowan town tucked away in America's rural heartland where life moves slowly and each man tips his hat to his neighbor lumbering along the way in his tractor.
That's the consensus among a group of kids and teens from the former Soviet Union who are in New York on a whirlwind, two-week tour.<
Click here for morePolice 'let tormentors go free'
A Jewish community leader claims police have failed to arrest one suspected fire-bomber - and released with a caution a number of Palestinian youths who threatened Jews from a car.<
Click here for moreJewish groups get along to dedicate new Russian sh CHELYABINSK, Russia, Nov. 13 (JTA) – A synagogue recently dedicated here is being called an example of a rare cooperation between rival Jewish groups – and local politicians.
Click here for moreAn Orthodox Jewish Movement Establishes Itself In Up until recently, the valley's Jewish community has been an almost subdued presence in local society, practicing in traditional ways but enjoying a unique identity not found in other parts of the Jewish world.
Click here for moreWiesel's Boston U. lecture explores roots of Hasid (U-WIRE) BOSTON -- "I don't know what to do." Those were the words Nobel Peace Prize winner and Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel used as response to current religious strife in Europe and the "hatred" he saw during his recent visit.
Click here for moreHave sukkah, will travel Rabbi honors ancient tradition
A 3000-year-old tradition made its way to the Wood River Valley last week on the back of a pickup truck driven by Eli Kornfeld.
The Sukkot (or Succoth) is a Jewish festival celebrating the fall harvest from Oct. 15 to Oct. 22 that commemorates the desert wandering of 2 million Hebrews during the Exodus from Egypt 3314 years ago.
ONE BY ONE, relatives and guests stepped forward, picked up the scissors and cut a small snip of Yehudah Lipszyc's long, blondish hair, while Yehudah maintained an astonishingly good-natured calm. Before the snipping, his father, Rabbi Shmuel Lipszyc, had explained to the guests the custom, called upshernish, which marks the first haircut for an Orthodox boy, at the age of 3.
Click here for moreStrictly Kosher THOUGH DAVID AND LINDA Chusid did not grow up observant Jews, their involvement with the Chabad movement has helped them to embrace a level of observance as stringent as the practice of most Jews born into highly observant Orthodox homes.
Click here for moreLoyal Backers
BY THE TIME of his 65th birthday in 1998, a Roslyn real estate developer named Aaron W. Weingarten wanted to reach an unusual benchmark: to be writing checks to 65 different Chabad houses around the world.
Click here for moreTHE LUBAVITCHERS OF LONG ISLAND ALL DAY, they arrived by the hundreds, waited patiently, filed reverently into the mausoleum, prayed for a few minutes, then let small pieces of paper flutter to rest on a pile of papers in an enclosure surrounding his headstone.
The occasion in early July was the yahrzeit, the death anniversary, of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the leader of the Chabad Lubavitch movement in Judaism, which has continued to grow vigorously despite his death in 1994.
Click here for moreSupermarket sukkah
Price Chopper shelter is a welcome haven for travelers observing Jewish harvest festival
The road from New York City to Montreal is littered with Dunkin' Donuts, Nathan's Hot Dogs and Burger King, but for Jews observing Sukkot, where they eat matters as much as what they eat.
Click here for moreSynagogue rebuilds after arson
About 200 people gathered Tuesday at Adath Israel Orthodox Synagogue in St. Paul to rebuild a temporary ceremonial structure set ablaze Saturday by arsonists.
Click here for moreAnti-Israel message found at Chabad center A menacing message scrawled on a homemade Israeli flag and tacked to the door of a local Jewish community center will not deter Milwaukee-area Jews from continuing their annual harvest celebration, a rabbi said Monday.
Click here for moreLevi Shemtov & American friends of Lubavitch in Wa Nestled into a hillside on Leroy Place in downtown Washington D.C., adjacent to the Embassy of Guinea and a few steps from the Nepalese and Colombian delegations, sits a diplomatic mission of a different sort.
Click here for moreFirst days of Sukkos @ The Ohel CAMBRIA HEIGHTS, NY (SNS) -- On every Shabbos & Yom Tov throughout the year a crowd that ranges from as small as 2 dozen or so, up to a couple of hundred people - Bochurim, Balle Batim & Shluchim come to stay @ the Ohel.
Click here for moreChabad’s Russian Revolution Despite persistent anti-Semitism, the movement’s emissaries are sparking a Jewish revival, from the heart of Moscow to the Ukrainian countryside.
Moscow — Under the Soviets she was a princess in name and imagination only, a Jewish Anastasia, her royal identity a rumor even to herself. Now, Anna Demidendskaya, a Ukrainian grandmother — daughter not of the murdered czar but of a town known for its murdered writers, rebbes, scholars, poets and dreamers — was witnessing a change that seemed messianic to the child within.
Click here for moreHorn-blowing display a hit at Jewish festival CHAPEL HILL, NC -- The long, low moan of the shofar drew 5-year-old Nathan Saper
to the shofar factory that Rabbi Benny Lew had set up in the far corner of
the room at the Judea Reform Congregation's Lerner Jewish Community Day
School in Durham.
Click here for moreThe Secret of Lubavitch Success? NEW YORK -- Rabbi Arthur Hertzberg would never be mistaken for a member
of
the Lubavitch Hasidic movement or a follower of the late Rabbi Menachem
Mendel Schneerson, the movement's hugely admired -- and greatly
controversial
-- leader, who died in 1994.
Click here for morePutin Opens Jewish Community Center MOSCOW (AP) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin helped open a new Jewish community center Monday, praising Judaism as a necessary part of the country's spiritual development.
Click here for moreWake-up Call Forty thousand Jews in the Twin Cities today will celebrate Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year. But the holiday wouldn't have been complete if Mordechai Grossbaum hadn't helped bring shofars into more than a hundred Jewish homes.
Click here for moreRABBI BRINGS TEMPLE TO DOWNTOWN FAITHFUL In the waning hours of the Jewish year 5760, few were more acutely aware of the limitations of Jewish facilities in the Loop than Rabbi Meir Chai Benhiyoun.
Click here for moreBeing Orthodox in an unorthodox world At the usual Saturday list of things to remember: car-pool the kids to soccer, pick up paint at Home Depot, mow the lawn. Nili Klein's list: don't turn on the lights, don't answer the phone, don't drive, don't write.
Rabbi Benny Zippel conducts the services at the Chabad Lubavitch Orthodox synagogue.
Until police showed up outside his house and a Newsday reporter rang his doorbell asking about the music,
Click here for moreN.Y. Lubavitch Student Rabbis in state to inspire From the asphalt jungle of Brooklyn, N.Y., to the wide open spaces of Montana and Wyoming, two rabbis are spending a month driving from town to town to encourage other Jews in their faith.
Click here for moreA Telethon With Tradition! This is no mere telethon, said Rabbi Boruch Shlomo Cunin, just before jumping up once again to join in a spirited dance. "It's a statement of brotherhood."
Click here for moreWhat Miracles Mean The following is an excerpt from a major feature article "What Miracles Mean" in this weeks Newsweek magazine. In the actual magazine the article is accompanied with a large picture of the Ohel and a smaller picture of the Rebbe on pages 58 and 59.
Click here for more