Category: Pesach 2024

Getting it done, not for the honour By: Rabbi Yossy Goldman “Sadly, too many of those volunteering to serve the community are themselves less than competent.” So, what’s the difference between a shlemiel and a shlemazel? Everyone knows the shlemiel is the inept fool who never fails to spill the soup. And the shlemazel? Why, he’s the born loser who, somehow, always gets the soup spilled on his lap. And then there’s the nudnik who insists on knowing what kind of soup it was, but that’s for a different essay.…

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The curse of comparison By: Rabbi Dr David Fox “He sensed that he, as their oldest shared child, had been doomed to be ‘the Contrasted Kid’.” A reserved adult, he surprised me during his therapy session when he finally discovered the roots of his chronic depression. “I never felt special. Since I was young, I sensed that my parents were disappointed in me. They would compare me with other children, and I was never good enough.” This intrigued me, for I knew him to be an accomplished rabbinic scholar and…

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Who, what, where, and how By: Ilan Preskovsky “When dealing with antisemites, engaging with any more than a couple of choice words is a complete waste of time.” Since the horrific massacre of October 7th and the explosion of antisemitism of October 8th, it’s hard to imagine any Jew with even the slightest connection to their Jewish identity not having spent the past four months feeling, quite literally, under attack. As both our homeland and we as Jews have come under fire from far-left academia, far-right white supremacists, Islamists, relatively…

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Kosher Gourmet Pesach made easy…and tasty By: Sharon Lurie PRETZEL CHICKEN AND CHIPS 8 chicken schnitzel  (skinless, deboned breast, butterflied, then cut in half along the dividing seam) 1 cup KLP Italian Salad dressing (I used Tonelli Italian salad dressing) ½ cup KLP mayonnaise 2 eggs 2 cups Hadar* honey pressed KLP pretzels or fine matzah meal Crush the pretzels really well. Not as fine as powder, a little more texture. Combine the salad dressing, eggs, and mayonnaise and pour over chicken breasts, ensuring they are well coated. Marinate for 2 to 3…

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Finding space in a world of holiness By: Rabbi Dovid Samuels “Where there is holiness, there is space!” The Yomim Tovim are not, for us, a mere recollection of past events. The times on the Jewish calendar have within them great spiritual potential, and through our observance of the laws and customs of that particular day, we can unlock and download much of this wealth. Our holy books are full of ideas that help us to connect to the spirit of the day, so that the opportunities available to us…

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Fixing the world, and fixing ourselves By: Bev Goldman “Only those who think out of the box can pull this looming disaster together.” “I will not let anything stand in my way to obtain justice for those most deserving of it.” “The lack of real ideological support from the USA is creating an existential threat to the survival of Israel. The country is facing a catastrophic monsoon both now and in the immediate future, but is there a solution, and if so, what is it?” Very powerful words from a…

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The Key to Peace in the Middle East By: Paula Levin “Only one nation is capable of destroying the Jewish People – and that is the Jewish People.” Mark Twain once said that “History never repeats itself, but it does often rhyme”. And the song that was playing before October 7 was eerily familiar – the chords of discord. Before the destruction of the Second Beit Hamikdash, with Jerusalem besieged, factions within the city were fighting… each other! The city had enough food in storage to withstand years more, but…

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