Each year at the close of Neilah, the 5th and final prayer service of Yom Kippur, we do a “Yom Kippur Appeal”. Unlike most synagogues, this isn’t an appeal for money and charitable contributions, but an appeal for a special … Read the rest
Wow, this unusual question got online traction! And some of the answers from men were quite surprising! All this during the high holiday season of 2023, gotta be a message therein!
Rabbis are supposed to give an extra long sermon on the Shabbat between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, known (for its Haftorah) as Shabbos Shuva. The way we do it here at UAlbany is to create a composite Shabbos Shuva … Read the rest
NYWSI (New York State Writers Institute) is a distinguished organization based at UAlbany that celebrates books and writers of books. It was originally founded (and still guided!) by the noted Pulitzer-prize winning novelist William Kennedy, who in addition to his … Read the rest
A day or two before Rosh Hashanah I saw this tweet by Rabbi Chaim Bruk, the dynamic Chabad Rabbi in Montana. First I scrolled by, but then its significance hit me.
Of course, this prioritizing of Elk Chasing over Rosh … Read the rest
It is customary for some to turn the Hebrew letters of the new year into a meaningful acrostic, as a wish & aspiration, a hope for the new year. There will be a variety of acrostics made for this year … Read the rest
A long-anticipated repair finally was completed at Shabbos House in the days leading up to Rosh Hashanah, so there certainly has to be a lesson in that! After all, this is a time to fix & patch things up, to … Read the rest
This year (5784/2023) is one of those years when the first day of Rosh Hashanah falls on Shabbat. We don’t blow Shofar when it falls on Shabbat. In such calendar schedules Shofar is only blown on the second day of … Read the rest
Given all the avid, passionate and knowledgeable meteorology friends we have at UAlbany, can’t help but hear a lot of buzz in this week leading up to Rosh Hashanah 5784/2023 about forecasting the path Hurricane Lee will take. And it … Read the rest
A day or two before Rosh Hashanah I saw this tweet by Rabbi Chaim Bruk, the dynamic Chabad Rabbi in Montana. First I scrolled by, but then its significance hit me.