My shul, my entire neighborhood really, hardly acknowledges legal holidays. We very deliberately do not start Shacharis an hour later, as we do on Sunday. There is no slight intended to anyone. The feeling,...
By: Etana Hecht As many of you know, this past week in Bet Shemesh has not been a pleasant one. For those of you who have been hearing bits here and there, or reading...
Shortly before Rosh Chodesh, I solicited reader feedback on seforim that helped people prepare in Elul for the approaching Yemei ha-Din. The results have made this perhaps the finest hour for Cross-Currents. The suggestions...
Kids of Courage (KOC), the chesed organization that provides year-round programming for children, teens and young adults with serious and chronic medical challenges, accepted its most daunting challenge with its San Francisco trip in...
“You lost,” my 18-year-old son somberly informed me in shul the other day, and we both laughed. Davening had just ended. I recite Kaddish these days at the end of each service in the...
A friend and colleage has just been the victim of identity theft. I would appreciate any leads on how to address his problem – not just because he is my friend, but because this...
When you stop to think about it, the fact that so much of the world’s attention—not to mention so much jealousy, anger and irrationality—has for so many years been so keenly focused on so...
In the month-long run-up to the Yamim Nora’im, many people try taking themselves to a better place by studying some sefer that moves them. Sha’arei Teshuvah and Chovos ha-Levavos are perennial favorites. Some people...
by Chaskel Bennett It was 1993 and today few remember the first attack on the World Trade Center when extremists detonated a bomb laden vehicle in the lower level of the underground garage. Though...
Yehuda Levin, always humbly available to speak for G-d whether or not he has been asked, has determined the cause of the East Coast earthquake. Readers of the Huffington Post now have direct access...