BARBARA'S TCHATZKAHS

My friend Chaim at Freedom's Cost shared this with me today. When I finally was able to sit down and read it through this evening - I was stunned! Please, if you have a heart condition - make sure you have taken your medication before you read on: To wit: a Hebrew University graduate student claimed in her thesis that the absence of any history of rapes of Arab women by Israeli soldiers proves that Jews are racists and oppressors, people who do not even regard Arab women as worthy of being sexually abused WHAT THE ****?! Being morally centered, self controlled and not abusing women, Arab women makes Jews RACIST? This from a Hebrew University Grad Student. Goodness, the Jews just can't win even when they DO THE RIGHT THING!!! And Professor Ben-Ari appears to be the ponerized academic & scholarly sociopath all mothers warn college-bound girls about! You have to read this whole article because it's a DOOZY! I will highlight the bits that left me speechless: Hebrew U...

What the concept of peace or shalom really means The Concept of "Shalom" in Traditional Jewish Sources Along with truth and justice, peace is among the most hallowed Jewish values. By Aviezer Ravitzky The Hebrew word for peace, shalom, is derived from a root denoting wholeness or completeness, and its frame of reference throughout Jewish literature is bound up with the notion of shelemut, perfection. Its significance is thus not limited to the political domain--to the absence of war and enmity--or to the social--to the absence of quarrel and strife. It ranges over several spheres and can refer in different contexts to bounteous physical conditions, to a moral value, and, ultimately, to a cosmic principle and divine attribute. Biblical Usages In the Bible, the word shalom is most commonly used to refer to a state of affairs, one of well-being, tranquility, prosperity, and security, circumstances unblemished by any sort of defect. Shalom is a blessing, a manifestation of divine...

Tales from the Tombs of Israel Judith Fein It certainly seemed odd. People who were otherwise sane, intelligent, and credible would travel to the part of northern Israel known as the Galilee to pray at the tomb of the first-century rabbi Jonathan ben Uziel. Afterward, they would rapturously report that they had met their soul mates and gotten married. Since I was in the vicinity of the tomb, I decided to check out the departed matchmaker. Fortified with a healthy dose of skepticism, I entered the tsyun, a low, whitewashed building made of local rocks, cement, earth, and stones. Inside, the sepulcher was draped in dark velvet. On the women’s side — men and women are separated in Orthodox Judaism — some prayed earnestly from Hebrew prayer books and several deposited coins and bills into charity tins. Some left offerings, including bright-colored cloth, silk and chiffon scarves, plastic hair ornaments, and underpants. Underpants? I walked back outside more amused than inspired. When my hu...