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Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde walks by President Donald Trump as he attended A Service of Prayer for the Nation at Washington National Cathedral on Jan. 21, 2025. In her sermon, Buddy urge the president to show mercy to immigrants and LGBTQ+ children. (Matt McClain/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Micah Streiffer

The bishop’s sermon to Trump: Rabbis like me should have such courage

In her inauguration sermon, Mariann Budde did what all clergy should do: challenge, ruffle and advocate for basic humanity

Rav Abraham Isaac Kook, 1865-1935. (Central Zionist Archives)

Who was Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook?

Did Rav Kook promote an inclusive, moderate religious Zionism or was he the conservative Haredi nationalist father of the extreme right? The answer is far from simple

Now former hostage Doron Steinbrecher, in pink, taken captive by the terror group Hamas on October 7, 2023, as part of their murderous onslaught on southern Israel, is surrounded by masked Hamas members, as they hand her over to members of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Gaza City, to bring her back to Israel and freedom, on January 19, 2025. (REUTERS/ via Reuters TV)

Mijal Bitton

Pharaoh fell. Hamas will too

Pharaoh’s dehumanizing, unchecked power had to be crushed for God to be known. So too, radical Islam fuels hatred, contravenes morality, and will eventually fall (Vaera)

Released hostages (L-R) Doron Steinbrecher, Emily Damari and Romi Gonen reunite with their mothers shortly after returning to Israel after 471 days in Hamas captivity in Gaza, January 19, 2025. (IDF)

Rachel Goldberg-Polin

The beginning of the end, and not the end

The relief at the return of Romi, Emily and Doron does not relieve us from working to get each and every one of the remaining 94 hostages home

Kfar Aza and other communities along the Gaza border (Google maps)

Tamar Sternthal

CBS is determined to redraw Israel’s map, facts be damned

Why is the news outlet adopting the jargon of a group that makes no secret of its intention to annihilate the Jewish state?

The devil told me I won’t enter paradise

He also said non-Muslims are the enemy, but I find the real destructive force to be those who tout ignorance and divisiveness in slogans of religion

A member of security forces loyal to Hamas stands guard atop one of the trucks carrying humanitarian aid coming in from the Kerem Shalom border crossing in al-Shoka, east of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on January 21, 2025. (Bashar TALEB / AFP)

Yaakov Lappin

Why Israel must establish a military administration in Gaza

Who else can take charge of the Gaza Strip? The PA is too weak, international forces won’t risk their people, and Hamas rule was a terrible idea

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Moshe-Mordechai van Zuiden

Jan 25, 2025, 11:03 PM

It’s not raining cats or dogs in Israel

Yet, not all areas are created equally Rain in Israel In Biblical times, they had no baths and no Trump to complain about showerheads trickling down. But a drought in Israel meant a famine, for no crops could grow—the threat of...

Jan 25, 2025, 10:42 PM

Linguistic recollection device on Ostrovski Street

Image generated by Rod Kersh using M365 CoPilot

Along from the wall where Jake was pushed and broke his arm sometime around 1986 was when I first spoke Hebrew. I was standing with a group of friends in front of a pet shop. I can’t remember whether there were...

Allen S. Maller

Jan 25, 2025, 10:40 PM

Who lived in Ancient Israel before the Jews?

The land changed hands many times. The Amorites came down from Syria, and the Philistines came in from across the sea 2-3 centuries after Prophet Abraham, the first Hebrew (Genesis 14:13) crossed over the Jordan river, at God’s command. The...

Yair Jablinowitz

Jan 25, 2025, 10:40 PM

Putting out fires and rebuilding from the ashes

Yaakov Selavan (left), Reverend Hayley Ace (center), and Yair Jablinowitz (right) on Tel Fares, overlooking the Golan Heights and the Syrian border, reflecting on the region's resilience and security.

Standing among the ruins of Avivim Winery, nestled in northern Israel on the border with Lebanon, I was struck by the sight of thousands of shattered wine bottles, their fragments sparkling like tears in the sunlight. The winery, once...

Jan 25, 2025, 10:38 PM

China-Iran Missile Connection: Western Actions Looming?

Recent media reports suggest that China may be playing a crucial role in supporting Iran’s ballistic missile program by supplying key chemical components used in missile production. According to the Financial Times and The Wall Street Journal, two Iranian-flagged...

Jan 25, 2025, 10:37 PM

Kal Va’Chomer

One of the ways that Jewish Law is established, is called, “Kal Vachomer.” This is referred to as a fortiori reasoning. An example of such reasoning is found in a conversation between Moshe Rabbeinu and Hashem. Moshe argues with this...

Jan 25, 2025, 10:36 PM

The Eternal Jew’s Tale, #171, Abarbanel 4.63

Ben Khalafta & child; image colorized and modified by the author, obtained from Wikimedia Commons, Young Boy Receiving Alms, Maes, in the public domain.

In this episode, the dangers of praying in a ruins. The Eternal Jew’s Tale Twentieth Era, Part 5, ~1483 C.E., Iberia The Abarbanel Cycle, 4.6.3 The Ladder of Ascents, 6, part 3 Compiled by Isaac Abarbanel With the help of the Eternal Jew and his...

Sarah Tuttle-Singer

Jan 25, 2025, 7:52 PM

Am Yisrael Chai – love triumphs over hate

This may be one of the most iconic images of Jewish history I’ve ever seem — akin to the stunning photo of the paratroopers by the Kotel in 1967: From the window of the helicopter ...

Micah Streiffer

Jan 25, 2025, 7:19 PM

The bishop’s sermon to Trump: Rabbis like me should have such courage

Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde walks by President Donald Trump as he attended A Service of Prayer for the Nation at Washington National Cathedral on Jan. 21, 2025. In her sermon, Buddy urge the president to show mercy to immigrants and LGBTQ+ children. (Matt McClain/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

In her inauguration sermon, Mariann Budde did what all clergy should do: challenge, ruffle and advocate for basic humanity

Jan 25, 2025, 6:27 PM

Frogs Against Apathy

Shockingly, the frogs shook Pharaoh out of his apathy, reminding us all to rise above our own. (AI)

While Israel defends sustained attacks on seven fronts, the greatest threat to our people and mission remains unchanged: apathy toward the sense of mission and purpose itself. When our enemies attempt to claim our holy sites, erase our history, and...

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