Yaakov Wolff

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Sep 12, 2015, 10:59 PM

The Sound of Liberty

The shofar appears many times in the torah in a variety of circumstances. The most famous reference to the shofar is the commandment to hear the blowing of the shofar on Rosh Hashana (Bamidbar 29:1). Another well-known verse describes...

Apr 17, 2015, 4:15 PM

Giyus Diaries: Breaking Guard

One of the most frustrating jobs in basic training is a pointless guard duty of our company's tent area at night, meant to prevent theft and internal trouble. Everybody hates having to wake up in the middle of the night...

Apr 11, 2015, 10:25 PM

Giyus Diaries: ZZZZahal

The IDF has an army-wide policy that soldiers have the right to six hours of sleep on any given night. After a long and tiring day of basic training, every moment is precious. We sleep in large fifteen-person tents...

Mar 27, 2015, 3:17 PM

Giyus Diaries: Day 1

I have just arrived home from my first 24 hours as a soldier in the Israel Defense Forces. Despite my extremely short army career, I have already been able to pick some of the basic rules that all soldiers...

Aug 13, 2014, 11:46 PM

Protective Splash

Yesterday, our Russian cleaning lady entered the code at our front door and let herself in to the house, as she does twice a week. She put down her bag, and mounted the stairs to start the first load...

May 23, 2014, 3:30 PM

Bamidbar-Wave Your Flag

The Israelites shall camp, each man on his flag, to the signs of his father's house, opposite and around the tent of meeting (mishkan) shall they camp. (Num. 2:2) There is a puzzling Midrash (Bamidbar Raba, 2) on this...

May 9, 2014, 9:22 AM

Did Brandeis Get It Right?

There has been a lot of controversy recently about Ayaan Hirsi Ali and the decisions by Brandeis University to honor her, and then the retraction of that decision. There has also been much controversy about the screening of the...

Apr 7, 2014, 11:24 PM

Mike Ditka’s Haggadah Insight

Mike Ditka was the legendary Chicago Bears player and coach, who won three Super Bowls, made five Pro-Bowls, was named AP Coach of the Year twice and was inducted into the pro football Hall of Fame. But his greatest...

Mar 2, 2014, 12:01 AM

Sh’ma Yisrael

Dear Jews, Well, here we are again. Another mass protest, Jew versus Jew. How did we end up back where we started? Didn’t we all go to the polls a year ago asking for more unity, not less? What went...

Jan 17, 2014, 1:00 PM

Israel should show some gratitude

Roi Klein is an Israeli hero. Ask any Israeli high-school student, and 99% will know that he jumped on a grenade to save his soldiers. Now imagine if someone had jumped on a bomb that was planted under a...

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About Me

Yaakov Wolff is a soldier in the IDF. He made Aliyah from Boston to Beit Shemesh in 2007. Before joining the army he studied in Yeshivat Kerem B'Yavneh. He holds a degree in Middle East Studies from Bar-Ilan University.