When rabbis should not keep quiet

The former chief rabbi of the United Kingdom, Jonathan Sacks, has come in for some stick over remarks he recently made about religion and politics. Read more

Finding Love

Did you know that there is an ancient tradition that on two days in the year, unmarried girls used to go out dancing in the vineyards around Jerusalem in order to find a marriage partner? Read more

New president for World Union for Progressive Judaism

The World Union for Progressive Judaism (WUPJ) has unanimously approved the selection of Rabbi Sergio Bergman from Argentina as the next president of WUPJ. Read more

Does Judaism believe in turning the other cheek?

Ask the rabbi. Read more

Eating an idol

Eating plays a very important part in Jewish rituals, every day of the year. Read more

Sin? Not such a big deal

Next week we will restart the annual Torah reading cycle and that always reminds me of Sin! Adam and Eve and all that. Read more

Why do bad things happen

For thousands of years, we have been asking why God lets bad things happen to good people and good things happen to very bad ones. Read more

Remember

The occasion that we now call Rosh Hashana, is referred to in the Bible only as Zihron Teruah – the Day of Remembering with Sound. One is bound to ask: “remembering what? And what does the sound of the Shofar have to do with it?” Read more

The Seventeenth of Tammuz

Five really bad things happened to the Jewish people on the Seventeenth of Tammuz. Which is why we fast from dawn to dusk. This year the seventeenth is on Shabbat, but we fast on Sunday. Shabbat is reserved for happy days. Read more

One day or one lifetime

There is an interesting halachic discussion regarding the Mitzvah of Sefirat Haomer – the forty-nine days that we count between the festival of Pesach and Shavuot. The authorities debate whether counting the Omer is considered one long mitzvah, or forty-nine independent obligations. Read more

Is religion one of the world’s problems?…ask the rabbi

Rabbi Raymond Apple served for 32 years as the chief minister of the Great Synagogue, Sydney, Australia’s oldest and most prestigious congregation. and now lives in Jerusalem. He proffers his answer… Read more

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