Rabbi Dr. Nachum Amsel

The single most practiced Jewish ritual today, which outdoes any other Jewish activity in the cycle of Jewish holidays, is the Passover Seder that occurs on the first evening of Passover. Although this ritual takes many forms these days, with many different foods and customs (of which not all are traditional), it remains the most... Read more »

Deeper Answers to Simple Questions You Always Asked About the Haggadah The meaning of the word “Seder” is order. Nevertheless, the seemingly illogical sequence and rituals of the Haggadah seem like disorder and אי סדר. Why call it a Seder when the entire evening seems to be anything but an orderly process? Making Seder of... Read more »

The teaching profession is unique in a number of ways. It is the only profession whose goal is to make itself superfluous – i.e., the purpose of teaching is to create students who no longer need a teacher at all, but can stand on their own and learn by themselves. In addition, it seems to... Read more »

There are two unethical ways people often make themselves feel superior to others. They get others to look up to them, even though they do not deserve the attention or praise. Or, these people say or do something to make others feel bad about themselves. Essentially these are two sides of the same coin. This... Read more »

In the capitalist free enterprise system, all competition is generally encouraged. But the competition must be fair in order for the system to work. That is why the government monitors the system to insure that one competitor does not gain any unfair advantage, such as a monopoly. For this reason, for example, the United States... Read more »

There is no controversy in Judaism regarding the concept of human dignity. It is universally recognized as an important idea, with the issues discussing only how important dignity is in the hierarchy of Jewish values and why it is so important. Indeed, it is vital to ascertain which Jewish values are less significant than human... Read more »

Jews have always been enthusiastic about sports, whether as avid recreational participants, professional players or as fans. How does the Jewish tradition relate to sports?

The Three Weeks between the 17th of Tammuz and the 9th of Av are the low point in the Jewish calendar, marked by commemorations of tragedies that befell the Jewish people throughout their history. The most central of these are the destruction of the First and Second Temples, both occurring on the Ninth of Av. The second destruction

Every thinking person should agree that hatred is an emotion that not only hurts people, in general, but also damages many individuals who are the object of this emotion. Yet, hate is such a powerful feeling that it often guides the actions of many people and even the actions of nations. It seems very natural to hate and wish to harm someone who has wronged you. Should a person always fight that emotion or

I found some sources that I think we all can use in some form or another that relate to our situation. A little background. At the beginning of the lockdown in March, I had little sympathy for the people who were constantly complaining about all the joys they missed, the physical pleasures and even hugging of their grandchildren.

Pages By: Rabbi Dr. Nachum Amsel

NEW Class & Source Sheets: Underlying Values & Concepts of Pesach

NEW Haggadah: Making Seder of the Seder

NEW Class & Source Sheets: The Importance of Teaching in Judaism

NEW Class & Source Sheets: Putting Others Down – Onaat Devarim

New Class & Source Sheets: Encroaching on Someone’s Business in Judaism

NEW: Class & Source Sheets on Human Dignity, Human Embarrassment, & Humiliating Oneself

NEW: Prepare for the NBA Restart with a Class & Sourcesheets on Sports & Judaism

New Class & Source Sheets: Underlying Values & Concepts of Tisha B’Av

New Class and Source Sheets: Hatred in Judaism

People Doing Nothing During Corona are Heroes

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