This is the third essay in a series applying values from Biblical leaders to contemporary leadership. Most of what we know about the first matriarch is detailed in two chapters in the Bible, Genesis 16 and 21. First, we are told of Sarah’s interactions with her maidservant Hagar. Childless for many years, Sarah convinced Abraham... Read more »
by Rabbi Eliyahu Kohen | November 5, 2020 The popular writer Jennifer Weiner describes her own Jewish identity in the context of exploring the Jewishness of former Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg (R.B.G.) in the NYTimes on September 29, 2020. Weiner sets the tone for the essay, The Very Jewish R.B.G., with a keen observation by her then five-year-old... Read more »
Steven Covey once said that no one puts on his tombstone, “Stayed at the office late every night.” In business, it is clear that someone who did that sacrificed family, Torah learning and other meaningful aspects of his life. What about kiruv? We see our lives not as a parnasah – it is pretty lousy... Read more »
Yesterday I related to you the nice encounter I had by being able to park a minivan into a tight spot. That was a good story that left me feeling warm and secure. Another incident with a car occurred to me yesterday, this one was of a different nature. My wife and I decided to... Read more »
1. Expose students first to the positive experiences of Shabbat meals before talking about melachos: Did not David HaMelech say סור מרע ועשה טוב? First get out of the isurim before engaging positive mitzvos? However, Rav Tzadok HaCohen points out that the first of the עשרת הדברות are then written in the wrong order. HaSh-m... Read more »
The following is based on an article by Sergio DellaPergola in the American Jewish Year Book, 2019 as well as the London-based Institute for Jewish Policy Research. (DellaPergola was also a co-author of that study.) In 2019, the Core Jewish population estimate of global Jewry was 14,707,400, an increase of 100,000 over 2018. The Jewish population is expanding... Read more »
Each year on Simchas Torah, the current cycle of Torah reading concludes while also beginning anew on that same date. The stated reason for this minhag stems from the idea that on Simchas Torah we display our strong feelings of love and commitment to the Torah. It is therefore only appropriate for us to use... Read more »
In the previous two blogs, we have looked at long-term burnout, and how to evaluate whether this requires a career change. In this blog, we look at how to prevent and to cure short-term burn-out. A. AVOIDING BURN-OUT Keep on Growing If you don’t feel that you are growing, professionally and personally, you will not... Read more »
In this blog, we discuss steps one should take when suffering from long-term burnout. An important book to read when considering change is Howard’s Gift, by Eric C. Sinoway (with Merrill Meadow). We have borrowed extensively from this book, amongst other sources, for this blog. WHEN YOU STAY WITH YOUR JOB Call a Time-Out The... Read more »
Part One – Story On October 20, 1952, David Ben Gurion (1886 -1973), the Prime Minister of The State of Israel, requested a meeting to meet with the Gadol HaDor, the Chazon Ish (1878 –1953). Yitzhak Navon served as Ben Gurion’s secretary. He was the only person to accompany him at this meeting and reconstructed... Read more »
