Rabbi Sherman - Honorable Mensch-ion

The Exodus commences the Jewish exile. Jacob did not go alone; the children of Israel went with him. Jacob’s name change to Israel occurred after his successful struggle with Esau’s angel, Jacob is a “pure man, the dweller in the...

Last Friday, when deciding which synagogue to attend in Jerusalem, I ultimately chose the Kotel, the Western Wall. Approaching the Kotel, you hear the calls of “Minyan, Minyan.” Groups coalesce to form the required quorum of ten. As the crowd...

The past, the present, and the future.   While in most parts of the world it is difficult to experience all of these in one sitting, we know in Israel, it is easy. This week has been all of that...

We place the Chanukiah in the window in order for all to see the miracle. This mitzvah should not be performed in isolation; it is for others to see that a great miracle happened there, in Israel. Yet, this week,...

This morning, I turned on my computer and received this message, “Failed to reboot.” It is the message of doom- everything is lost. My desktop files, photos from my phone, sermons of the past years-out of sight, out of mind....

The following was featured in this week’s Jewish Journal.    As a freshman at Columbia University in September 2000, the toxic anti-Israel atmosphere burgeoned in front of my eyes with the start of the Second Intifada. My roommate, a political...

Two years ago, I wrote in this very column about the “Kippah Drawer,” which each one of us has- a collection of kippot collected from various baby namings, B’nai Mitzvah and weddings. When we open that drawer, memory floods our...

As I awoke on Thanksgiving morning, I started a text chain reminiscing of a tradition we partook in as children; a simple trip to the bakery to pick out the cookies and pies for Thanksgiving dinner. Now, as my siblings...

When Abraham purchases the Cave of Machpela, in the city of Hebron, to bury Sarah and our ancestors, the Rabbis ask, “What type of coin did he use?” We know it was not a quarter or silver dollar. The answer…...

This past week, rockets once again rained down on Israel, reaching as far as the central part of the country. Schools closed, people were home from work, and one jarring picture of a wedding taking place in a bomb shelter...