tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73319062011-12-28T21:23:16.605-05:00A place where I, MJS, will post whatever I feel like. My previous 'blog' was at <a href="http://members.tripod.com/~Steinhart1/index.html">this address.</a> As you can see, I was blogging even before the term was even coined! But now I'm on a real blog site, so stop complaining. I know I should've done this a long time ago...MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.comBlogger701100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-24977673455854037152011-08-30T10:22:00.003-05:002011-08-30T10:26:59.174-05:00

This footage makes me sad. It's a protest outside the building that should be housing Orot L'Banot in Beit Shemesh. Haredi extremists don't want a girls school in BS. They're threatening the mayor and the students. This isn't a high school, mind you. It's an elementary school. They're threatening girls who are 7 and 8 years old. My daughter's age. Not that threatening anybody of any age is okay

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-60307470282892496142011-07-04T22:11:00.007-05:002011-07-04T22:49:49.259-05:00

I'm fed up with the increasingly ridiculous levels of frumkeit and separation that are becoming accepted as normal. Shmarya over at FailedMessiah picked up a Ha'aretz story about separate seating at Shabbos meals, which is already considered standard operating procedure among many chasidish and 'litvish' households.But I want to tell you about a CD I saw in a chasidishe home over the weekend.I

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-17777624376918508082011-06-24T10:32:00.004-05:002011-07-04T22:53:35.997-05:00

There's a verse in Koheles (Ecclesiastes) that says, "One sinner will destroy much good."A lot of people want to apply it to New Square. One misguided youth cast an entire village--an entire way of life--into disrepute.But that's a mistake. It's not one sinner. It's a systemic illness and willful disregard for health and humanity. And it's time we took a stand and said "Ad kan v'tu lo." This far,

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-48891997773787993252011-03-18T13:00:00.003-05:002011-03-18T13:01:36.790-05:00

I hope to record this, but in the meantime, I want everyone to sing it with very heartfelt, hartzige, yeshivishe ta'am.בשׁעה שׁמרדכי היהודי תלהאת המן האגגי על הגרדום משׁמיע לו ולבניו ואומראגגים אגגים הגיע זמןהגיע זמן הריגתכםואם אין אתם אשׁמיםהרי אתם ממזריםותבוא עליכם קללהערבים ערבים הגיע זמןהגיע זמן הריגתכםואם אין אתם אשׁמיםהרי אתם ממזריםותבוא עליכם קללהואם אין אתם אשׁמיםזה שׁקר! כולכם

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-5027743016920447862011-02-24T22:17:00.003-05:002011-02-24T22:29:06.968-05:00

The Jewish Press is still, for the most part, dumb and narrow-minded. It's been trumpeting about the evil Arabs, every week without fail, for decades. It still gives a forum to convicted felon and creep-protector Gershon Tannenbaum. But, to give credit where credit is due, it's not as dumb and narrow-minded as the Yated, Hamodia, Mishpacha, Bina, and all the other filthy haredi rags I won't allow

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-81893438282783773312010-08-11T14:45:00.005-05:002010-08-11T16:43:38.318-05:00

This has become a popular topic in recent weeks. DovBear writes about it today. Others have been writing about it for the last few years: The phenomenon of organizations promising salvation and healing through segulos.It's Rosh Chodesh Elul today, and this is the day Kupat Ha'ir representatives start their 40-day unbroken minyan of Tehillim reciters. Other organizations--including one collecting

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-79441057676177133602010-08-05T09:39:00.002-05:002010-08-05T09:56:04.017-05:00

Everybody's up in arms about how Chelsea Clinton married a Jewish man. Yated calls it a symptom of the "spiritual holocaust" in which we live. R' Asher Lopatin thinks there may be a kiddush Hashem hidden within the chilul Hashem, because now millions of Americans saw a proud Jew 'doing' Jewish, as Richard Joel used to put it.I think there's an element of spiritual karma here, and you may disagree

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-4229526634562448202010-04-26T13:20:00.003-05:002010-04-26T13:55:58.434-05:00

What is Chilul Hashem?I think the phrase is bandied about too often and used as a cudgel. How many times have we been lectured before a class trip, "You'd better behave, or else it'll be a Chilul Hashem!" Or, "Don't behave that way, you're causing a Chilul Hashem!" Or, "That guy [insert publicly shamed Jew here] is such a Chilul Hashem!"I don't think the average person sees a kid with a yarmulke

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-27297494471217820492009-12-07T12:38:00.002-05:002009-12-07T12:38:48.903-05:00

If you want to shep some nachas, check this out. My daughter is SIX years old. She's a FIRST grader. But she's got a knack for Hebrew--reading and speaking--and she's picking it up pretty quickly.Friday night, she was leafing through a siddur and read the bracha of Shelo Asani Isha. Needless to say, she's not familiar with it, because they don't say it in her all-girls school. And until recently,

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-51374174586530362082009-08-07T09:26:00.005-05:002009-08-07T09:56:08.952-05:00

I think the blogosphere has done a great job highlighting the problems in frum Judaism today. And there are many. That's the main reason I haven't blogged in forever; retirees and people with more time on their hands are doing a fine job of it. You will find all the righteous indignation, charedi-bashing, MO-criticizing, and general bilious ranting you need elsewhere.Here, I've decided, I'll be

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-24899923936186189262008-08-29T13:43:00.003-05:002008-08-29T13:58:48.966-05:00

I don't know whether the blogosphere is the cause or simply an outgrowth of the crises facing frumkeit today, but I will say that I've learned far more than I ever wanted to about chasidishe infighting, charedi misdeeds in Israel, modern-orthodox apologetics, and kosher food scandals.And the end result, if one judges from the buzz and boards, is that the bad far outbalances the good.So I'm left

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-43885664456833114182007-11-05T16:35:00.000-05:002007-11-05T17:16:33.507-05:00

I'm not one to comment or pontificate when it comes to politics. I'm not such a big macher. I'm not super-connected. I don't know who's making the back-room deals and who's negotiating with which 'askan' for which slice of which pie.But here in the Monsey area - Town of Ramapo - local elections are happening tomorrow. And the campaigning and rhetoric have reached a fever pitch. I've been musing

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-15551446281576676712007-10-26T12:09:00.001-05:002007-10-26T12:27:11.870-05:00

All the usual bloggers have already cited and commented on this story: The Beis Yaakov school of Emanuel has separate classes for Sephardi girls and Ashkenazi girls, and there's a curtain dividing the schoolyard in half - one side for the 'darker' girls, and one for the lighter ones.Now, I know the media are all anti-charedi. And I'm sure there's some bias to the story. But they have footage of

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-90057987133484971562007-10-17T22:11:00.000-05:002007-10-17T22:23:28.139-05:00

I just read an interesting article about the Dalai Lama's visit to New York this week. He's among the world religious leaders who, in my opinion, are doing their part to further G0d's holy work. Rambam is very clear that any man or woman, from any walk of life, can devote his or her life to G0d, forsaking material comforts and living simply, to better devote his or her energies to service. I

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-59461060067309808642007-10-17T12:01:00.001-05:002007-10-17T12:27:41.005-05:00

A lot of people have been forwarding this article from last sunday's NY Times. It's an interesting 'inside look' at the wealthy Syrian Jewish community of Brooklyn and Deal.They're shrewd businesspeople. They're successful. They take care of their own. They're very dedicated to family and community - all of that is great. But they're also very patriarchal -- men work while women make sure to look

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-84330366848313621872007-09-10T14:34:00.000-05:002007-09-10T14:59:26.224-05:00

I have cousins. Almost everybody does, I'd imagine, but I have some particularly good and sweet and generous and devoted and amazing cousins. The kind anybody'd be lucky to have. You've never met more erliche girls. Really.The ones I'm writing about today are sisters: a sophomore and senior, respectively, in a Beis Yaakov high school that is known for at least attempting to provide a decent

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-15433577413726293362007-07-22T20:59:00.000-05:002007-07-22T21:03:22.828-05:00

On Friday, my wife was on the phone with a friend. During the course of conversation, she said, "No, we don't have any exciting plans for the weekend."My daughter, now 4, interjected."Yes, we do!"I looked at her, puzzled. "What do you mean?""We're having Shabbos!!"And there you have it.

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-61917612659424977572007-07-11T09:13:00.001-05:002007-07-11T09:17:59.081-05:00

I just saw this in the "Family Matters" section of last week's Jewish Press. Compulsive gambling--in the form of rampant spending at Chinese Auctions--is the new danger threatening the very fabric of Orthodox Jewish life. In the blogosphere, they'd refer to this as the "money quote:"How many large families are suffering the effects of Chinese Auction addictions and not talking about it, while in

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-22357364702159136492007-06-27T09:58:00.000-05:002007-06-27T10:02:47.582-05:00

I realize that it's been forever since I posted anything, and this post will not justify the extended hiatus.It's just something that struck me recently when I was in Chicago.Mazel tov, by the way, to everyone on the arrival of my new nephew, Avraham Adir. May he grow to Torah, Chupah, and Maasim Tovim. Amen.So before the bris, I was taking off my tefillin, and my 10-year-old nephew said, "Can I

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1171431491487734312007-02-14T00:34:00.000-05:002007-03-03T05:01:08.943-05:00

I haven't posted in forever. But I've been crazy busy at work and at home, and I weathered some serious upheaval in terms of my communal life. So first off, Mazel Tov to Yissie and Shoshie - welcome to the family and here's looking at many, many decades of simchas and nachas for us and gantz klal yisrael.Second off, I just completed a week of jury service in federal court, and I want to share my

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1162703501525710592006-11-05T00:06:00.000-05:002006-11-05T00:11:41.540-05:00

[Note - names have NOT been changed]My company sent me on a last-minute trip to Chicago, so I could cover a roundtable discussion event.So i'm checking in at the Ritz-Carlton, where the event is going to be held, and whilst I'm talking to the receptionist, a tall, distinguished-looking brit in camel's-hair coat, with glasses perched on the end of his nose, interrupts and says, "Can you tell me

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1162224077653725082006-10-30T10:59:00.000-05:002006-10-30T23:18:32.000-05:00

A strange and somewhat sad thing happened this past Shabbos, and it brought a bunch of important issues to the fore.During the pre-Musaf speech, a half-dozen teenage boys arrived at shul and, instead of interrupting the sermon and finding seats in the sanctuary, they filed into a back room.I don't mean to sound judgemental or obnoxious, but it was easy to see that these boys were not attempting

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1161799281735239332006-10-25T13:00:00.000-05:002006-10-25T13:01:21.753-05:00

I've been kicking myself for leaving my notebook in the car, so often have I encountered foolish people or outrageous behaviors on the bus each morning.Much ink has been spilled, and many pens have been broken, and many fingers and wrists have been damaged, writing about loud cell-phone talkers. There's not a thing I could add to the discussion, honestly. Except to say that perhaps, from now on,

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1161626171503507552006-10-23T12:54:00.000-05:002006-10-23T12:56:11.523-05:00

Here's another priceless exchange, wherein my 3-year-old shows me up by combining her natural contrariness with a surprisingly advanced vocabulary.Her: "I want more juice"Me: "What?"I want more juice?Can you say that again?More juice!I'm sorry, what?I. Want. More. JuiceCan you be a little more specific?{she holds out her cup} Put. It. In. Here.

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1160713179161977962006-10-12T23:16:00.000-05:002006-10-13T12:00:58.490-05:00

Below is an exchange I had tonight with my young daughter, kinehora, who is 3 years old. And no, her name is not kinehora.She was dissecting a particularly crucial plot point in the "Wiggles Magical Adventure" movie."Why did Wally take Greg's magic wand?" she asked."Because he thought it would help him win the magic contest," I answered."But why?""Because he felt that if he won the contest,

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1156970610406099032006-08-30T15:39:00.000-05:002006-10-19T02:58:17.643-05:00

I just read this in a 12-year-old interview with songwriter Leonard Cohen.A confident people is not exclusive. A great religion affirms other religions. A great culture affirms other cultures. A great nation affirms other nations. A great individual affirms other individuals, validates the beingness of others.What do you think of that? He's talking about us. And he captures, in a very immediate

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1155749178692640752006-08-16T12:22:00.000-05:002006-08-22T22:05:51.700-05:00

There are a lot of "blogworthy" things that happen to me, almost daily. If I had more time and motivation, like some others, I'd write 'em all down and post a couple of times a day. But I don't, usually. Yesterday, however, a conversation I overheard on the bus screamed "blog me!" (The way certain pesukim in chumash cry, "Interpret me!")First off, if you're going to have a conversation on the bus

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1154111279081569472006-07-28T13:25:00.000-05:002006-07-28T13:41:34.773-05:00

I was thinking about Jews for Jesus and the Neturei Karta. Funny combination of groups, right? But both are enemies of normative Judaism, but both are Jewish groups.I think it's interesting that we spend a lot of time, money, and mental energy on thinking about and fighting against these Jewish enemies, while our real enemies are shooting rockets as far as Nahariya.I don't have any answers. Maybe

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1154092899149154442006-07-28T08:05:00.000-05:002006-07-28T13:24:32.020-05:00

Hello all -Na'aleh es yerushalaim al rosh simchaseinu - please daven for the safety, well-being, and victory of our soldiers in Lebanon, Gaza, and everywhere they may be - on land, air, or sea.Sorry for the hiatus in posting; it's been (and continued to be) a very busy week.First off, Mazel Tov to R & R & S on the birth of their son/brother. AM is a cutie and we adore him. Nachas and simchas and

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1152757715422178502006-07-12T21:26:00.000-05:002006-07-20T06:57:05.226-05:00

I just discovered a very disturbing problem: In the July 2006 issue of The Announcements, a Monsey ad book, a story called "United Flight 175" appears on page 76.Essentially, the story is that a frum Jewish man was on the plane, realized that he forgot his tefillin in the terminal at Logan Airport, and made a huge fuss until the flight crew let him off the plane to retrieve them. The plane left

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1151592407456346452006-06-29T09:40:00.000-05:002006-07-20T17:36:49.116-05:00

It's so hard not to be cynical about the 'cycle of violence' in Israel.They kill two of our boys and kidnap a third. All of a sudden they've got a bargaining chip that people care about.Israel rattles its sabers. The PRC (and who are we kidding here? Hamas, Fatah, Islamic Jihad, the PRC, and all these other clowns share information, resources, and a healthy hatred of Israel) says, "Hey, we've got

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1151380241332784252006-06-26T22:44:00.000-05:002006-08-16T09:24:06.900-05:00

Following the thread of tzedaka organizations that employ questionable tactics in marketing and soliciting funds, I present the latest mailing from Shuvu. (Which added "Chazon Avrohom" to its name, so as to drive home the implicit haskama of R' Avrohom Pam, zt''l. And then, to make sure you get the message, they put "Shuvu & Rav Pam An Eternal Bond" on the organizational masthead.)But I don't

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1150398990683873682006-06-15T14:15:00.000-05:002006-06-16T11:00:09.293-05:00

Editor’s note: In the interests of protecting the innocent and guilty, I’m going to change the names in this story. You’ll see what I mean as the narrative moves along.PART ILast night, a major tech company whose name rhymes with Bewlett Backard threw a little Hawaiian-themed, gadget-preview, open-bar, fun-filled press event. Needless to say, I was there.I brought my knapsack, which contained (

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1149609568805754462006-06-06T10:51:00.000-05:002006-06-06T10:59:28.823-05:00

Hello all -I realize Yomtov's over, and I hope you all enjoyed, but the Rosh Kollel of Kollel Kehilas Sassov suggested I post some discussion material I put together for learning on Leil Shavuos. Some of these ideas are covered elsewhere in the blogosphere, but here's my $0.02.בס''דשבעות – 5766 – Shavuos – 2006טז וַיְהִי בַיּוֹם הַשְּׁלִישִׁי בִּהְיֹת הַבֹּקֶר, וַיְהִי קֹלֹת וּבְרָקִים וְעָנָן

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1149169788229300622006-06-01T08:47:00.000-05:002006-06-19T09:30:50.596-05:00

Shlomo Hamelech says it's better to go to a house of mourning than a house of feasting, because it's hard to be introspective at a party.Unfortunately, I had the opportunity to visit a 'shiva' house yesterday, and I understand, in a limited way, what Shlomo Hamelech meant.My Rosh Yeshiva, Rav Berel Wein, Shlit''a, is sitting shiva for his wife, Rebbetzin Jackie, Yocheved bas Harav

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1147272318127401852006-05-10T09:43:00.000-05:002006-05-10T09:45:18.136-05:00

I was not able to attend the Asifa, but Dov Bear apparently has some inside info. Will whomever sent him the reports send them to me, too?

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1147009203900506952006-05-07T08:38:00.000-05:002006-05-10T07:55:50.110-05:00

Okay - word has finally hit that there will be two additional "grand gatherings" -- one for men and one for women -- and held in English, to boot.R' Matisyahu Salomon is going to be speaking to men on Tuesday, and women the following Sunday. There will be some other speakers, too, but I don't recognize or remember their names.The Rov of my shul, Rabbi Erblich, presented the news and urged us all

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1146796113951511352006-05-04T21:26:00.000-05:002006-05-04T23:42:57.220-05:00

I may have sounded the Internet ban alarm too quickly. The hype and buildup I reported on earlier has, apparently, already culminated in a grand gathering - an אסיפה רבתי.Only nobody knew about it.It happened Monday evening, according to the Community Connections (CC). This week's CC ran three pages of photos and a one-page write-up of the event (see the photo at right). But it's all in Yiddish.

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1146595665452365642006-05-02T13:42:00.000-05:002006-05-03T12:21:49.446-05:00

I know I promised to blog about my grandfather, Aron Moshe ben R' Shmuel Zanvil, ZTL, a year ago. And I didn't. It's been hard to gather my thoughts and create a coherent picture. Today--Yom Hazikaron--is his first yahrzeit, and we gathered last night to remember a little and celebrate a little and cry a little. My father did most of the talking, offering memories and anecdotes. Rabbi Seplowitz

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1146582430646160462006-05-02T10:04:00.000-05:002007-02-26T00:37:48.400-05:00

Over the last couple of weeks, signs and 2-page-spread ads (in Hebrew and Yiddish) have been appearing around Monsey and its various publications.The text was a play on a verse in Tehillim (psalms) 144: Our oxen are loaded; there is no breaking in nor going out and no crying in our streets.Editor's note: The word for oxen - alufeinu - can also mean 'leaders,' and the word for 'loaded' can also

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1145977501847912412006-04-25T09:59:00.001-05:002006-05-02T20:13:08.176-05:00

I know it's already been out for several months, but I just saw "A Gesheft" (www.agesheft.com) last night.Sof kol sof, it's an hour and 40 minutes of my life that I'll never get back. If you don't want to read any spoilers or get any details, you can stop here.The movie was released in December, and it's the first and only yiddish-language, "Kosher" entertainment product out there, if you don't

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1144356272655791752006-04-06T15:40:00.000-05:002006-04-07T09:09:23.506-05:00

We are a generation of orphans. An orphaned generation. Both.I wanted to add some comments of my own to this brilliant post by R' Harry Maryles. But there are already over 150 comments there. Anything I'd say would be lost in the shuffle (see my earlier comments about blog comment boards). So I'm going to address it here.We've been betrayed. We have no Rabbinic leadership on a global level. In

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1143558079591032482006-03-28T09:58:00.000-05:002006-05-07T06:51:53.636-05:00

My previous post about matzah--with the chumros baked right in--got me thinking. The matzah bakery I visit every year (which will have to remain nameless, for reasons that will soon become clear) had, until recently, a squad of some 20 women rolling the dough into matzah-shaped circles. Or circle-shaped matzah. But I digress.About two years ago, I started seeing signs touting the higher level of

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1142866106658224172006-03-20T09:47:00.000-05:002006-03-27T16:38:06.530-05:00

This is the headline of a three-page, full-color ad in Monsey's Community Connections publication. I will, bli neder, cut out and scan the offending ad so you can all see that I am NOT MAKING THIS UP.It's an ad for Matzah, naturally. Hand Shmura that's only $10.99 a pound (which is billig vi borscht) but made with the highest standards and most exacting specifications.Throughout the magazine,

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1142478258333946982006-03-15T21:50:00.000-05:002006-03-18T23:58:44.950-05:00

So fine, I'm jumping on the bandwagon and adding a post to the already burgeoning canon of Megillah-related blogiogrypha. Deal.I have one up on RenReb and DovBear, in that I actually do lein the Megillah - both in shul and in 'home-based' readings. And you know what was running through my mind? Well, in shul at the night reading, I was thinking, "Why did I have to start Perek vav (sixth chapter

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1141843241529644312006-03-08T13:38:00.000-05:002006-03-09T19:30:11.590-05:00

Thanks to my father, shlit''a, I have very strong feelings about donating blood. He has been donating regularly for decades, and he's on call with Bikur Cholim in case they need type-specific units. Way back in 1979, when I was just a tyke of 5, the Steinhart family spent the whole summer in Israel. We toured Hadassah Hospital and my mother, shlit''a, got in trouble for attempting to photograph

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1140714038935638212006-02-23T11:58:00.000-05:002006-02-23T12:00:38.946-05:00

Master! Lift up the light of Your face to us,And I will lift up my shekel in the proper and exalted house,And in justice, consider the worth of "Ki Tisa" ...(Free translation excerpted from Musaf piyutim of Shekalim)GEVALD!!Is there anything more beautiful than our piyutim? I don't think so. As an editor and dialectical analyst (my 12th-grade rebbe called me that), I find so much meaning and joy

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1140470818365691622006-02-20T16:25:00.000-05:002006-03-06T09:54:25.513-05:00

Okay, so now that I'm a full-fledged blogger, complete with some comments, I'm finding a problem with the blogosphere. Legitimate conversations, arguments, flame wars, and other sundry bits of communal communication are going on in the 'comments' sections of many, many blogs. But those comments sections are ancillary, tangential, and situation in a less-accessible form on each blog page that I've

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1140192022044785142006-02-17T10:57:00.000-05:002006-09-22T12:35:03.996-05:00

Here's another priceless exchange from a session I had recently with a young student.Student: My friend Joe is practicing for his Bar Mitzvah, and his 'trop' is completely different from the tunes you taught me.Me: Is he a yekke? Do you know what a yekke is?Student: I don't know... someone from Yemen?Me: No. Someone from Yemen is a Yemenite. What's Yemen in Hebrew? (I was thinking he may have

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1139861845658227172006-02-13T14:57:00.000-05:002007-03-24T23:02:08.046-05:00

A number of years ago, I was at a Shaarei Torah weekend. During a panel discussion, one speaker (whose name escapes me) was talking about factionalism in Orthodoxy, and he closed his remarks with a profound poem by Edward Markham:He drew a circle that shut me out Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout But love and I had the wit to win; We drew a circle that took him in.Rabbi Wein, shlita, followed this

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1138987863385792942006-02-03T12:29:00.000-05:002006-02-03T12:38:03.996-05:00

According to this story, the United States has issused a statement denouncing the mohammed-caricature cartoons. Wrong, wrong, wrong. Instead of calling for restraint and maturity and re-affirming its belief in a free press, the U.S. is declaring that these cartoons are offensive, and they incite hatred and ethnic tensions.What a load.What the U.S. is saying, unequivocally, is that it understands

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1138914163279172172006-02-02T15:11:00.000-05:002006-02-02T16:02:43.340-05:00

Anybody wondering why cartoonists don't get death threats from Jews and Christians?I know! I know!It's because we don't feel threatened by CARTOONS.Don't get me wrong. Political cartoons are a very accurate way of measuring the zeitgeist and popular opinion on a given person or subject. And Lord knows the role anti-Semitic cartoons have played and continue to play in the Arab world.And yet, I

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1138739331378302302006-01-31T15:20:00.000-05:002006-01-31T15:28:51.390-05:00

Kinky Friedman likes to talk about being poor in the coin of the realm, but rich in the 'coin of the spirit.' My Babi Julia, OBM, had a similar aphorism about her childhood: "We didn't have any money, but we sure had fun."Today I was thinking about aphorisms, sayings, one-liners, observations, (coinages, if you will) and some of the ones I've come up with over the years. Here's a sampling

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1138309827373462082006-01-26T15:47:00.000-05:002006-02-20T22:40:20.273-05:00

It should come as little surprise that Hamas won a decisive majority of seats in the palestinian "knesset." Fatah, and by extension, the palestinian authority, is completely corrupt. Billions of dollars in international aid have gone straight into the Swiss bank accounts of Arafat and his cronies. Ambulances being shipped for humanitarian purposes end up being stripped for parts and sold on the

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1138048851889176152006-01-23T15:19:00.000-05:002006-01-25T01:19:04.046-05:00

In a sad but predictable turn of events, Joey Buttafuoco and his ex-wife Mary Jo and her would-be killer, Amy Fisher, are trying to squeeze a little more money and publicity out of their sleazy story. Here's a link to the AP story on Yahoo! Entertainment.They've all agreed to appear together on a televised special. "There's gonna be shocking revelations... I'm really excited," says Joey. Wow.

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1137094894715848052006-01-12T14:40:00.000-05:002006-01-26T14:13:42.453-05:00

Special note: Just a few days after the event, BenZion's mother passed away. We extend our deepest and most heartfelt condolences to him and to the entire Solomon family. המקום ינחם אתכם בתוך שאר אבלי ציון וירושלים.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Hello, friends. A lot has happened since my last post. My position at PC Magazine was 'eliminated.' I'm working now as a

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1131112930848079302005-11-04T08:54:00.000-05:002006-01-02T15:16:41.986-05:00

In the latest issue of the 5Towns Jewish Times (and no, I didn't know there was a 5Towns Jewish Times), Chananya Weissman, of End the Madness fame, has a very long piece about the general lack of decorum in shul. He's very well-informed, he pulls no punches, and he's quite scathing when addressing the kinds of behaviors (like cell phone use during davening) that many of us take for granted, but

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1126292937833687912005-09-09T14:08:00.000-05:002005-09-12T10:04:09.150-05:00

I'm almost done with Shalom Auslander's "Beware of God." It's a recently published collection of short stories, all of which relate to the Jew's (and the Jews') apparently dysfunctional relationship with God and the Torah.We've heard it all before, from doubters and heretics throughout the centuries and millennia. Philip Roth and Woody Allen filled that role admirably for our parents' generation.

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1126038838196998722005-09-06T15:07:00.000-05:002005-09-06T15:33:58.223-05:00

Hello all -So of course we're all reeling from Katrina and the destruction left in her wake. New Orleans, and many of her neighboring cities, are in ruins. The government response has been lackluster, at best. Israel is still recovering from the withdrawal from Gaza. What's going to be? Who knows?All we can do is muddle on from day to day.And in that spirit, mazel tov to Eli M. on his bar mitzva,

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1124379889994190742005-08-18T10:43:00.000-05:002005-08-18T10:44:50.000-05:00

When I was living in Queens, I davened, mainly, at Yeshiva Ohr Hachaim. It's a beautiful, Jerusalem-stone building on Main Street in Kew Gardens Hills.But during the summers, I'd lein at a little shul next-door to the yeshiva. K'hal Chasam Sofer, more commonly known as Rabbi Weisel's shul.Rabbi Avraham Sholom Yeshaya Weisel, זצ''ל, was already in his waning years when I came on the scene. He was

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1124315422804836522005-08-17T16:47:00.000-05:002005-08-17T16:50:22.810-05:00

Hey all -So I was in Yerushalayim for Psachiya's bar mitzva, and it was fantastic, deeply moving, and thoroughly exhausting. I'll post more about it soon.The situation in Gush Katif is heartbreaking. There's really no other way to describe it. And the soldiers are feeling almost as much pain as the residents. The dismantling of a Jewish neighborhood, in Israel, by Jews, raises so many questions

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1121376452440417592005-07-14T16:16:00.000-05:002005-07-14T16:27:32.446-05:00

Many thanks to my good friend Dovid Roness for asking my opinion on some of the 'burning issues' of contemporary Orthodoxy. I'd love to hear what some of you, loyal readers, think. But in the meantime, here are my less than politically correct rants:The recent 'Z100 crank call' that's circulating the Internet: - I came away from the z100 crank call discomfited, but that's how it works for us

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1117122065885796952005-05-26T10:31:00.000-05:002005-05-26T10:41:05.886-05:00

Hello all -It's been a long time since I've written, mainly because I'm been very busy, BH. Mostly with good things.I want to wish a mazel tov to my bar mitzva boyz - two of whom are 'dropping' very shortly. So to Gedalia and Mordechai - you are extraordinary people and you've taught me far more than I could ever hope to teach you. I'm very proud of you both, and all the other boyz who are

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1095887691116745702004-09-22T16:07:00.000-05:002004-09-22T16:14:51.116-05:00

Where I live in the greater Monsey area, we've got plenty of water - ponds, streams, brooks, lakes - you name it. We also have hundreds of Canada geese - large and aggressive animals that can render any street, yard, or playing field useless with their copious excreta. But that's not what I'm writing about, really. When I was walking to shul on Shabbos Shuva, it was raining rather heavily. I

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1095801229226089052004-09-21T15:40:00.000-05:002004-09-21T16:20:10.696-05:00

Hey all - a gutt yohr and gmar chasima tova to you. I realize I'm a week late, here, but I've been mulling some Yamim Noraim-related issues and now I have a chance to write a little. I davened the first set of Slichos at the Carlebach shul in Manhattan this year. If you've read any of my music rants, you know I'm a big 'chasid' of Shlomo and proud member of the Monsey 'chevra.' I was excited to

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1094586123918630802004-09-07T14:26:00.000-05:002006-05-19T03:59:03.046-05:00

Okay - I know I've been away for a while, and I apologize to my loyal fans (all two of you). I wanted to comment on something that I noticed last week, and that disturbs me to no end. I do not have any degrees in Education, but I do tutor a lot. I give Bar Mitzva lessons. I volunteer for youth groups. I read the Torah and lead services on occasion, too. Recently, I was learning Maseches Brachos

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1088606790137082042004-06-30T09:42:00.000-05:002004-06-30T09:46:30.136-05:00

I was just thinking about this today - free-associating the word Mincha. As a noun for 'gift,' it's much more elegant and evocative than "matana," which just means 'something given.' Mincha implies an emotion that comes with the giving and receiving. Mincha - Menucha - Nachas - Nechama - Noach - Munach - see where thinking about the word takes you. And you can do this with any word, I presume.

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1087487702711689132004-06-17T10:39:00.000-05:002006-07-27T16:13:53.896-05:00

This is a problem that plagues many, many synagogues/shuls. Some people talk quietly, and try to hush up for leining and shmoneh esrei. Others talk loudly and obnoxiously through the whole service. Sometimes there's a designated shusher who tries to maintain decorum. Other times a few people shush and a few talkers retort with angry comments. Bickering and even outright fighting result. All

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1087399455561559742004-06-16T10:22:00.000-05:002004-06-16T10:24:15.560-05:00

Jewish Music News and Views Plus some assorted rants and raves... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- It's May 2003! Where the *&^$# have I been? Hey everyone -- I've already gotten quite a few complaints about my lack of fresh content here on the R&R page, and I'm sorry. I realize that this clever format of adding thoughts to the top of each page

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7331906.post-1087399320227917892004-06-16T10:18:00.000-05:002004-06-16T10:22:00.226-05:00

This is a piece I wrote on 12/7/98 after attending the Shearit Israel benefit concert last night at Avery Fisher Hall. It's been around the Internet a lot over the last six years, with luminaries from BenZion Solomon to Carmine D'Amico commenting on its veracity. Some anonymous studio musicians and technicians have commented on it as well. I'll post more as we go... Muddled Waters - the Sorry

MJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02537130507436578928noreply@blogger.com0