It is with tremendous sadness that Rabbanit Devorah and I – along with members of the Shiviti family around the world – bow our heads to mourn the passing of Rabbi Dr. Abraham Levy OBE, Emeritus Spiritual Head of the Spanish and Portuguese Jewish Community. Upon visiting London in March of this year, we had […]
Author: Rabbi Yonatan Halevy
Along the road called life, HaKadosh Baruch Hu places people in our paths who will forever change the journey we take and the destiny we create for ourselves. Two such people are Rabbi Dovid and Mrs. Ettie Rosenbaum. Giants not just of Torah and spirituality, but also of integrity and character. Though they tower a […]
During my formidable years in the icy tundra of Baltimore, no one did more for me and my Sephardic education than Rabbi Yehezkel Ezra and his wife, Rabbanit Rebecca Ezra. From welcoming me to their home almost every single Friday night for five years, to sharing with me what a house full of love, joy(, […]
One of the most important messages I have shared with the Shiviti family this year, based on a Derashah delivered previously at Kehillat Shaar HaShamayim. These words were my introduction to the moving song “Et Dodim Kalah” sung so wonderfully by the very talented Hazan Liran Kohn, accompanied by Zvika Sharabi (strings) and Elliot Torah […]
It was an absolute honor and pleasure for Rabbanit Devorah Halevy and I to spend time in the hills of Jerusalem at the home of our dear friends, Professor Zvi Zohar and his wife Avigayil. We sat in their beautiful garden, eating fruits that the Zohar’s grow on the Land, and discussing issues sorrounding the […]
The first of many visits – today with Mori HaRav Rabbi Yaakov Peretz shlit”a. It was so emotional for all of us to come visit our Rabbi after 2.5 years of not being able to see each other in person! This was the longest time I have ever spent apart from Mori HaRav, and the […]
We were returning from the Kotel on a crowded bus, when we noticed an elderly lady get on the bus with her cart. As is expected on Israeli buses, she approached a row of chairs in which three young girls (aged 5-6) were seated with their father. The lady proceeded to ask one of the […]
Thank you to Attorney General Rob Bonta and Mayor Todd Gloria for inviting me to participate in this important roundtable conversation on behalf of Shiviti, Kehillat Shaar HaShamayim, and the entire Jewish community. Crimes motivated by hate are not just attacks on individual people – they are attacks on our communities and affect us all. […]
As Israeli civilians are once again under rocket attacks from the Hamas and Islamic Jihad terror groups, we the undersigned, Sephardic rabbis representing communities all over the world, stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in Israel. We support Israel’s right to defend her cities and civilians, and to assert her sovereignty over Jerusalem, the historic […]
Printed in Principles: Edition 2 – The Journal of The Ḥabura using their Standard Transliteration Guide An Israeli news reporter once interviewed a Hassidic rabbi about the secret of his community’s long-lasting marriages, in contrast to the general public’s seemingly higher divorce rate. The Rabbi explained: “In our community, husbands and wives take great care […]