“He who walks in the middle of the roads gets hit from both sides.” In light of our recent post concerning the danger of messianic elements which identify with Chabad, attacks followed from both sides: 1) Some – falsely and viciously – accused us of attacking an entire movement of our brothers and sisters, instead […]
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My thoughts on a WhatsApp message I received today. The author of the message was not malicious, but instead tried to be nice and apologetic, though my response to it unfortunately cannot be. The context? Yesterday, one of of my wife’s precious students from her years of teaching in Israel tragically took her own life. Brief […]
This website is under construction, after years of neglect. It will slowly be updated, God willing. Until everything is up and running, the best way to reach me is via www.kshsd.org
It is too often that I am asked “why can you not just be a mainstream rabbi?” To which I always respond: “what is mainstream in Judaism?” The answer? “What everyone else does!”. If the Jewish people believed that numbers created a mainstream one would be compelled to follow: 1. We would have to give […]
I have been struggling immensely after a conversation with a dear friend. Traditional Jewish phrases have been altered to include foreign concepts, but then we are blamed for lack of unity when we voice concern over them. For example… What used to universally be: “Give Nachat to our Creator” has now been replaced with “Give […]
“She is not Tznius” – no, she is not a Tznua perhaps. Tznius (ignore the s) is a noun, not an adjective. “She is not a Tzanua” – no, perhaps she is not a Tznua. Tzanua is in the masculine form. “She is not…” – wait, how modest can modesty be if it obsesses over […]
My new book “Yehi Shalom: A Guide to the Laws of Pesach and Kashrut” is now available! This book is a handy resource for both Ashkenazim and Sepharadim, written in English and including hundreds of sources. List price is $25 but we are offering the book for just $20 in honor of Pesach! The book […]
Dearest friends, After quite some time offline, RabbiYoni.com is back! We are in the middle of re-installing some of our lost features, so please be patient as we begin our journey to completion! With love, Rabbi Yoni
I’m not wishing myself a Happy Birthday! Tonight (the 11th of Iyar) is my Hebrew Birthday. How old am I? Well, I’d rather not divulge that information! 🙂 I recall a few years ago, a discussion I had with one of my Rebbeim, the Kalever Rebbe shlit”a of Williamsburg. I asked him why he does […]
The enormous white signs smell of fresh glue, slapped upon layers of their predecessors, perhaps covering them, but they are just as blasphemous. The dark, black letters cry of the future of the Jewish people and denounce those evil men who wish to destroy them. The people on the street stop to read the new […]