Category Archives: Israel
Rav Yehuda Amital – A Tribute Five Years On
Today is five years since the passing of my teacher and rosh yeshiva Rav Yehuda Amital. Both his personality and his message are so sorely missed. He taught us that ethics and natural morality come before and underpin all other … Continue reading
Hanukah and the Jewish State Bill
My piece in this week’s JC on Hanukah and the Jewish state bill. Published a month after I wrote it when it is less news-worthy, with a weird picture, headline, and completely the wrong line made bold – but here it … Continue reading
Gedalia to Rabin – A Shiur for the 19th Yahrzeit of Yitzchak Rabin
Rabin’s assassination, in November 1995, nineteen years ago, is probably the first event of international significance that I remember. At the time, as a 9 year old in London I understood that something terrible had happened and over the years … Continue reading
Israelis in India
As a 20 year old on break from university I spent the summer holidays traveling in India with friends. Almost on a par with the native interests of India were the Israelis we met there who made a profound impression on … Continue reading
Peoplehood at a time of suffering
Every day I pass by the spot where, last Friday, three teenagers hitchhiking home were kidnapped, and whose whereabouts are still unknown. The trempiada, as it’s called, is only 150 metres from my front door, and so this has been … Continue reading
‘A child born in Paris in 1933…’ Rav Aharon Lichtenstein – A Tribute
Last week the head of the yeshiva which I have studied at for much of the last decade, Rav Aharon Lichtenstein, was awarded the Israel Prize, the state’s highest honour, for his contributions to Torah literature. Those who know him from … Continue reading
Two sources for the transition from Yom HaZikaron to Yom Ha’atzmaut
Anyone who experiences Yom HaZikaron and Yom Ha’atzmaut in Israel knows that the transition is a strange one – from one extreme to another. Here are two sources – from Elie Wiesel and Rav Hirsch – that I’ve enjoyed thinking … Continue reading
Why Rav Ovadia Matters
Why Rav Ovadia Matters Published in the Jewish Chronicle, the week of Rav Ovadia’s passing. Who was Rabbi Ovadia Yosef? An aged rabbi responsible for countless offensive statements (on Arabs, Ashkenazim and countless others he saw as opponents) and the … Continue reading
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