September 22nd, 2008 admin
I Voted... - Tue, 4 Nov 2008
Google Translate is not ready for Prime Time - Fri, 31 Oct 2008
Google Translate is an attempt to let their cloud automatically translate from one langugage to another. See here for how this works. Let's look at the first verse of a more-commonly translated work, the Torah, courtesy of wikitext...
- Spelling: Genesis ×-×××× created the heaven and earth
- Dotted: At the beginning god created the heavens and the earth.
- With flavors: At the beginning god created the heavens and the earth.
I happen to feel that "at the beginning" is more precise than "in the begining", especially in the light of some of the commentators. (The translations for ×× ××§× and ×˘× ×ע××× are especially cute: Dotted and With flavors.)
Check out the translation from English back to Hebrew (modern Ivrit, actually).
Our Article is Now Published... - Fri, 24 Oct 2008
In the Autumn 2008/Tishrei 5769 Issue of CONTACT, the Journal of The Steinhardt Foundation for Jewish Life.
Here is the first paragraph:
FOCUSING ON THE PINTELE YID
As campus rabbis serving American universities, we both lead constituencies not prone to following. Todayâs young people and academics are often alienated from institutional leadership. Theyâre confident and they feel empowered to celebrate their individuality. We are regularly confronted with a conundrum: how to effectively lead a diverse group of individuals, each with his or her own weltanschauung, while retaining a firm commitment to our own values.
More on page 10... (2 MB PDF)
The article is co-written by Dov Wagner, rabbi of Chabad @ USC and myself. Let us know what you think!
Who to vote for... - Fri, 24 Oct 2008
Rabbi Shmaya Shmotkin, spiritual leader of the Chabad Lubavitch-affiliated The Shul (Orthodox) in Bayside, said, âItâs been a long-standing policy of [Chabad] Lubavitch, instituted by the Rebbe, that as an institution we are not to be involved in politics.â
âThe reason is the way we view our role: to enhance and serve every single Jew, regardless of ideology or political leanings,â he said.
âAnything that could potentially deter from that mission or make someone with a different view uncomfortable is in our view detrimental.â Therefore, âeven if by law we were able to, we wouldnât do it.â
My feelings exactly. And no, I do not want any more political spam messages either.
Hit a Jew Day II - Thu, 23 Oct 2008
From an avid blog reader:
It's very easy for kids to plan an activity without the faculty knowing about it. If someone would tell, then that kid would be shunned, or scapegoated in some way. You have had very little experience in your school days with antisemitism. Years ago, we had far too much. For example: I had to sit next to C-- S--, who whispered all day, "Jackie-Jew." Nothing I could complain to the teacher about because any action on her part would point to the fact that I had snitched, and I hate to think what would have happened to me if I had. Kids HATE snitchers.
This is one of the benefits of private, non-secular education. Instead of being a member of a wimpy minority, you're part of a 100%. I think it builds self-esteem. I am not sure that teaching about various cultures and ethnicities can automatically create students who are empathic. I like focusing on what makes us the same to unite a group of varied students. The question is how to develop the skills to relate to strange customs and traditions as an adult?
"Hit a Jew Day..." - Wed, 22 Oct 2008
Four or five Parkway West Middle School students will be disciplined after administrators found out this week that they had created a âHit A Jew Dayâ at the Chesterfield [St. Louis County] school. More...
I say: Let's get Kippahs for all the schoolkids (boys girls etc.) to allow everyone to stand in solidarity with the Jews!
"2 for a nickel, 3 for a dime" - Mon, 20 Oct 2008
Such was the call of one pushcart salesman back in the day, in the lower east side. A similar thing happened to me on Friday...
Murphy's Law in Action - Sun, 19 Oct 2008
This Sukkos has been a blessing in so many ways, amazing student leaders, great weather, incredible participation. No gripes here.
However, one of the continual hassles preparing for Sukkos is getting Schach, the requisite covering for the Sukkah... Guess when the electric company came to trim back our trees? A week before Sukkos? The day before Sukkos? No friends, right on Chol Hamoed, just a couple of days after Asher and I went on a mission to collect these very branches from other sources...
Bummer.
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
September 22nd, 2008 admin
Iranian Jews want Chabad House in Teheran | Jerusalem Post - Wed, 19 Nov 2008
Donate Online - Chabad on Campus Rohr Center for Jewish Life at Washington University - Tue, 18 Nov 2008
Why 20-year-olds should invest way more in the stock market, and 50-year-olds, way less. - By Tim Ha - Mon, 17 Nov 2008
The Economic Crisis - II :: Inside Higher Ed - Thu, 23 Oct 2008
Plea in Sales of Cadavers by U.C.L.A. - NYTimes.com - Sun, 19 Oct 2008
Hakhel - Celebrating Jewish Unity - Library - Fri, 17 Oct 2008
Op-Ed Contributor - Buy American. I Am. - NYTimes.com - Fri, 17 Oct 2008
Sukkot 2008 - Unity and Joy - Mon, 13 Oct 2008
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
May 25th, 2008 admin
Daily Chumash with Rashi - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
Parshat Chayei Sarah, 6th Portion Genesis 25:1-25:11 with Rashi
Daily Tehilim - Psalms - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
Today's Psalms: Chapters 108 - 112
Daily Tehilim - Psalms (Hebrew) - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
Today's Tehillim: Chapters 108 - 112
Daily Tanya - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
Today's Lessons: Iggeret HaKodesh, Epistle 30
Hayom Yom - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
Hayom Yom, an expression which translates as 'Day by Day,' is a collection of concise thoughts, often relevant to the season or portion of
study when it appears, which gives the reader food to sustain the soul each day
of the year.
Daily Mitzvah - Sefer Hamitzvot - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
Today's Lesson: P63, N146, P64
Daily Rambam - 1 Chapter Per Day (Hebrew) - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
Today's Lesson: Shechenim
Chap. 9
Daily Rambam - 3 Chapter Per Day (Hebrew) - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
Today's Lesson: Ma`aseh haKorbanot
Chap. 1, 2, 3
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
May 25th, 2008 admin
Weekly Magazine
Living: Tefillin on the Berm Between Iraq and Syria <i>By Etan Anthony</i> - Sun, 16 Nov 2008
While I was deployed to Iraq, a lone Jewish Marine Corps Officer among hundreds of Iraqi soldiers in a remote region of the Syrian border, I had to live with keeping my religious identity to myself. I couldn't even have "Jewish" on my dog-tags
Living: A Jewish Detective in Cyprus <i>By Judie Fein</i> - Sun, 16 Nov 2008
Call me stubborn. Call me contrary. But I refuse to believe that there is anywhere in the world without a site or two of Jewish interest...
Living: Are You Lovable? <i>By Sara Chana Radcliffe</i> - Sun, 16 Nov 2008
What makes a person loveable? Being "loveable" is relatively easy to achieve during the dating process but becomes much more difficult a few weeks after the marriage...
Parshah: The Parshah in a Nutshell - Sun, 16 Nov 2008
A bit about death, a lot about marriage and the art of storytelling. Also: 400 shekels, 10 camels, two bracelets and a ring, a third wife and six more sons -- in this week's Torah reading of Chayei Sarah
Parshah: The Tree of Life <i>By Boruch Cohen</i> - Sun, 16 Nov 2008
Oedipus, schmoedipus! When the Torah tells us that when Isaac married Rebecca and brought her home, "behold, it was Sarah, his mother" -- it means something else entirely
Parshah: Love at Second Sight <i>By Yossy Goldman</i> - Sun, 16 Nov 2008
"Love at first sight" is a monumental bobba meise
Parshah: Abraham and the Hittites <i>By Lazer Gurkow</i> - Sun, 16 Nov 2008
The death of Sarah, Abraham's negotiations with the Hittites for a "plot" of land, and the 400 pieces of silver paid for it -- as played out in the inner dynamics of our psyche and soul
Parshah: Ring, Round and Roof <i>Based on the teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe</i> - Sun, 16 Nov 2008
Eliezer gave Rebecca a ring, betrothing her to Isaac; ever since, rings, circles and enveloping structures have facilitated the union of man and woman. The Kabbalistic masters delve into the mystery of the circle to understand the unifying force that violates all the laws of ego and identity
Women: Meryl Lemeshow <i>By Chana Kroll</i> - Sun, 16 Nov 2008
The cancer had returned after only five years. This time, Meryl chose to undergo a double mastectomy, in addition to chemotherapy and reconstructive surgery. It was the one choice that Meryl feels gave her the best chance at survival, and she has never had any regrets...
Women: The Three Faces of Sarah <i>By Nechama Rubinstein</i> - Sun, 16 Nov 2008
She fled into the desert with her husband, Abraham, to live a comparatively monastic existence as a nomadic tent-dweller and preacher of the One Gâd. Why would a cosmo-girl like Sarah do a crazy thing like that?
Women: Change <i>By Hinda Schryber</i> - Sun, 16 Nov 2008
I don't know anyone who isn't injured in some way
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
May 20th, 2008 admin
ChabadonCampus.org Parsha
Parshah in a Nutshell: Chayei Sarah - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
Got no more than five minutes? The Parshah in a Nutshell is an ultra-short, one-page synopsis of the weekly Torah reading, peppered with links to related stories, essays and articles.
Text of Parshah: Chayei Sarah - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
Modern English translation of the full text of the Parshah.
Text of Parshah with Rashi: Chayei Sarah - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
A modern English translation of the full text of the Parshah with the classic commentary by Rashi (Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki, 1040-1105), universally regarded as the most basic tool for understanding the meaning of the text for schoolchild and scholar alike.
Parshah in Depth: Chayei Sarah - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
Explore the Parshah together with a hundred generations of scholars and mystics, from Moses to today. Includes a detailed summary and overview, and dozens of selected excerpts from the Midrash, Talmud, the Commentaries and the Chassidic Masters.
Chassidic Masters: The Storyteller - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
Humans love to talk. To this end, we have invented hundreds of languages and dozens of media. What lies behind the human being's verbosity?
Chassidic Masters: Partner - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
What a seemingly negligible detail of the marriage of Isaac and Rebecca tells us about the nature of marriage between man and woman, and the nature of the marriage between man and G-d we call "life"
Chassidic Masters: Ring, Round and Roof - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
Eliezer gave Rebecca a ring, betrothing her to Isaac; ever since, rings, circles and enveloping structures have facilitated the union of man and woman. The Kabbalistic masters delve into the mystery of the circle to understand the unifying force that violates all the laws of ego and identity
Chassidic Masters: The Disappearing Groom - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
A most curious aspect of the Isaac-Rebecca relationship is that for a lengthy period immediately prior to the marriage, Isaac literally disappears: a summation of Isaac's life leaves us with an unaccountable gap of almost three years
Chassidic Masters: The Return of Hagar - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
Ishmael was a wild man; banished from Abraham's home together with his mother Hagar. Years later, we find Ishmael accompanying Abraham to the Akeidah. After Sarahâs death, Abraham remarries Hagar. What's going on?
Guest Columnists <i></i> - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
Weekly Sermonette <i>By Yossy Goldman</i> - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
For Friday Night <i>By Tali Loewenthal</i> - Fri, 21 Nov 2008
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
