A Historic Pessach Kosher List from Very Dark Times

March 25, 2015

MouldyBreadEnglishAny and every Jew, even a great number who don’t usually have the good fortune to keep kosher, are now scrambling to purchase an assembly of mostly certified kosher-for-Passover products. But what do you do when this abundance is not available where you live? And more importantly, what were Jews of past generations to do, when food might be scarce, and their movements constrained?

Below is a historic document from one of the very darkest times of Jewish history, shedding some light on how they made efforts, even in the shadow of death, to keep Passover and celebrate whatever little freedom they still had, while praying to be redeemed once again from a valley of death. Read the rest of this entry »

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Posted by Arie Folger

Inevitable Leadership

January 16, 2009

EnglishStudents of modern history are often impressed with the seeming inevitability of Germany’s role leading to World War II, on account of the harsh conditions imposed by the Treaty of Versailles of 1919. Indeed, the noted British economist John Maynard Keynes, whose ideas are in fact being celebrated by governments eager to spend their way out of the current recession, called it a “Carthaginian Peace.” According to Keynes, the terms of the Treaty were too harsh and would not promote long term peace. Dan Rowling later (1951) considered the Treat an outright cause for World War II.

What role, if any, does the inevitability of history play in the events unfolding in the Torah? Are only historical events sometimes inevitable, or also spiritual-historical events? Read the rest of this entry »

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Posted by Arie Folger