Land of Israel
Wherever You Go, There You Are
By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz I have a special personal connection with this week’s Torah reading. 31 years ago, I was a chef in a fancy restaurant in Manhattan. I had a cool motorcycle and lots of cash to party and play. I had long hair and...
How the Creation Story is the Answer to Peace in the Middle East
By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz An old friend of mine used to learn at Mercaz HaRav Yeshiva (school for Torah study) in Jerusalem. While learning there, he used to visit Rabbi Zvi Yehuda Kook, a leader in the Religious Zionist movement, who was...
Increase Your Merit on this Jewish New Year
By Chaim Barzel The Torah portion of Nitzavim (Deuteronomy 29:9-30:20) is customarily read in the synagogue on the Sabbath before Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year. The portion discusses teshuva (usually understood as repentance from...
The Fundamental Significance of the Seven Species
By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz One year, I was doing my reserve duty in the Negev on a small base. On Friday night, I was guarding the front gate. To pass the time, I began learning about Bikkurim, the first fruits which are brought as an...
Is Israel Big Enough to Hold the Ingathering of the Exiles?
Tisha B’Av, commemorating the destruction of the Temples in Jerusalem, marks the beginning of a period of mourning and consolation. This is reflected in the selections from the Prophets that read in the synagogue on Shabbat. For seven...
A Land Like No Other
Once, I went out to the forest next to Bat Ayin to pray, or, more accurately, to have a conversation with my Creator. Israel is a beautiful place, especially if you have the eyes to see its inner beauty. As I sat there, I saw how the...
Why Were the Jewish People Given the Land of Israel?
Who wouldn’t want free real estate? So when God first approached Abraham and said he was giving his descendants the land of Israel, of course, he said ‘yes!’ But why did God make the offer? Was it because the Jewish people were so...
