On the day of most people’s Bar/Bat Mitzvah celebration, it’s normal—and even expected—for nerves to run wild as the ceremony draws closer. But when Diane Silverberg’s special day arrived, a strong sense of calmness and excitement enveloped the congregation at B’nai Tikvah in Deerfield, Illinois, as she walked to the bimah. Though nowadays it’s standard for girls to celebrate their coming of age with a Bat Mitzvah ceremo...
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Step into Stein Hall at Congregation Beth Yeshurun in Houston, Texas any fourth Thursday of the month and you might witness “Ann,” a 102-year-old African-American woman in a wheelchair mouthing the words to an old song being performed or moving her hands during tai chi. Or one of the other seniors who range in age from their 60s to 90s—like “David,” a war veteran who always sports his veteran’s baseball cap with a smile, ...
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Maimonides, Mishneh Torah, Laws of Yom Tov 6:18 "And when you eat and drink, you are required to give food to “the stranger, orphan and widow among the other poor and unfortunate ones” (Devarim 16:11). However, one who locks the doors to his courtyard and eats and drinks with his wife and children, and does not give food or drink to the poor and indigent this is not the joy of a mitzvah, but rather it is the joy of his s...
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