Judaism

Torah

Why Did the People Complain Over Manna?

Newsmakers

West Philly Rabbi Gives Benediction at Prayer Breakfast

Local

Does Birthright Stifle Teen Travel?

Passover

When Passover Meets Easter

By:

Suzanne Kurtz, Jewish Telegraphic Agency

Washington When Stephanie Mattei was dating her boyfriend-turned-husband Angelo, she knew there was nothing more appropriate to make her South Philadelphia-bred Italian beau for dinner than pasta. But since it was Passover, and she is Jewish, there was only one option -- nonleavened noodles. "To this day, he still teases me about it!" says Mattei, 37, a psychologist in Havertown...

Learning

The Learning Just Keeps Rolling Right Along at LimmudPhilly

By:

Bryan Schwartzman

Jeremy Kriger's been out of college just a few years, but said that he's already forgotten how much of a strain it can be to sit in class all day. So, at the second annual LimmudPhilly, the 26-year-old environmental consultant noshed on a salted pretzel while his wife continued to sit in on a session. The graduate of Akiba Hebrew...

Torah

The Wonders of Many a Sacred Passover Night

VAYAKHEL-PEKUDEI, Exodus 35:1-40:38

By:

Rabbi Howard A. Addison

This week's regular portion concludes the book of Exodus, detailing the erecting of the Mishkan -- the sanctuary that accompanied the Israelites during their long pilgrimage to Canaan. The selection from the second Torah is called Parshat Hachodesh. Read each year prior to Pesach, it describes the instructions given by God to Moses and Aaron at the new moon of...

Torah

Second Chances: Part and Parcel of Daily Life

KI TISSA, Exodus 30:11-34:35

By:

Rabbi Sue Levi Elwell, Jewish Exponent Feature

In many ways, Exodus can be considered the central book of the Torah. Following the description of Israel's miraculous journey out of Egyptian enslavement, Moses ascends Mount Sinai and receives the laws that will guide the people forever. The chapters that follow provide a detailed blueprint for creating a just society based on the laws that the people embrace. But...

Local

Profession Starts to Lose Its Pitch

As cantorial program closes, many lament the end of an era

By:

Bryan Schwartzman

Cantor Arlyne Unger readily sings the praises of the Jewish education she received at Gratz College. The 55-year-old, who serves in the dual roles of education director and chazzan at Beth Tikvah B'nai Jeshurun, a Conservative synagogue in Erdenheim, started out studying at Gratz's Hebrew high school as a teen. She also took undergraduate courses at the college and, years...