Reliving he moment when Rav Soloveitchik's face became a living commentary on the verse his son was chanting, and a living embodiment of a plea to Hashem sung by legendary Cantor Yossele Rosenblatt.
The most famous "seruvnik" - fighter for freedom for Soviet Jews - spent 11 years imprisoned in Siberia for his Zionism. He stayed true to his beliefs and his people. Lessons for today.
May you ascend, step by step, from one level of Teshuva to the next.
Before I Confess My Sins, I Must Confess My Greatness.
Only in our connection to the light of the national soul can we begin to examine our own lives and our connection to Hashem.
People who seek God without anchoring themselves to His people are lost at sea. The way home is through the nation, through its covenant, its language, its pain, and its resilience.
A new way to approach Teshuva through Rabbi Kook's original teachings guiding us on the path to achieve it.
For the past several years, I’ve observed that the most difficult struggles in life are the ones we talk least about. There is the battle of truly conquering oneself. The battle of refinement. The struggle through daily tests and challenges.
After repairing his soul, Reuben returned and looked at the pit.
I listen to the tourists planning their departures, and I wonder: Don't they understand the historical context of having the ability to return to our Holy Land after a long and bitter exile of 2,000 years? Why is going back to the US such an easy choice?
When we examine the Rosh Hashanah prayers, there is no mention of sin or penitence. How can that be?
“There is another type of T’shuva, not the penitence over specific sins, but a T’shuva aroused by a vague inner anxiety."
Rabbi Kook teaches that penitence which relates only to personal wrongdoing is incomplete because the Teshuva of each individual Jew is actually only a part of a much greater National Teshuva of Am Yisrael. What does that signify?
The State of Israel and all of its government ministers and all of its citizens must do serious heartfelt Teshuva. This is what October 7th is telling us.
In the generation of National Revival, as the revitalized Jewish Nation returns to its Homeland, a new type of religious Jew must appear to take up the challenge, wrote Rabbi Kook.
What about brainstorming some new outreach ideas? LIke - Why don’t teams of people man tables on or near the university lawns to answer questions about Judaism?
G-d treats His creatures mercifully, i.e., patiently, allowing them an opportunity to make amends, and going beyond the letter of the law.
We possess all the resources we truly need within ourselves. Our growth and our mission in this world are squarely within our grasp.
We need G-d’s blessing to continue to ensure that we and our children remain on the right path – and we need His mercy to bring us back from the curse of ongoing alienation from Him.
Is teshuva a prerequisite for Redemption?
Everyone makes mistakes. The difference between the Tzaddik and the Rasha lies in their response.
Rambam: If a great tribulation comes upon the nation, trumpets must be blasted and people must examine their ill deeds A call for teshuva.
Torah observant Jews have a vital opportunity now.
Every decade since 1948 a new episode of violence erupts and Israel wins, with G-d's help. Here is how Israel can keep on winning.
Thoughts for the days between Rosh Hashannah and Yom Kippur.
It's never all or nothing.
The moving cantor's prayer, the doubter's prayer. And the call to teshuva.
In a newly published video, the Rav delves into the secret of the baal teshuva's elevated status before God.
There are two great barriers to teshuva. They are surmountable.
As we read our Parasha approaching the Day of Judgement, it guides us as to the ‘life’ for which we should fervently plead, on that Day.
Where is the new outreach/inreach initiative by Belz heading?
There is no greater work of Kiruv than the inspired work of two self-made women who did not have an Orthodox upbringing.
Man is called on to sanctify the material world, not shun it, writes Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch. So why do we fast?
Being clear of sin is the goal for both the guf and neshamah in anticipation of the final resurrection.
My feelings towards Jews who have thrown off the mantle of Torah observance.
Rabbi Cohen's book 'What Did You Say?' remains one of the most popular works on shalom bayit.
Our goal is to elevate the physical elements and joy of Purim to a state of sanctity, to an expression of love and gratitude to Hashem
Intermarriage in the USA has complicated the teshuva process, but in Israel it is going strong. And let us not forget Chabad. A critique.
The keys to the teshuva process are elucidated by rabbis and commentators.
Israel's first Chief Rabbi: Which stimulus is truly fundamental to the process of true teshuva?
Straightforward reading of Torah verses makes it clear where Jews are supposed to be, so why were we in Los Angeles?
A day of fasting such as today's Fast of Tammuz is not one of dieting, but of introspection, contrition and remorse for our situation today.
The existential angst of budding adulthood takes on a whole new dimension in a world that has weaponized “identity” to incoherence.Op-ed.
Secular Jews pose a threat to the Jewish People when they assimilate In Israel, many have dedicated themselves to uprooting Jewish life.
The Tanya compacts four millennia of Jewish wisdom to answer the great personal and existential questions of life.
What is the best entry point through which more people can engage better with their Judaism?
Documentary chronicles Berel Solomon's journey 'from drug dealer and prince of the nightclub business to Lubavitcher Hassid.'
Whatever wagon we are on, wherever the path leads, we know we are on a holy journey together. 'Baderech-along the path to Teshuvah'.Review.
The Tanya compacts four millennia of Jewish wisdom to answer the great personal and existential questions of life.
G-d is happiest when we treat our fellow with love and care. Rabbi Yitzchak Botton shares insight on Teshuva based on the story of Moses.
The Tanya compacts four millennia of Jewish wisdom to answer the great personal and existential questions of life.
We should never give up on a single Jewish soul. “A myrtle among the reeds is still a myrtle and is called a myrtle“ (Sanhedrin 44a).
Here we are again, not having met our past aspirations. What can we do to be more successful in the coming year?
No matter how far a person has fallen in his observance of Torah and Mitzvot, there is always a way back- a life-line.
The Tanya compacts four millennia of Jewish wisdom to answer the great personal and existential questions of life.
Rabbi Kook teaches that in the return of even secular Zionists to Israel there is a profound holy core, there is the light of teshuva.
The ten days are not there just in case you need more time, but so that the process of Teshuva can be assimilated into our lives.
Is atonement for sins between man and Hashem dependent on his having appeased his fellow man, for any sins against him?
As we prepare to stand before the King, we must look inside ourselves because we have the capacity for greatness. It depends only on us.
Rav Kook's definition of teshuva is on a totally different plane than the one used in our daily discourse.
