Today in Jewish History: 24 Tevet, Passing of Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi The end of 1812 found Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, also known as the Alter Rebbe, journeying through small towns and villages, distancing himself and his family from the Napoleonic invasion of Russia. After five months of travel, his convoy arrived in […]

Her entire family murdered by the Nazis, she took the ultimate revenge It was 1951. Eighteen years old, newly married and expecting her first child, Miriam Fellig was alone. She had her husband, Joe (Yosef Mordechai) Fellig, but all her family had perished in the Holocaust. She traveled from her home in Montreal to meet […]

The timing of the brit milah was no coincidence, says the family Rachele Kilgore, a new mother in Chapel Hill, N.C., called a local rabbi, Rabbi Zalman Bluming—co-director of Chabad-Lubavitch of Durham/Chapel Hill, with his wife, Yehudis—to schedule a brit milah (“circumcision”) for her newborn son. It would be a small, intimate affair, with just […]

Aid and comfort continue for those in the remotest parts of the state “We are numb. We are scared. We are overwhelmed.” That’s what Ron, a farmer just south of Louisville, Kentucky, told Rabbi Avrohom Litvin of Chabad-Lubavitch of Kentucky when the rabbi reached out to offer help in the aftermath of the tornado that […]

Nobody was harmed, the Torah scrolls were saved In the wee hours of Wednesday morning, Dec. 22, in San Jose’s Almaden Valley, what appears to be an intentionally lit fire ripped through the distinct purple building of Chabad-Lubavitch of Almaden Valley. The fire devastated the building, tearing through the very foundation. Rabbi Mendel Weinfeld, co-director […]

Today in Jewish History: 20 Teves, Passing Of Maimonides The “Rambam,” acronym for Rabbi Moshe ben (son of) Maimon, passed away today, the 20th of Teves in 4965 (1204). Born in Cordoba, Spain on Passover eve in 1135 or 1138, the Rambam became known to the world as Maimonides. He was of the most prolific and influential […]

By Rabbi Menachem Brod Translated By Yoni Brown The Torah describes that when the daughters of Yitro came home early one day from watching his sheep, they told their father: “An Egyptian man saved us from the shepherds. He also drew water for us and watered the sheep.” The man was none other than Moshe.  […]

In Episode 15 of Lamplighters: Stories From Chabad Emissaries On The Jewish Frontier, Lamplighters Reporter/Producer Gary Waleik presents the story of Sarah Bracha Koroghli, a Cambodian princess whose journey to Torah Judaism was made possible through the friendship and support of shluchos in Nevada and California; Rebbetzin Chaya Harlig of Chabad of Henderson and Rebbetzin […]

Synagogue members and yeshivah students step up to ensure a proper Jewish burial NEW HAVEN, Conn.—The message on our shul’s WhatsApp group announcing, in caps, a MITZVAH OPPORTUNITY caught my attention. I admit to sometimes skimming or even ignoring such messages during a busy week, as they are usually about an upcoming class, a special […]

He dedicated his life to Torah study and instruction Rabbi Meir Aharon had a meticulous daily routine all his life, never wasting a minute. When he rode the bus each morning from his home in Bnei Brak, Israel, to Lod, where he taught schoolchildren, he’d study seven folios of Talmud. After returning home from a […]