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How to keep the Sabbath holy – and the Jewish museum open?

For nearly 4,000 years, the phrase has been a bedrock among observant Jews:“Remember the Sabbath day, and keep it holy.”The Fourth Commandment has the power to still storefronts, fill synagogues, and turn the sidewalks of some neighborhoods into a sea of black-cloaked Orthodox Jews from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday as they fulfill the obligation to enjoy a day of ...

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How to Kabbalistically Curse Thy Neighbor with the Pulsa D’Nora

Neighbor Love is not all that religion teaches…I’ve spent years teaching numerous college courses on religion – always with the disclaimer that we will cover only the positive aspects of the subject. Religion used for evil, that is for war or other forms of harm, is a misuse and distortion of systems of faith…Curses, I reasoned, were a misuse and ...

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How to Get Fired in Hollywood/Paris

Admitting anti-Semitism is not a good career move. Unless, I guess, you work in early 1940s Germany, or maybe contemporary Iran. But let’s imagine you’re a big famous movie/TV star, making tons and tons of money and generally getting away with all kinds insanity. You can be crazy and keep your job. You can be stupid and keep your job. ...

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How to Fast

One of my favorite parts of Yom Kippur (there are oh so many more) is watching kids in synagogue trying to fast for the first time. These kids are either bar mitzvah age and are attempting to fast for the full day or they are 9-10 year olds trying to “practice” for half the day.What’s so great about watching them ...

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How to deal with dirty tricks in negotiations

Day after day we see more and more ill will and bad faith in the negotiations in our marketplace and workplace.But you ask, exactly what are dirty tricks and how should you deal with them?Several years ago we took one course in Negotiations at the MBA program at Rutgers. Each year the brilliant professor who taught the course, Daniel Levin sends ...

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How To Crochet A Hexigon Baby Surprise Sweater!

You too can make the sweetest and easiest baby sweater on earth! I was so excited to discover this pattern that I ran to the store, bought some yarn and started crocheting! Three sweaters later I still have the stomach to make more. And for me to make multiples of anything is quite rare, so this means it really is ...

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How the word shiksa was invented

This was a recent comment on my ever expanding glossary located at the top of this page…Didn’t you know that the word “shiksa” was created by some old horny Jews who, upon seeing a shapely gentile female, would declare in Yiddish “shik sa tzu mir!” (Send her to me!) The phrase was eventually shortened to just “shiksa” and the name ...

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How “Rabbi” J. Ezra Merkin Bought His Co-op Apartment at 740 Park Avenue

The J. Ezra Merkin of recent headlines and scandals — known for eternity as a Bernie Madoff feeder — and the Merkin family live in duplex apartment 6/7B at 740 Park Avenue.A book by Michael Gross, 740 Park, is a fascinating account of rich New York through the prism of that single exceptional building.We bought this book several years ago to ...

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How I Learned to Stop Complaining and Love Yom Tov

Making Yom Tov requires a Jewish woman to be a frugal shopper, an adequate cook, an event planner, an astute student of Jewish law, and a gracious hostess. She needs to be all this while still being a wife, a mother, or often a career woman too. In short, making Yom Tov is an endeavor that requires a Project Manager. ...

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How Do You Spell Hanukkah?

The #1 question during Hanukkah is: What is the correct way to spell the name of this holiday? Since it’s a Hebrew word that is transliterated into English, there are several acceptable spellings. But people still want to know if there is a consensus.A non-profit theater company in California, the North Coast Repertory Theatre, even performed a show this past weekend entitled ...

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How do kids learn about “adult” stories in the Torah?

I remember the first time I learned of Noah and his sons, I must have been in grade school and we were taught that the sons uncovered his nakedness, Sure we all giggled, imagining that his sons were walking through the freshly planted vineyards one day and one said to other – “Dude let’s pants him” – what else could ...

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How do Islamic Jihadists try to merge religion and terror?

US forces have killed Osama bin Laden.To understand the larger issues of how Islamic Jihadists merge religion and terror we probed these related questions in 2006.Why have religious conviction, hatred of secular society, and the demonstration of power through acts of violence frequently coalesced in Islamic activist movements?Mark Jeurgensmeyer describes in Terror in the Mind of God: The Global Rise ...

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