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I recently met a delegation from the World Union of Jewish Students. These university students had come to South Africa from countries around the world on...
If not for that one short paragraph, the seder night could be so relaxed and so much fun. After all, it’s about celebrating our victory over...
Life is supposed to make sense. And for me, it generally does. Even the impossible question, “Why do bad things happen to good people?” is often...
A rabbi was asked by one of his students why G-d created atheists. The rabbi responded, “G-d created atheists to teach us the most important lesson...
“Three hundred years ago, there came to the New World a boat, and its name was the Mayflower. The Mayflower’s landing on Plymouth Rock was one...
The focus of the seder night is telling the story of the exodus from Egypt and the miracles done by G-d for us, His children. This...
We’re just a few days away from one of the highlights in the Jewish calendar: the seder nights, which, as a principal and teacher, I find...
The SA Jewish Report asked Jewish pupils to capture what freedom looks like for them in the light of Pesach, what happened in Israel on 7...
Jews have always been fond of answering one question with another. In fact, Golda Meir was once asked by a journalist, “Why do Jews always answer...
The headlines are screaming, the news is overbearing, and a general sense of despondency hovers over us. This world has turned upside down, mostly because of...
The great book of Jewish mysticism, the Zohar, imagines that when Jewish people tell the story of yetziat Mitzrayim (exodus from Egypt) at the Passover seder,...
As Pesach approaches, our minds and hearts are flooded with a range of conflicting emotions. The date 7 October was the darkest day in modern Jewish...
The magid of the Pesach seder begins with the Arbah Kashiyot, the Four Questions that ask “Mah nishtanah halailah hazeh mikol halailot?” (Why is this night...
The formative event in the foundation of the Jewish people was undoubtably the exodus from Egypt. After hundreds of years as slaves, we were granted freedom....
Freedom, love, justice. This three-part Passover message has reverberated through the generations. The exodus story is our master narrative. The Israelites were slaves in Egypt. Moses...
Leaving an additional empty chair at our seder tables, possibly with a photograph of a hostage, is one way of bringing into our homes the plight...
Pesach is a time when we look back on our past as slaves and how we broke free of our shackles, but this year is almost...
The number one Jewish question in South Africa furiously making the rounds in the Norwood Pick n Pay and Checkers in Cape Town is, “Where are...
For the Jewish people, comfort has always been found in food. This Pesach we need it more than ever. Join our outstanding collection of culinary masters...
“Over our lifetime, we spend two years looking for lost objects,” says Rebekah Saltzman, who makes a living helping people declutter their homes. Professional declutterer Saltzman...
Success is sweet. We feel fulfilled when everything falls into place and our dreams are achieved to perfection. But life includes moments of missed opportunities. We...
This Pesach we take you on a journey across the archaeological plains of Egypt, its politics and the Jews that remain, to spirituality, musical magic, and...
“Freedom is a fragile thing. It must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation, for it comes only once to a people.” As Jews,...
I was about to switch off the radio after the early morning news bulletin when something the presenter said caught my attention. He was about to...
“You get two kinds of climbers: those who summit and those who don’t.” Those words echoed in my head on a vintage bus lurching along the...
I’m writing this as my plane is rolling down the runway about to soar into the skies and transport me out of my comfort zone. There’s...
I love the anecdote of the fellow who complained to the rabbi that praying the same prayers from the siddur every day was boring. To which...
Priya Parker in The Art of Gathering relates how she once visited a teahouse in Japan and participated in a traditional Japanese tea ceremony. The tea...
I still remember a particular radio advert from my youth. It was for Salem menthol cigarettes – a jingle to the words, “You can Salem out...
The Shabbos before Pesach is called “Shabbat Hagadol”, and it’s upon us once again. As we walk around shopping centres this Pesach season, we’re drawn to...
When SA Jewish Report editor Peta Krost asked me to write an article for Pesach comparing our leaving South Africa for Australia to the Exodus, it...
When I was a kid, I loved eating matzah on Pesach, and my all-time, top-two toppings were honey or charoset. Yes, I had a sweet tooth,...
It was the lead-up to the 2010 Soccer World Cup, and I received an email from a university professor in the United States. He was bringing...
A crucial moment in the Pesach story is when the Israelites are so rushed to leave, their bread doesn’t have time to rise. It’s emblematic of...
Mimouna is a Jewish North African, particularly Moroccan, exuberant celebration which begins about two hours after the conclusion of Pesach. It’s a feast which is colourful,...
A traumatic brain injury. The loss of a troubled parent. Battling devastating burns. Whether they’ve endured near-death experiences or devastating loss, these three people embody the...
One of the key themes of Pesach is freedom. The SA Jewish Report asked students at Jewish schools to consider what freedom means to them. This...
Every year on Pesach, Jewish families around the world faithfully gather to tell the story of the Exodus, when Moses led the Israelite slaves out of...
JTA – Every Passover for more than 75 years, Helena Weinstock Weinrauch, a 98-year-old Holocaust survivor, has worn a vibrant blue hand-knit sweater to the first...
Crunchy green salad with roasted baby potatoes and macon bits The macon and potatoes can be prepared a few hours ahead and reheated, covered in a...
