…and even without By: Rabbi Dovid Samuels “If you accept the Torah, then good. But if you don’t, your burial will be there.” We are approaching Shavuos: the greatest moment in Jewish history – the day we received the Torah. The exodus from Egypt was for a specific purpose: for the Jewish people to serve Hashem on the mountain. It was this great moment upon which the fate of the entire world depended: would the Jews receive Hashem’s Torah, or will everything revert to void and nothingness? Jews know that ..read more

Shavuot feature By: Rabbi Moishe Schnerb “Hashem told Moshe to instruct the women that they must give over the message to the men.” From the get-go, it’s really not easy to get our teeth stuck into what the actual holiday of Shavuot is all about. This is partially due to the fact that there is so little ceremony connected to it. It is bereft of the hectic preparation, and the millions of laws that accompany our other holidays. We don’t have to scrub our houses and turn them upside down ..read more

Kosher Gourmet In honour of Shavuot By: Sharon Lurie Traditionally, milchiks are served on Shavuot. But let us not forget that it’s Yom Tov and meat should still be served as a main dish. However, I’ve been dying to share some of my mother’s favourite milk dishes and Shavuot just seemed to be the perfect opportunity. I love soup! Especially as a meal! In winter I could eat a bowl of soup every day and never tire of its warm, comforting “yum”. Whether it’s chicken soup with kneidlach or perogen, or a hearty minestrone ..read more

Airborne allies By: Rabbi Dr David Fox “I went last week to my doctor. You probably know him because he is one of you guys, same little hat, same religion.” With a busy week behind me and more awaiting me once I landed, I slept deeply in flight until the announcement came that we were making an emergency stop midway across the country. As I slowly awoke, the captain’s stern voice announced that no one should move or leave their seat. Apparently, someone did stand up and the flight attendant ..read more

The Heter Iska Agreement By:Dayan Yoel Smith In the vast tapestry of Jewish legal tradition, the prohibition of charging and accepting interest – ribbis – stands as a testament to the ethical and moral underpinnings of economic transactions within the Jewish community. At its core, the prohibition of ribbis is derived from several biblical injunctions[1] which forbid the charging of interest on loans made to fellow Jews. The rationale behind this prohibition is multifaceted, encompassing both ethical and economic considerations. Sefer Tehillim reveals the intent with which Hashem created the ..read more

By Alan Yates, Head of Distribution at Peregrine Capital My father is a committed Toyota Land Cruiser man. He’s owned a Toyota 4×4 for as long as I care to remember. There was the Land Cruiser bakkie with the mattress in the back for us kids to sit on when we went on holiday. Then there was the Land Cruiser GX; while a significant upgrade in comfort for us kids, it was also a very unfortunate shade of brown that resulted in much toilet humor from my friends. And currently ..read more

Getting it done, not for the honour By: Rabbi Yossy Goldman “Sadly, too many of those volunteering to serve the community are themselves less than competent.” So, what’s the difference between a shlemiel and a shlemazel? Everyone knows the shlemiel is the inept fool who never fails to spill the soup. And the shlemazel? Why, he’s the born loser who, somehow, always gets the soup spilled on his lap. And then there’s the nudnik who insists on knowing what kind of soup it was, but that’s for a different essay ..read more

Who, what, where, and how By: Ilan Preskovsky “When dealing with antisemites, engaging with any more than a couple of choice words is a complete waste of time.” Since the horrific massacre of October 7th and the explosion of antisemitism of October 8th, it’s hard to imagine any Jew with even the slightest connection to their Jewish identity not having spent the past four months feeling, quite literally, under attack. As both our homeland and we as Jews have come under fire from far-left academia, far-right white supremacists, Islamists, relatively ..read more

Finding space in a world of holiness By: Rabbi Dovid Samuels “Where there is holiness, there is space!” The Yomim Tovim are not, for us, a mere recollection of past events. The times on the Jewish calendar have within them great spiritual potential, and through our observance of the laws and customs of that particular day, we can unlock and download much of this wealth. Our holy books are full of ideas that help us to connect to the spirit of the day, so that the opportunities available to us ..read more

Fixing the world, and fixing ourselves By: Bev Goldman “Only those who think out of the box can pull this looming disaster together.” “I will not let anything stand in my way to obtain justice for those most deserving of it.” “The lack of real ideological support from the USA is creating an existential threat to the survival of Israel. The country is facing a catastrophic monsoon both now and in the immediate future, but is there a solution, and if so, what is it?” Very powerful words from a ..read more