Religion

If you were told to repent the day before you die, when should you start repenting? Right now!  Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur (10 days apart) are the Jewish High Holy Days. Observance includes communal prayer, food (such as apples dipped in honey for a...

At the beginning of this year, I am reminded once again of the connection among all people. I heard just a couple of days ago that former President Jimmy Carter believed that there was a spark of the divine in all of us. I...

On Oct. 7, 1885 a 16-year-old German barber named Friedrich boarded a ship for New York.  Fleeing the military service then required in Germany, he became one of over a million German immigrants who flooded these shores between 1880 and 1885.  Once he had accumulated...

This time of year, many of us think about going back to school, for ourselves or for our children or grandchildren. There are all sorts of questions: Who is taking children to school? Do we have the correct supplies? Who is making the lunches?...

By the time you read this article, you may have very well taken your last bite of Thanksgiving dinner. You’ve let your belt out a notch and put the leftover turkey, potatoes, stuffing and cranberry sauce into to-go containers for your guests to take...

Deep in the faith of most Americans is the belief that there is a “Just God,” regardless of which religious faith one follows.  Even those who approach this universe primarily from a scientific view, note that “how things work” points to an order that must...

In a recent article in the New York Times (Dec. 12, 2025), the columnist Thomas L. Friedman said this: “If you ask me what’s the most dangerous statistic in the world today …the Gallup Poll that said fewer people than ever are going to church. Because…...

Recently, Chabad of South County Women’s Circle hosted a pre-Thanksgiving event titled, “Give Thanks by Giving Back.” We gathered to make fleece blankets and care packages to donate to Rebekah Children’s Services. I was heartened and touched by the tremendous response from our community...

Before the Fourth of July celebrations are in the rear-view mirror, I offer a religious perspective. The United States of America's Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776 (declared in 1776, achieved in 1783, after an eight-year war), is a date we celebrate with enthusiasm...

“There is no peace on earth,” I said, “for hate is strong and mocks the song of peace on earth, good-will to men!” Henry Wadsworth Longfellow penned these words in a poem written during the Civil War in 1863. The poem was later set...