During the Second Temple, the Greek empire reigned (over Israel),1 and they (the Greeks) passed decrees against the Jews and (tried) to erase their religion, and did not allow them to carry out Torah (study) or the commandments. They put their hands on their property and their daughters. They entered the Temple, destroyed and made the pure unclean. The Jews were in great distress because of them and were much oppressed, until the G-d of their fathers had mercy on them, delivering them from their hands and saving them. Then overcame, the sons of the Hasmonean High Priest, (the Greeks) and killed them and saved the Jews from their hands. They appointed a king from the Priests, and the kingdom of Israel was restored for more than 200 years until the destruction of (the) second (Temple). When the Jews overcame their enemies and destroyed them, it was the 25th of Kislev2 when they entered the Sanctuary (inner room) and did not find pure (olive) oil in the Temple, except one jar sealed with seal of the High Priest, and it did not contain enough to light except for one day only. But they lit from it the lamps of the Menorah3 for eight days, until they could crush olives and produce a (new quantity) of pure oil. For these reasons, decreed the Sages of that generation that these eight days that begin on the 25th Kislev, will be days of joy and praise. One lights on them lamps at evening at the entrance to the houses, every evening of the eight nights to show off and demonstrate the miracle. These days are called ''Hanukah'' that is to say ''they rested'' (chanu) on the ''25'' ('th of the month) because on the 25th they rested from their enemies. and also because of those days they (re)-dedicated the house (Temple) which their foes had defiled. Also some say that it is a commandment to increase slightly the festive meals on Hanukah. Another reason is because the work of (building) the Sanctuary (in the desert) was completed in these days. One should tell one's children the story of the miracles that were done for our fore-fathers in those days, (see Josephus) However, these meals are not considered as part of the commandment unless one says at the meal songs of praise. One should increase charity in these Hanukah days, for this can help mend any defects in our souls. This charity, should be given particularly to poor Torah scholars. (KSA 139:1)
1) 352 BCE until 70 CE
2) 139 BCE
3) The Menorah was made of gold and had seven branches.
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We're excited to announce our return to Baltimore, with an exclusive real estate event!Join us for expert guidance on purchasing property in Israel, featuring Ben Levene, CEO of CapitIL Real Estate, as he nears his 200th global event. "Our events have been instrumental in helping Anglos purchase property in Israel, and with the impact of October 7th, these gatherings are more critical than ever," says Levene.What to Expect:How to Finance Up to 75% of Your PropertyNavigating New Tax Regulations – Discover how the latest changes could benefit youInvestment Hotspots – Find great opportunities in Ramat Eshkol, Shaarei Chesed, Ramot, and RBSIsrael vs. U.S. Real Estate – Learn why investing in Eretz Yisroel could be your smartest financial moveFor security purposes, only t...
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Don't want to shlep to New York for productions such as the likes of Rachel’s Place? Well, you don't have to anymore! Now, we have our very own group in Baltimore featuring some of the greatest female talent in the community! Mary Poppins provides a unique opportunity for women to join together in singing, dancing, and acting.
Come and listen to our professional chorus and let them bring you into the musical numbers - this is not your typical choir.
Step in time with the chimney sweeps as they dance across the rooftops!
Get on your toes for a beautiful ballet number!
Sing along with your childhood favorites. Can you say the word? Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!
Experience the magic of Mary Poppins as she changes the lives of the Banks Family at Cherry Tre...
Stocks rallied sharply on Wednesday, with major benchmarks hitting record highs, as Donald Trump won the 2024 presidential election.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 1,508.05 points, or 3.57%, to a record close of 43,729.93. The last time the blue-chip Dow jumped more than 1,000 points in a single day was in November 2022.
The S&P 500 also hit an all-time high, popping 2.53% to 5,929.04. The Nasdaq Composite climbed 2.95% to a record of its own of 18,983.47.
NBC News projects that Trump will defeat his Democratic rival, Kamala Harris, after winning at least 291 Electoral College votes, including key swing states of Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Georgia.
Investments seen as beneficiaries under a Trump presidency erupted as ...
Some Baltimore infrastructure projects could be in jeopardy amid the election of President-elect Donald Trump to serve a second term in the White House, according to the mayor.
Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott said Wednesday morning that the grit that makes city residents so resilient will be needed over the next four years.
Scott said he vows to work with the Trump administration, but only if it approaches collaboration as an equal partner. In the same breath, the Democratic mayor said if Trump's second term is anything like the first, he worries that Baltimore will be used as a political football.
The mayor warned billions of dollars in federal funding that the Biden administration earmarked for the city could now be at risk.
"We have to think about the (collapsed Fr...
BaltimoreJewishLife.com (BJL) is proud to partner with STAR-K CERTIFICATION that realizes that there is no substitute for a person’s own Rav. In an effort to offer a possible solution, it has launched its Institute of Halachah as a public service. Over the years, the agency’s Kashrus Hotline has answered generic halachic questions from kosher consumers the world over, including inquiries regarding the kosher status of foods and certified Sabbath mode appliances. The formation of a separate official division within STAR-K testifies to the need for addressing these issues.
The Institute of Halachah is directed by HaRav Mordechai Frankel, under the guidance of HaRav Moshe Heinemann, STAR-K’s Rabbinic Administrator. It is an invaluable resource for a diverse array of rabbis to discuss general halachic matters, as well as gain access to source materials for shiurim and answers to congregants’ questions.
Shailos for regular or Kashrus shailos may emailed or discussed using this widget.
The body of an 18-year-old Israeli boy was found this evening (Wednesday) in the village of Masarik in northern Israel after he was killed by a rocket fired by Hezbollah.
Initial reports suggested that the youth was a foreign worker before he was identified as Sivan Sadeh. Sivan's body was found in an agricultural area after a barrage in the area.
Sivan was killed in a barrage of about 25 rockets that was fired at about 6 pm. He worked in agriculture in the community. When the sirens began, he left his car in an attempt to find shelter in a nearby ditch.
Sivan was mortally wounded by shrapnel all over his body from one of the rockets that exploded in the area and was killed. A farmer passing by the area noticed him and called emergency forces, who pronounced him dead. They identifi...
Baltimore, MD - Nov. 6, 2024 - There's a new joint effort between Maryland and Baltimore to target the city's thousands of vacant properties.
The "Baltimore Vacants Reinvestment Council" - to be led by the heads of the state and city's housing agencies - will hold its first meeting Thursday morning in northeast Baltimore.
Governor Wes Moore created the council last month with an executive order.
The new group of state and local stakeholders will find investments to transform at least 5,000 vacant properties - roughly half of the city's total vacants - into "homeownership or other positive outcomes over the next five years," said the state's Department of Housing and Community Development.
Baltimore Housing Commissioner Alice Kennedy, who will be vice...
Dear Friends.
Thank you!
With the election (mostly) behind us, it is time to congratulate the winners and thank those who served.
But first, we need to extend our deep and sincere appreciation to everyone in our community who played a role in this election’s unprecedented Orthodox Jewish turnout across the country.
To the rabbis and community leaders who recorded messages and encouraged others to vote. Thank you.
To the schools and shuls who sent out our voter information, again and again. Thank you.
To the volunteers who called, texted, and spoke to their neighbors. Thank you.
To those who reviewed community lists and worked with us to compare them to the voter rolls. Thank you.
To those who organized events to register high school seniors and senior ci...
Return of the Late Night Masmidim לזכר חיים שמואל בן הרב יצחק מרדכי
This Year's Friday Night Learning Program Begins Parshas Lech Lecha, November 8th!
Don’t miss out! Call by Friday morning to reserve your cholent! Join this year as a zechus for the cholim, chayalim, and chatufim!
Baltimore Shuls Who Registered in Recent Years Include:
Hammenburger
Agudah of Park Heights
Agudah of Greenspring – Friday Night Agudah of GS – Daf Yomi
R' Heber's Shul
Aish Kodesh
R' Seidemann's Shul
R' Eichenstein's Shul
R' Wein
Ohel Yaakov
Ner Israel
Bais Medrash of Ranchleigh
Chabad Israeli Center
Rabbi Heber's Shul
Ohel Moshe
Rabbi Kaplan's Shul
Rabbi Sklarer's Shul
Rabbi Stengel's...
Saudi Arabia's King Salman and his son, de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, congratulated Donald Trump on his election victory on Wednesday, state media reported.
The two leaders sent cables to Trump, who cultivated warm Saudi ties during his first administration. King Salman hailed "close relations between the two friendly countries and peoples, which everyone seeks to strengthen and develop in all fields", the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said.
Later on Wednesday, SPA reported that Prince Mohammed called to congratulate Trump on his win and "expressed the kingdom's aspiration to strengthen the historical and strategic relations between the two countries, wishing the friendly American people progress and prosperity under His Excellency's leadership".
...
The Department of Justice is removing Jack Smith as special counsel and dropping his two federal investigations into President-Elect Donald Trump following Trump’s dominant win in Tuesday’s election.
Fox News reported that the DOJ is removing Smith because they have acknowledged that they cannot prosecute a sitting president.
Smith will be gone from his position before Trump is inaugurated on January 20, 2025, Fox News reported.
The network said that the move means that the DOJ is dropping its two criminal cases against Trump.
The case involving Trump’s handling of classified material after he left office was already dismissed by a judge in Florida, but was being appealed by Smith.
Smith’s other case surrounded Trump’s actions following the 2020...
Gideon Sa’ar sealed his New Hope party’s coalition deal with Likud on Wednesday, effectively giving up his ability to oppose the government’s efforts to exempt Charedim from military service after repeatedly vowing to stand against such legislative efforts.
Under the agreement, Sa’ar will become Israel’s new foreign minister in place of Israel Katz, who is himself replacing ousted Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, while New Hope MK Sharren Haskel will become deputy foreign minister, working on public diplomacy, and Ze’ev Elkin will be appointed a minister in the Finance Ministry.
Sa’ar’s appointment as Israel’s chief diplomat was made possible by the replacement of Gallant, who opposed coalition efforts to exempt members of the Hare...
Former presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is slated to hold a potentially big role in a new Trump administration, said Wednesday there are “entire departments” within the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that “have to go.”
“In some categories … there are entire departments, like the nutrition department at the FDA … that have to go, that are not doing their job, they’re not protecting our kids,” Kennedy said during an interview on MSNBC.
Kennedy endorsed President-elect Trump in August after initially running as a Democratic candidate for president, and then as an independent.
Trump’s win in the presidential race sets Kennedy up as a winner himself, who is likely to play some kind of role in health care for t...
Foreign airlines have warned they are likely to continue to suspend flights to Israel unless the current compensation regulation for canceled flights is amended and adapted to ease the costs and financial risk of disruptions and cancellations, after 13 months of war.
In a joint request, a group of 15 major foreign carriers is seeking to make temporary amendments to the 2012 Aviation Services Law in a position paper submitted to the Knesset Economic Affairs Committee this week. The group is understood to include airlines such as British Airways, Delta Air Lines, and low-cost carriers Wizz Air and easyjet.
“The current regulations in the Aviation Services Law are formulated for disruptions during normal times and are not adequate for extended periods of emergency such as the current ...
The families of the American hostages in Gaza today released a statement on the outcome of the 2024 election, nearly 400 days after Hamas terrorists took hundreds captive, including seven American hostages who remain in captivity.
“For 397 days, Americans– Omer, Edan, Judi, Gad, Keith, Sagui and Itay– have suffered at the hands of Hamas terrorists in Gaza. As the United States prepares for a Presidential transition, we implore President-elect Trump and his transition team to work together with President Biden and his Administration officials to secure the immediate release of the hostages and end this nightmare for the hostage families, Israel, and the civilians of Gaza," the families stated.
"This is an urgent, catastrophic humanitarian crisis, not a partisan issue; ou...
In a TV address on Wednesday afternoon, new Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said a diplomatic settlement to the terror group’s ongoing conflict was still possible, but only once Israel stops its military campaign in Lebanon.
In his second televised speech since taking the helm of the group following the Israeli assassination of longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah in September, Qassem said the war will only end after Israel stops its “aggression” against Lebanon, and only at that point will Hezbollah agree to indirect negotiations, under the mediation of its ally Nabih Berri, president of the Lebanese parliament.
“I will tell you very clearly, our conviction is that only one thing can stop this war of aggression, and that is the battlefield,” said Qassem ...
The body of a foreign worker was found near Masarik in northern Israel this evening. It is currently believed that he was killed by shrapnel from a Hezbollah rocket or UAV attack.
Magen David Adom (MDA) stated, "At 19:11, a report was received at MDA's 101 emergency call center in the Asher region to a male who was injured and unconscious in an agricultural field near the village of Masarik. MDA EMTs and paramedics reported that the male, approximately 40 years old (a foreign worker), had severe injuries from shrapnel and was declared dead at the scene."
MDA EMT Netanel Ben Yehuda said, "We were led to the scene by a local farmer working in the area. We found the injured man lying in the field, unconscious, with severe shrapnel wounds to his body. We conducted medical assessments, b...
Lee Smith, journalist and author of three books, including “Disappearing the President,” spoke with Rabbi Pesach Wolicki, as part of the Arutz Sheva and Israel365 US Election Coverage of Donald Trump’s victory, on the situation in the US leading up the 2024 US elections, the US and Israel, and his optimism for the future.
Lee Smith was not surprised by the outcome of the US elections and says, “I did expect the outcome. Lots of people did. What we were concerned about was fraud, frankly in different polling places, especially across the Battleground States, but it appears that both the RNC, the Trump campaign, as well as state Republican parties, did a terrific job. So they were out there, fighting all the time, they were taking cases to court, they were ...
Democrats are growing increasingly concerned that they will narrowly lose the House of Representatives after Republican victories in the Senate and White House.
The balance of power in the House is expected to run razor-thin no matter who wins, but sources who spoke with Fox News Digital are worried that the Democrats' path is narrowing.
"We're almost certainly going to lose the House by a narrow margin," a senior House Democratic aide told Fox News Digital. "We got our a--es kicked."
The House aide found optimism, however, in Republicans' comparatively decisive victories in the upper chamber and presidential race.
"If you told me [President-elect Trump] won the popular vote, dominated the electoral college, and they could end up with 56 seats in the ...