Segulos

How to Be Happier

Preparing for Rosh Hashana

Prime Minister of Aruba Prepares for Rosh Hashana

Teshuva By Awaiting Redemption

The Gatekeepers

Rabbi Zvi Teichman on Parshas Shoftim

Veering Right or Left

Watch Rabbi Yonah Sklare on Parshas Shoftim: Who Must Not Veer Right or Left?

When Mashiach Comes

Our Father, Our King

Keith Siegel: Every Day In Captivity, I Said ‘Shema Yisroel’

Schools Start to Ban Smart Phones

A Candid Conversation

Between two narratives: A candid conversation with an ultra-Orthodox Israeli

ABC'S of Elul

The Last Month of the Jewish Calendar is Super Important

The Surgeon's Badge

Royal Free Pledges Action After Complaint Over Palestine Flag Badge Worn by Surgeon

Entering Elul

A Campaign of Blessings: Turning Every Greeting Into Light
By Rabbi Anchelle Perl

As we enter the month of Elul, (starting August 24-25) the precious days of preparation for Rosh Hashanah, we are gifted with a unique opportunity to fill the world with blessings. The Baal Shem Tov, founder of the Chassidic movement, taught that every blessing we give to another Jew is far more than polite words. Each sincere greeting — “May you be inscribed and sealed for a good year, in health and in spirit” — actually creates a defending angel. On Rosh Hashanah, when each of us stands before the Heavenly Court, these angels appear and lovingly present our merits before Hashem.

Think of it: a simple smile, a heartfelt blessing to a neighbor in the supermarket, to a coworker in the office, even to a stranger passing on the street — all of it becomes eternal spiritual currency. It is the easiest mitzvah, and perhaps one of the most powerful.

We live in a time when people are overwhelmed — by news, by worry, by loneliness. How transformative it would be if the Jewish community committed, for the month of Elul, to go out of our way to bless each person we meet. To pause for just a moment, look them in the eye, and wish them: “L’shanah tovah tikateiv v’tichateim — May you and your family be inscribed and sealed for a sweet and good year!”

These blessings are not just for the righteous or the pious — they are for everyone. For the elderly man in the pharmacy, for the mother rushing her children to school, for the young professional feeling alone in a crowd. Every Jew deserves to hear that they matter, that they are cherished, that someone wishes them good.

And let us not underestimate the ripple effect. When you bless another, you awaken in them the strength to bless others. Before long, one blessing turns into ten, ten into hundreds, and a community is uplifted, bound by a web of blessings and goodwill.

On Rosh Hashanah, when we stand together before the King of Kings, our courtroom will not be silent. It will be filled with an army of angels, each carrying the testimony of our kindness, each whispering before the Throne: “This soul blessed another, this Jew cared, this person spread light.”

With such an advocate, who could doubt that we will all be written and sealed for a year of goodness — both physically and spiritually?

My friends, let’s make this Elul unforgettable. Let’s turn our town, our homes, our schools, our very sidewalks into rivers of blessing. One greeting at a time. One angel at a time. One merit at a time.

And may we all be blessed — together — for a year of health, joy, peace, and revealed goodness.

https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7364627215973523456/

Unsafe and Safe

Israeli tourists assaulted at Dutch holiday park

Lakewood ranked 5th safest city in the country study finds

Cell phone with murdered sons' voices returned to bereaved father

Rachel Goldberg, whose late husband fell in Lebanon, gets engaged

Thoughts on the Parsha

Stamford Hill families targeted in antisemitic holiday attack in French Alps

Closer to Hashem

Parshat Reeh

Intermediary Steps

Vienna: Uber driver assaults Jewish family, forces them out of vehicle

Rabbi Mendel Kessin: Current Events and The Ultimate Challenge for the Moshiach's Arrival

Russian missile hits Jewish cemetery in Ukraine, causing severe damage to tombstones

A Life of Giving

A life of giving, a legacy of love

Jews were driven out of eastern Jordan in the 1870s

One of the Thirty-Six

Driver’s ed with one of ‘the Thirty-Six’? An inspirational story, in a time of crisis

Trust in G-d

Rabbi Berel Wein, Jewish historian and author, passes away

The Two Temples

A NYTimes article about Zakaria Zubeidi describes how the terrorist became involved in armed struggle.

"In the early 2000s, following the collapse of peace talks, he joined a militia in Jenin in the belief that it was the best way of achieving Palestinian sovereignty. The immediate spur was a provocative visit by an Israeli leader, accompanied by hundreds of police officers, to a major mosque complex in Jerusalem that is built on the site of an ancient Jewish temple."

At the end of the article, there is the following note.

A correction was made on Aug. 12, 2025: An earlier version of this article misstated, in two instances, the month in which Zakaria Zubeidi was freed. It was January, not February.

When we learn of a mistake, we acknowledge it with a correction.

How about correcting the sentence about an ancient Jewish temple to reflect that this was the site of two Jewish Temples?

Rabbi Zvi Teichman on Parshas Eikev

The 14 Shekel Donation

Many of you have seen the heartbreaking interview with Rabbi Shlomo Nisanov, who lost his daughter in a jet ski accident earlier this week. What particulary struck me were his words to Hashem, in the midst of what had transpired. Despite the tragedy, the grieving father held fast to his faith. “I love you, God. I know you know best,” he said.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/413259

The Power of Tefilla

New Jersey Shliach Speaks From His Burned Down Shul

Below is an audio recording of Rabbi Maimin Elbaz relating three incidents which demonstrate the power of Tefila.

A Powerful Segula

Just Be N.I.C.E.

Just Be N.I.C.E.: 4 Tools for a Stronger Marriage

Predictions About the Future

Reacting to Negative Predictions About the Future

Attacked in Vienna

Attacked in Vienna

Q&A: Messiah, Miracles & Wealth - Rabbi Yitzchak Breitowitz

What Matters

Camp Ruach Chaim Redefines What Matters: Concert Replaced by Major Siyum Hashas Learned By Entire Camp

Va'etchanan

The Detour

Detour Leads to Bar Mitzvah and Timely Cemetery Visit

IDF Captain Avraham Ben Pinchas Hy”d: A chilling message

Be careful what you pray for

One more prayer

Rabbi Apelbaum speaks about the power of prayer, and how that one more prayer might be the key to achieving your wishes. Many times, we are disheartened by the lack of response to our prayers. We ask for a zivug hagun, only to be stuck in the dating cycle for a decade or more. The short lecture below encourages us to persist. So, in the week of Parshat Va'Etchanan, when Moshe persisted in prayer, let us ask Hashen one more time for that which is eluding us. And, if your prayer is answered this time around, drop me a comment. May your prayers be answered for the good.

When There's Hope

Israeli Influencer Exposes What No One Else Will About Candace Owens!

The Proceeds

Sarajevo museum donates Jewish text proceeds to Palestinians

Giving Tzedakah

BD”E: Petirah of Mrs. Chaya Tolwinski A”H, A Towering Baalas Emunah Who Inspired Thousands

"The Hostages Are Being Buried Alive" | Eylon Levy on Sky News Australia

How to Get a Miser to Give Tzedakah

After October

The Bartender Who Survived the Nova Festival

After October

Movie for Tisha B'av

The Importance of our Words

When Tisha B'Av falls on Sunday - Laws and Customs

Devarim: The Purpose Of Our Words

A Summer of Infectious Kiddush Hashem