The Chasidic movement, particularly the Ba’al Shem Tov, revived the idea of the importance of one’s Jewish birthday. The Ba’al Shem Tov made a point of blessing people on their birthday as it is a time of renewal and empowerment for the coming year. [To find the Jewish date of […]
Rabbi Leiter Personal Story
“My intention was to jump…” The first Rebbe of Chabad taught that if the mind is not filled with holiness, it will be filled with unholiness. His great grandson commented that the same thing is true with happiness. Either you are happy with Torah or your “animal” […]
The Rebbe & the Williamsburg Bridge: Personal Story from Rabbi ...
30 years ago a situation arose because of a person’s ill feeling, even justified, that jeopardized Ascent and a solution could not be found. I was pacing back and forth nervously. Rabbi Schneur Zalman Gafni, one of Ascent’s teachers, sensed a problem and asked me about it. After describing the […]