“Dear Rabbi” is Ha’Am’s advice column. Every month, Ha’Am will ask one question posed by our readers to five UCLA Jewish leaders: Rabbi Aaron Lerner, Rabbi Alex Kress, Rabbi Naftali Hanfling, Rabbi Dovid Gurevich, and Sharona Kaplan. Their answers will…
Taste of Torah: Vayakhel and Pekudei
By Rabbi Levi Haskelevich, Chabad at Penn This week’s Shabbat is packed with multiple ritual and historical significant components that all come together in a very special way. Two Torah portions: Vayakhel and Pekudei, the final portions in the Book…
Pro-Palestinian Activists Protest on Campus
Approximately twenty activists involved with Students for Justice in Palestine marched through the UCLA campus on Wednesday afternoon in protest of the state of Israel, its alleged human rights violations and President Donald Trump’s proposed immigration policies. Donning megaphones, flags…
Taste of Torah: On Law and Spirituality
by Chayi Hanfling of Jewish Awareness Movement (JAM) at UCLA This week’s Torah portion is Parshat Mishpatim, a portion that details laws and ordinances. It is filled with legal intricacies and minutia, primarily surrounding interactions between human beings. It covers…
Taste of Torah: Two Approaches to Life
Looking for some productive procrastination? Check out Rabbi Dr. Tal Sessler’s piece on this past week’s parashah, Toldot.
Taste of Torah: Secure while leaving the homeland
Written by Sharona Kaplan, Co-Director of the Jewish Learning Initiative on Campus at UCLA
Taste of Torah: Parashat Shelach Lecha and shlichut at UCLA
Written by Yair Vardi, Israel Fellow at Hillel at UCLA This week, we read parshat Shelach Lecha — שְׁלַח לְךָ. This is the famous parashah of the spies. Moses chose twelve men, leaders from the twelve tribes of Israel, to…
Taste of Torah: Like an arrow
Written by Sharona Kaplan, Jewish Learning Initiative on Campus at UCLA “So, what are you doing next year?!” A simple, yet potentially dreaded question for so many graduates who have yet to concretize their future plans. Silently detracting from the…
Taste of Torah: stand up and be counted
Written by Rebbetzin Elisa Gurevitch, Chabad at UCLA The holiday of Shavuot, which commemorates the giving of the Torah, is always preceded by the Torah portion of Bamidbar (the first chapters of Numbers) — “In the desert.” The reason for…
Taste of Torah: breaking free of the materialistic pursuit
Written by Gil Bar-Or It has been over 3000 years since we were freed from the bondage of slavery in Egypt, but it appears that today we are still bound by another set of shackles. The culture of materialism that…