New Rosh Beit Midrash At Darchei Noam Punctuates Shul’s Growth

Congregation Darchei Noam in Fair Lawn has been undergoing a growth spurt in recent years and their next step is appointing Rabbi Shua Katz to the position of Rosh Beit Midrash. “I am incredibly excited to join the Darchei Noam community,” said Rabbi Katz, currently a member of the Wexner Kollel Elyon at the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS) at Yeshiva University (YU). “The dedication and passion of Rabbi (Jeremy) Donath and lay leadership, as well as the warmth and cohesiveness of the shul are palpable to all who visit.”

Passover in Portsmouth: Turell’s Team Takes Title

Ryan Turell is in the Max Stern Athletic Center. But in a gym where he holds almost all the records, today he isn’t on the court. It’s the semifinals of the Red Sarachek Basketball Tournament. Turell flew from his native Los Angeles back to New York City to see his old high school team, the Valley Torah High School Wolfpack, compete in what amounts to the Jewish high school basketball championship of North America.

A Topic of Lifelong Importance: Pelvic Floor Health

Highlighting “The Inside Story: The Jewish Woman’s Guide to Lifelong Pelvic Health” by Dr. Riva Preil. Independently published. 2022. English. Paperback. 104 pages. ISBN-13: 979-8-7780-2375-8.

The Journey of Elie Kligman: Keeping Kosher on Tobacco Road

A group of guys walk into a college dining hall. They probably get a few head-turns, but not too many. Almost everyone knows who they are. If their faces weren’t recognizable, their gear gives them away.

Visiting The Valley Of The Sun: Jewish Life In The Desert

It’s late December and we all know what that means… no school, but not in the majority of local yeshivas. Yeshiva break will have to wait until January. When it comes time to look for a warmer place to go on vacation for a week or so, many from the tristate area try to find places that have access to kosher food and minyanim to make everything a bit more convenient.

Halachic Guide to Chinese Food on 12/25: Everything You Need to Know for This Shabbat

Some areas of halacha are more well-known than others. That’s just how it is. There are those topics that rabbaim teach and reteach so you’ll never forget them. For instance, nobody ever gets confused about whether or not an etrog is kosher if the pitom falls off.

Five Best Bites of KosherFest 2021

After sacrificing last year’s event due to the pandemic, KosherFest returned last week to the excitement of thousands in the kosher food world. Hundreds of booths yielded tons of samples for all to enjoy.

Kosher Pork? Impossible. Well, Possibly.

Impossible Pork is the talk of the kosher world these days and, I don’t know if you’ve heard, but Jews tend to ask a lot of questions. After reading through the different articles and opinion pieces, I had even more questions than I started with. Luckily for you, I didn’t stop there. I went looking for the answers to my questions. I can truly say that some of the answers surprised me. But before we get to the answers, let’s get to the questions…

The Effects of COVID on Shul: Before and After

Even though COVID is terrible, I miss the way shul was in the spring. I know, it may sound odd to be nostalgic for the days of mandatory masks and social distancing. But as shul goes back to being “normal,” I’ve realized that when everything was definitely abnormal, I enjoyed davening more than I thought at the time.