<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0"><channel><title>Jewish Blog</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/</link><description>Learn about Judaism and how Jewish families keep their faith and traditions.</description><language>en-us</language><pubDate>Sat, 21 Nov 2009 10:54:25 +0000</pubDate><lastBuildDate>Sat, 21 Nov 2009 10:54:25 +0000</lastBuildDate><ttl>60</ttl><item><title>When a Parent Mourns</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/when-a-parent-mourns</link><pubDate>Fri, 06 Nov 2009 13:11:57 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/when-a-parent-mourns</guid><description><![CDATA[The esteemed Torah scholar Rashi describes the loss of a child as the ultimate bereavement. It is something for which we have no words, cannot understand even if there were an ultimate Divine purpose that we were able to comprehend.]]></description></item><item><title>Unconditional Love and Free Choice</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/unconditional-love-and-free-choice</link><pubDate>Fri, 16 Oct 2009 09:08:29 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/unconditional-love-and-free-choice</guid><description><![CDATA[It is wonderful to get a bracha (blessing) for our children. That they should be learned, kind, talented. That they should make strangers smile, stop what they are doing, forget about their worries and appreciate the wondrous world seen through youthful eyes.]]></description></item><item><title>Repentance: From Primal Scream to Holy Cry</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/repentance-from-primal-scream-to-holy-cry</link><pubDate>Sun, 27 Sep 2009 09:22:08 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/repentance-from-primal-scream-to-holy-cry</guid><description><![CDATA[I remember when I was a kid and too young to be involved in psychology, pop or otherwise, I saw a TV show describing therapeutic method of the "Primal scream." The idea is that we all have stressors in our lives. We are sometimes like pressure cookers.]]></description></item><item><title>Rosh Hashana: No More Kings or Only One King?</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/rosh-hashana-no-more-kings-or-only-one-king</link><pubDate>Fri, 18 Sep 2009 11:26:17 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/rosh-hashana-no-more-kings-or-only-one-king</guid><description><![CDATA[When I was a kid, I remember watching Schoolhouse Rock. One of my favorite episodes of this fun, 1970s educational musical cartoon was "No More Kings." I remember an effete foppish George II with a powdered wig and a caustic laugh like a diabolical dandy with absolute power.]]></description></item><item><title>Offering Our First Fruits</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/offering-our-first-fruits</link><pubDate>Thu, 03 Sep 2009 21:59:09 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/offering-our-first-fruits</guid><description><![CDATA[I played a game with my kids yesterday. I ask them to tie a ribbon around the first fruit they saw. Alright, maybe the lemons have been hanging on our ancient tree for a while, so they aren't exactly first fruits.]]></description></item><item><title>Siblings, Battles and the Redemption</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/siblings-battles-and-the-redemption</link><pubDate>Fri, 28 Aug 2009 06:20:49 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/siblings-battles-and-the-redemption</guid><description><![CDATA[Are there really siblings without rivalry? Well, there are books that claim this can be possible, but I find these sibling squabbles all but inevitable.]]></description></item><item><title>The King Is in the Field</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/the-king-is-in-the-field</link><pubDate>Fri, 21 Aug 2009 09:47:40 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/the-king-is-in-the-field</guid><description><![CDATA[Around this time of year, there is a coolness in the air in the Yirushalaim, a longed-for breeze not felt in months.]]></description></item><item><title>Tisha B'Av: Moses' Prayers Will be Answered</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/tisha-bav-moses-prayers-will-be-answered</link><pubDate>Wed, 29 Jul 2009 14:21:24 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/tisha-bav-moses-prayers-will-be-answered</guid><description><![CDATA[Tisha B'av is a day associated with the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash (Holy Temple) in Yirushalaim. Both Temples were destroyed on that day and other dark events, like the Spanish Inquisition, began on Tisha B'Av. However, Tisha B'av is closely connected with the coming of Mashiach.]]></description></item><item><title>In Search of the Perfect Strength</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/in-search-of-the-perfect-strength</link><pubDate>Fri, 17 Jul 2009 06:00:58 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/in-search-of-the-perfect-strength</guid><description><![CDATA[So lately, I've had a rather mundane yet perplexing dilemma. Should I give up coffee or not?  For a while, I gave up coffee and felt terrific.]]></description></item><item><title>Keeping Kosher and Keeping Healthy</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/keeping-kosher-and-keeping-healthy</link><pubDate>Tue, 30 Jun 2009 14:11:33 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/keeping-kosher-and-keeping-healthy</guid><description><![CDATA[When I first became religious, I was very much into organic fruits and vegetables, as well as grains. While not strictly vegetarian, I did tend to eat according to the macrobiotic "greens, beans and grains" pattern. Not every meal (I was also a heavy coffee drinker- not so healthy) but often.]]></description></item><item><title>Just Open Your Eyes</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/just-open-your-eyes</link><pubDate>Mon, 15 Jun 2009 14:13:09 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/just-open-your-eyes</guid><description><![CDATA[I often wonder if people in other times of history really felt that things were so bad as they are in our era. The stock market plunge is still making its effects felt in all areas of the economy and the rise of stocks seems to belie all of the job losses and closed stores in the malls.]]></description></item><item><title>Is Cheesecake Sacred? Thoughts on Shavuos</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/is-cheesecake-sacred-thoughts-on-shavuos</link><pubDate>Mon, 25 May 2009 12:54:03 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/is-cheesecake-sacred-thoughts-on-shavuos</guid><description><![CDATA[So Perhaps you heard that joke about the typical Jewish holidays: "They tried to destroy us, G-d saved us, so let's eat!" (that applies to Pesach, Purim and Chanukah).]]></description></item><item><title>Kaddish: A Journey of the Soul</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/kaddish-a-journey-of-the-soul</link><pubDate>Fri, 01 May 2009 13:47:46 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/kaddish-a-journey-of-the-soul</guid><description><![CDATA[My husband often meets some first-time or first-in-a long time shul goers in Israel and in his trips to America. Often these men have something in common, they are saying Kaddish (the prayer for the deceased) for a loved one.]]></description></item><item><title>Passing the Time on Passover</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/passing-the-time-on-passover</link><pubDate>Mon, 13 Apr 2009 05:55:15 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/passing-the-time-on-passover</guid><description><![CDATA[I don't think there is any time of the year in the Land of Israel I enjoy more than Passover. It is like a summer vacation without the heat and the hassle.]]></description></item><item><title>All about Crumbs (Physical and Spiritual)</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/all-about-crumbs-physical-and-spiritual</link><pubDate>Tue, 31 Mar 2009 02:38:24 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/all-about-crumbs-physical-and-spiritual</guid><description><![CDATA[It's time to get out the brooms and the sponges and the Clorox! It's Pesach (Passover) cleaning time again. Of course, it is always good to do a spring cleaning (if in your part of the world, it is actually spring yet), but Pesach cleaning is another level altogether.]]></description></item><item><title>Purim: Joy is Serious Business</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/purim-joy-is-serious-business</link><pubDate>Tue, 10 Mar 2009 00:48:32 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/purim-joy-is-serious-business</guid><description><![CDATA[Once upon a time, Purim was considered a minor Jewish holiday. It doesn't have the kind of name recognition among the world at large that Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur and Chanukah do. You probably won't see Purim listed on government calendars.]]></description></item><item><title>Is the World More Peaceful?</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/is-the-world-more-peaceful</link><pubDate>Sun, 22 Feb 2009 23:53:12 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/is-the-world-more-peaceful</guid><description><![CDATA[I see it often expressed that we are living in a world of increased darkness and chaos. Fears of terrorism reach a diversity of people, regardless of ethnic background, location or social class.]]></description></item><item><title>Nineteen Diamonds</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/nineteen-diamonds</link><pubDate>Sun, 22 Feb 2009 23:52:54 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/nineteen-diamonds</guid><description><![CDATA[I spoke to someone the other day on the topic of, what else? Kids! She asked me "How many do you have?" I told her "Three boys, Thank Hashem.]]></description></item><item><title>Loving Leah, Yibum and Chalitza</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/loving-leah-yibum-and-chalitza</link><pubDate>Tue, 27 Jan 2009 04:15:16 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/loving-leah-yibum-and-chalitza</guid><description><![CDATA[Okay, so I know Loving Leah was a made-for-television movie that was screened last night (I don't have a television, but I try to keep up with certain news), but what are "chalitza' and "Yibum"? 

Now, my apologies because I am not 100% informed about the plot of the movie.]]></description></item><item><title>An Open Letter to Susie Essman</title><link>http://jewish.families.com/blog/an-open-letter-to-susie-essman</link><pubDate>Tue, 27 Jan 2009 00:01:06 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://jewish.families.com/blog/an-open-letter-to-susie-essman</guid><description><![CDATA[Dear Susie,

First of all, I'd like to invite you to my home when you come to Jerusalem (not planning a trip to Jerusalem? Well, we all will find ourselves here eventually). I must warn you, my apartment is small and needs renovation.]]></description></item></channel></rss>