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Rabbi Zalmanov's Blog
This Blog consists of Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov's weekly column, as well as articles that appeared in various publications.
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A Different Type of Inspiration
There are many inspirational parts of the Rosh Hashanah services, and different people find meaning in different things. This year my...
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Sep 27, 20152 min read
Don't Just Sit There
A man was once traveling by foot in the Russian countryside in middle of winter. As he was starting to feel numb from the cold, a fellow...
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Sep 25, 20152 min read
The Not-So-Unique Photo
My wife Chanie’s family has a great tradition. Her parents live in Indianapolis, running Lubavitch of Indiana, and aside for us—we live...
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Aug 4, 20152 min read
[Don’t] Leave the Heavy Lifting to the Pros
I was at a stage in my life that I had to start taking my health seriously. It was October 2013, just after the High Holidays and Sukkot,...
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Jun 26, 20152 min read
Empty Seats
A group of well-meaning Jewish leaders once approached the Lubavitcher Rebbe with a very interesting request. They were in the beginning...
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Apr 1, 20152 min read
Should French Jews Make Aliyah?
In the late 1960s, Chanie’s grandparents, Rabbi Dovber and Leba Grossbaum, were living in Newark, NJ. As the neighborhood was going bad...
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Feb 3, 20152 min read
Humble Food
One of the things I love about being Jewish is that there is a lesson to be learned from everything. Whether it’s a story in the Torah, a...
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Apr 1, 20122 min read
What Am I Doing Here?
Remember how, as children, we used to look forward every year to High Holiday services? All the fond memories we have of the long hours...
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Aug 29, 20103 min read
Mumbai - A Year Later
It’s hard to believe a year has already passed. But, it was last November when we were anxiously following the horrors unfold as the news...
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Nov 19, 20092 min read
World Series
I’m probably one of the few people in this town still following the World Series. This is obviously due, in most part to my home team,...
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Oct 30, 20091 min read
Inevitability
As a child, I remember my grandfather telling me once “Whatever could happen, has happened.” In other words, if something is possible, it...
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Jun 23, 20092 min read
Lesson from a Standoff
I was in the car yesterday, returning to Munster from Chesterton, and happened to hear a news item on the radio which got me thinking....
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Jun 16, 20091 min read
Miracles Happen
A kid comes home from Hebrew School one day and announces to his mother: “Mom, did you know that when Moses led the Jews out of Egypt and...
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Dec 8, 20082 min read
The Response
On Monday I was on a high. I had just returned from the annual Chabad conference held every fall in New York City. The event gathers...
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Nov 29, 20082 min read
In Defense of Hypocrites
The Eighteenth Century rabbi, Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev, was referred to by his colleagues and followers as the “Advocate of...
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Jun 12, 20082 min read
The Jewish Response
Yesterday’s horrifying events at a Jerusalem Yeshivah — where 8 students were murdered in cold blood and scores injured — brought to mind...
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Mar 7, 20082 min read
Israel
Chanie and I recently returned from a trip to Israel. Our trip was unique in that we both haven’t been to the Holy Land in nearly seven...
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Mar 4, 20082 min read
When the Whole World Comes Together
72 countries, 47 states, 5 days and 3,000 black hats. One word comes to mind: Adjectives. That’s right; every adjective used to describe...
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Nov 15, 20072 min read
When Tragedy Strikes
A personal tragedy which befalls a member of a community is tantamount to a communal tragedy. The traditional blessing of consolation...
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Oct 31, 20072 min read
In the Beginning...?
Did you know that the day we celebrate as Rosh Hashanah does not commemorate the creation of the universe? According to the Talmud, the...
Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov
Sep 4, 20072 min read
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