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D'vrei Torah
Why Do the 10 Commandments Begin With an Egyptian Word? (Times-of-Israel, May 13, 2014; etc.) http://blogs.timesofisrael.com/why-do-the-10-commandments-begin-with-an-egyptian-word/ Be Grateful for the Earth This Tu B'Shevat (Boston's The Jewish Advocate, Jan. 22, 2016; etc.) http://www.thejewishadvocate.com/news/2016-01-22/Editorials/Be_grateful_for_the_Earth_during_Tu_BShevat.html The Spirituality of Passover Cleaning (Shalom Magazine, Spring 2016; etc.) https://thejewishnews.com/2017/04/07/cleaning-passover-search-spirituality/ http://washingtonjewishweek.com/37771/cleaning-for-passover-and-the-search-for-spirituality/editorial-opinion/voices/ Why Repentance, Prayer, and Charity are Not Jewish! (A D'var Torah for the High Holidays) (Shalom Magazine, Fall 2016; etc) Link forthcoming Essays Dear Hebrew School Graduates... Eight Teachings I Want My Hebrew School Students to Remember (7 pages) This essay briefly addresses evidence for the Torah being Divine; insights into the Jewish practices of Shabbat, keeping Kosher, and prayer; as well as the purpose of being Jewish, and teachings about Jewish Identity and Jewish pride. (Times of Israel, June 8, 2016) http://blogs.timesofisrael.com/dear-hebrew-school-graduates/ Why Do Jewish? (Aish.com, April 9, 2016) http://www.aish.com/sp/ph/Why-Do-Jewish-for-the-Twitter-Generation.html Why I Learn Torah Daily (Aish.com, Feb. 28, 2016) (http://www.aish.com/jw/s/Why-I-Learn-Torah-Daily.html) Will the Real Judaism Please Stand Up?! Exploring the Teachings Your Denomination Probably Didn't Teach You (8 pages) (The Jewish Magazine, May 2014) http://www.jewishmag.com/184mag/what_is_real_judaism/what_is_real_judaism.htm The Arab-Israeli Conflict: A Fact-Based & Holistic Perspective (15 pages) (White Paper: The David Project, draft edition, 2008; updated 2010, 2012, 2014; available from Joel Hoffman as a PDF) Borat: A Jewish Movie Review (The Jewish Post of New York, 2007) http://www.jewishpost.com/culture/movie_review_borat.html Opinion-Editorials Let's Rethink the Bar/Bat Mitzvah For most kids Bar/Bat Mitzvah lessons are a meaningless experience and a wasted opportunity. Joel Hoffman proposes four-point solution to better educate and inspire our youth. This article has been published in several Jewish newspapers nationwide. (Crescent City Jewish News, May 6, 2016, etc.) http://www.crescentcityjewishnews.com/op-ed-lets-reconsider-the-barbat-mitzvah Retooling Hebrew School Joel Hoffman shares his ideas for retooling Hebrew school education. (Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles, March 21, 2016, etc.) http://jewishjournal.com/opinion/183583/ ://www.jewishjournal.com/opinion/article/retooling_hebrew_school ( Hebrew School is Not the Answer The organized Jewish community is hyper-focused on improving Hebrew school education and is spending millions of dollars to experiment with different models. Joel Hoffman shares his views on why this is ill-placed and posits another strategy to curve the assimilation crisis. (Times of Israel, Feb. 17, 2016, etc.) http://blogs.timesofisrael.com/hebrew-school-is-not-the-answer/ h How to Save the Conservative Movement Over the past 30 years the Conservative Movement's market share of American Jews has shrunk from 43% to just 18%. The movement is considering allowing patrellineal descent and the performing of intermarriages to retain its members. Joel Hoffman offers two other strategies to save the movement. (Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles, Jan. 21, 2016) http://jewishjournal.com/opinion/181470/ Why You Should Consider a Jewish Day School for Your Children (The Jewish Magazine, Dec. 2007, etc.) http://www.jewishmag.com/119mag/jewish-education/jewish-education.htm Journal Articles How to Engage Generation X in Jewish Learning Jewish Education News, Vol. 26. No. 2 (Spring 2005), pp. 7-8 (Not available online) Towards Better Certification and Training for Aspiring Jewish Day School Principals Jewish Education News, Vol. 24, No. 2 (Spring 2003), pp. 44-46 (Not available online) Recruiting and Retaining Teachers: A Case Study Jewish Education News, Vol. 23, No. 3 (Summer 2002), pp. 42-43 (Not available online) Teaching Spirituality in Jewish Schools Jewish Education News, Vol. 23, No. 1 (Spring 2002), pp. 57-60 (Not available online) The Mitzvah To Be B’Simcha (Joyous): The Hasidic Perspective Pumbedissa Journal, Vol. 8, No. 1 (Fall 2001), pp. 4-6 (Not available online) Education in Biblical Times: Joshua to 933 BCE The Jewish Bible Quarterly, Vol. 25, No. 2 (Spring 1997), pp. 114-117 (Not available online) |
