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December 13, 2019 at 1:51 pm
This is updated as of Dec. 13, 2019Yoshon season has officially started. Many people get confused about what the terms Yoshonand Chodosh are. Here we present a brief explanation of each, followed by some product information.
For the STAR-K Yoshon Quick Reference Guide click here
For a Yoshon/Pas Yisroel List of Local Establishments, click here
The Torah (Vayikra 23:14) states that the new(i.e., Chodosh) crop of the five grains may not be eaten until after the second day of Passover (i.e., in Israel; in the Diaspora, not until after the thirdday). This means that the grain harvested this summer would not be allowed until after Passover of next year (i.e., 2020/5780). The term Yoshon (literally, old) refers to crops harvested last summer that became permitted after...
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December 13, 2019 at 1:37 pm
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — A famous Belgian carnival was removed from the U.N.’s cultural heritage list on Friday following complaints that last year’s edition contained blatant displays of anti-Semitism.
The Aalst carnival was taken off UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list during a meeting in Colombia’s capital city, becoming the first cultural tradition stricken from the U.N.’s global inventory of cultural practices.
The carnival was criticized by anti-discrimination groups after this year’s edition included a float depicting Jews with sidecurls and oversized noses atop piles of money. A document filed by UNESCO’s committee for the safeguarding of cultural heritage said the event violates the organization’s principles.
The Aalst...
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December 13, 2019 at 1:34 pm
As President Donald Trump faced a critical vote on his impeachment Thursday, his top political advisers said the process had already begun to reap benefits for his reelection campaign.
“This lit up our base, lit up the people that are supporters of the president. They’re frustrated, they’re upset, and that motivates voters,” campaign manager Brad Parscale told reporters during a briefing Thursday. “They have ignited a flame underneath them.”
Parscale – who prefaced his remarks by saying he did not believe Trump deserved to be impeached – said that “every metric” he tracks, from fundraising to voter sentiment to volunteer recruitment, shows a political benefit for the president.
“That has put money in our bank, it has adde...
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December 13, 2019 at 12:57 pm
Israel Friday hailed the election defeat of Britain's Labour Party as a "milestone in the fight against hatred" after its leadership was accused of inaction against anti-Semitism in its ranks.
"I congratulate British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the UK Conservative Party on a decisive victory," Foreign Minister Yisrael Katz said.
"This is not just a political victory, it is first and foremost a victory of values."
"The specter of anti-Semitism loomed large over this campaign, and the British public overwhelmingly voted against it, in what is, in our opinion, a testament to British history and values."
"It serves as an important milestone in the fight against hatred."
A veteran left-winger, first elected to parliament in 1983, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has long been dogged b...
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December 13, 2019 at 12:51 pm
Parshas VaYishlach - Baltimore Zmanim / Eruv is UP!
Baltimore, MD – Dec. 13, 2019
Parshas: VaYishlach
Today: 15Kislev
Chatzos today: 12:01 PM
Hadlakas Nairos: 4:25 PM
Shkiah: 4:43:45 PM
Tzais HaKochavim: 5:34 PM
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December 13, 2019 at 12:51 pm
The House has approved the second article of Impeachment for President Trump. 23 I’s and 17 no’s.
This makes President Trump the third President to face impeachment in the House after President Clinton and President Andrew Jackson.
The case will now be vote on in the House next week before it is tried before the Senate where it will most likely be struck down by the Republican majority.
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December 13, 2019 at 12:49 pm
There are certain things one might expect to do in the Meadowlands of New Jersey, but skiing hasn’t been one of them, at least not until last week. The area, primarily known for Giants football games and as the final resting place for more than a few Sopranos characters, is now home to North America’s first indoor ski slope.
Big Snow, as it’s known, rises 16 stories at an angle from the surrounding marshland, like a massive cruise ship run aground. It’s a strange sight from the outside and even more surreal within, as skiers and snowboarders descend a 1,000-foot-long, 200-foot-wide expanse of snow, kept at a chilly 28F year-round and serviced by a chairlift that ascends to the icicle-draped rafters-all within sight of the Manhattan skyline.
The slope is one of the...
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December 13, 2019 at 12:21 pm
Former New York mayor Mike Bloomberg released a doctor’s letter Thursday that described him as a “77-year-old man in outstanding health” who has no medical concerns that would prevent him from serving as president of the United States.
Bloomberg is the second septuagenarian presidential contender to assure the public of their health, following a glowing report by a doctor for Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass. Other candidates in the Democratic race, including former vice president Joe Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., have promised to release medical details before the Iowa caucuses on Feb. 3.
The current presidential field is the oldest in history, with four candidates in their 70s competing to challenge President Donald Trump, 73, in next year’s election.
Bloo...
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December 13, 2019 at 12:14 pm
Natan Sharansky, the former Russian Prisoner of Zion who would later become head of Israel’s Jewish Agency, was named on Tuesday as the winner of the 2020 Genesis Prize in recognition of his “extraordinary lifelong struggle for human rights, political freedom and his service to the Jewish people and the State of Israel.”
The Genesis Prize Foundation will confer the $1 million prize to Sharansky at an award ceremony to be held on June 18 in Jerusalem.
The prize, which was once dubbed the “Jewish Nobel” by Time magazine, was established in 2012 to honor “extraordinary individuals for their outstanding professional achievement, contribution to humanity and commitment to Jewish values.”
Sharansky said he would donate the award money to a worthy caus...
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December 13, 2019 at 11:48 am
Have you ever thought into the numerical value of zero? The round circle represents nothing when it stands alone. However, when placed after other numbers, it can mean everything.
At COPE’s CPA Track graduation ceremonies for graduates and their families, the lineup of distinguished speakers, faculty, and grateful students echoed this theme. In today’s world where secular higher education is increasingly at odds with our values, one must be assured of staying in a safe, supportive environment, protecting the high standards cultivated by our Yeshivos, Bais Yaakovs, and families. That’s where COPE Education Services comes in. Since its inception in 1977, COPE has been instrumental in delivering top-quality secular education in an environment that’s in sync with Torah...
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December 13, 2019 at 11:31 am
Last week saw the launch of an initiative born of a strange shidduch — between the foundation of famously progressive philanthropist George Soros and that of libertarian donor Charles Koch.
The “Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft” was introduced as a “transpartisan” think tank whose focus will be on promoting diplomatic agreement instead of military solutions.
The new enterprise takes its name from John Quincy Adams, the sixth American president, who, as Secretary of State in 1821, made a speech warning against the U.S. going abroad “in search of monsters to destroy.”
There are, however, in fact, a number of fearsome monsters out there, some of whom threaten our allies and our own country. It’s nice to imagine that diplo...
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December 13, 2019 at 11:23 am
President Trump has been discussing with his campaign advisers whether or not to participate in the general election debates in 2020, two people close to the situation told The New York Times.
According to the sources, Trump doesn’t trust the Commission on Presidential Debates, the nonprofit organization that puts on the debates. Specifically, Trump is apprehensive of who will be chosen by the organization to moderate the debates, the Times reports.
Trump’s campaign reportedly declined to comment on what their plan was for the debates at a state-of-the-race campaign briefing in Arlington, Va.
Read more at The Hill.
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December 13, 2019 at 11:13 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Friday that the U.S. and China have reached a Phase 1 trade deal, de-escalating a 17-month dispute between the economic powers.
The U.S. is dropping plans to impose tariffs Sunday on $160 billion in Chinese imports and is reducing some existing tariffs on Chinese goods. In return, Trump said, the Chinese have agreed to “massive” but unspecified purchases of American farm and manufactured products.
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December 13, 2019 at 11:07 am
MANHATTAN, NY (AP) – A juvenile suspect has been arrested in the fatal stabbing of an 18-year-old Barnard College freshman, according to a law enforcement official with knowledge of the investigation.
The person was not authorized to speak publicly and did so on condition of anonymity Friday.
Tessa Majors, of Charlottesville, Virginia, was walking in Manhattan’s Morningside Park just before 7 p.m. Wednesday when she was accosted by an unknown number of people and stabbed during a struggle, police officials said.
Chief of Detectives Rodney Harrison said possibly as many as three attackers were involved.
Majors was attacked during an armed robbery, according to the president of Barnard College, which is part of the Ivy League’s Columbia University. She then staggered to...
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December 13, 2019 at 10:53 am
JERSEY CITY, NJ (VINnews) – Steven Fulop the Mayor of Jersey City tweeted this morning that in his opinion, and based on information that will still come out, that the target of the terrorists was the 50 children at the Yeshiva attached to that store.
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December 13, 2019 at 10:50 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Impeachment charges against President Donald Trump went to the full House on Friday, following approval by the House Judiciary Committee.
The House is expected to take up the two articles of impeachment next week.
The abuse of power charge stems from Trump’s July phone call with the Ukraine president pressuring him to announce an investigation of Democrats as he was withholding US aid. The obstruction charge involves Trump’s blocking of House efforts to investigate his actions. Trump has denied wrongdoing.
The vote in the House panel was split along party lines, with 23 Democrats voting in favor and 17 Republicans opposed.
Trump is accused, in the first article, of abusing his presidential power by asking Ukraine to investigate his 2020 rival Joe Bid...
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December 13, 2019 at 10:47 am
JERSEY CITY, NJ (VINnews) – The FBI on Friday said it is seeking the public’s help in tracking down a van owned by one of the Jersey City killers,
The 2001 white Ford van has the license plate number B40-JSD, the van may be linked to dead suspect David Anderson.Anyone who sees the vehicle is asked to call 973-792-7518.
WABC TV reports, that on Friday, Senator Bob Menendez, Moms Demand Action, Students Demand Action, Jersey City Anti-Violence Coalition and other local leaders are expected to hold a candlelight vigil and call for gun safety reform.
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December 13, 2019 at 10:30 am
Vateizei Dina. And Dina went out. Today, the mere words conjure up thoughts of negativity and of the recklessness of Dina in venturing out of the protective environment of her home. Indeed, it is hard to find many words in the Torah which have drawn such a magnitude of interpretation, most which use this tragic episode as a warning against women straying to far into the outside world. As is often the case though, those who use a tragedy to advance an agenda are often missing the more profound lesson which can be found with a simple reading of our most trusted commentary, Rashi.
Rashi comments that Dina is referred to as “Bas Leah” but not “Bas Yaakov” since Leah too had “gone out”. Rashi (Vayishlach 34:1). R...
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December 13, 2019 at 9:30 am
Esav is overwhelmed by Yaakov’s display of brotherly affection. In a sudden turn of heart, Esav genuinely offers to escort Yaakov’s family on their journey. Yaakov still fearing Esav’s intentions encourages Esav to continue at his own pace towards his destination to Seir, while he will travel at the gait of his children and drove, but promising, אבא אל אדני שעירה, I will come to my lord at Seir, eventually.
The Talmud teaches that this was a deceptive tactic deluding Esav into thinking he had more time to exact his revenge against Yaakov, assuming Yaakov will be following him to Seir, while in reality Yaakov detoured much earlier towards Sukkos, thus escaping any evil intended harm from Esav.
The Midrash adds that Yaakov being an אַמִיתּ�...
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December 13, 2019 at 8:35 am
It is with great sadness that Matzav.com reports the passing of Rabbi Mordechai Kokis, zt”l.
Rav Mordechai was a yungerman from Bais Medrash Govoah in Lakewood who had battled illness for the last couple of years.
A talmid chochom and yorei Shomayim who possessed extraordinary emunah and bitachon, Rav Mordechai inspired thousands with his avodas Hashem and reinkeit, before his illness and throughout his medical ordeal.
When others might have been weakened and dispirited, Rav Mordechai seemed to just keep going, learning Torah, being mechazeik others, and constantly speaking of the chesed of the Ribono Shel Olam.
Rav Mordechai was a son of Rav Benzion Kokis, a mashgiach at Bais...
