Regardless of our station in life, we all have a noble heritage. The fact that we are here today to even ponder our beginnings means that our ancestors were successful in bringing later generations into existence. We can feel proud of that accomplishment - the mitzvah of being fruitful and multiplying. This fosters respect and appreciation for the lives of our ancestors, the trials and tribulations they faced, the obstacles they overcame, and the sacrifices they made that eve

We have just celebrated Rosh Hashanah, the head of the Jewish New Year. We took the awesome liberty of crowning G-d as our King. Rosh Hashanah also began the Days of Awe in which God judges every person with what the coming year will bring. During this time we put in extra effort into conducting ourselves in accordance with the true meaning of repentance, prayer, and charity to become receptacles for G-d's goodness and kindness for the coming year. Staying True One of the mos

Late for an important meeting and unable to find parking our Simon Springer pulled into a spot behind Beth Israel Congregation – a large shul downtown. “They won’t mind,” he reasoned. “And it’s just for a couple of hours.” He was about to leave when he saw the sign in the parking lot that read: "No parking. We are practicing forgiveness, especially during the High Holiday season, but don’t make it harder than it already is...” Forgiveness PLUS We all know that forgiveness is

With Purim spirit in the air, let's take a look at how the Shpoler Zeide, the hero of our first escape room, observed his joyous holiday. This story takes us back many years ago to meet a Jew named Mendel who left his home in Romania and moved to neighboring Kishinev, administered by Russia at that time. Another Jew that he had known in Romania took this as an opportunity to concoct a terrible lie about Mendel and report it to the Romanian Government. He claimed the reason Me

Previously we discussed Arthur Kurzweil’s genealogical research into his father's side of the family. Now we will continue on his journey to uncover his mother's family history. The story of Kurzweil's investigation into his mother's ancestors is far more intense than his father's. It evolves from research to becoming a question of identity. We hope to emulate the sense of adventure, those perplexing and puzzling moments in our escape room - where there is never a guarantee

Any genealogist researching their family history essentially becomes a detective, only without the official title. They must research, analyze that information, and search for clues hidden in seemingly inconsequential places. Answered questions only open up the possibility for yet more questions to be asked because the web of ancestry grows larger and more obscure the father back one goes. Arthur Kurzweil in his book “From Generation to Generation”, which is a guide to tracin

Just a few days ago, the 19th of Shvat, marked an important day for thousands of people. The common thread between them is their shared lineage, as all of them are descendants of the Tzaddik, The Shpoler Zeide. A Fateful Bris In the year 1793, the Shpoler Zayde was in the town of Boguslav, about half-way between Shpole and Kiev. The river Ros divides the town of Boguslav. In this town, on the other side of the river, a son was born to one of the villagers and the Bris (circum

“ For man is a tree of the field” -Deutoronomy 20:19 Tonight we are celebrating the New Year for Trees, Tu BShvat. As we learn from the intriguing verse above, man and tree are connected, and trees have valuable lessons to teach us all. A tree itself is made up of different parts. There are the roots, the trunk, the branches, and the fruits that are produced. While the trunk, branches, and fruit are all integral to the makeup of trees, it is the roots that they are all most

“It always takes twice as long and costs twice as much as you think it will“ This well known expression deftly addresses the common occurrence of human miscalculation. We see this going back to as early as the Jewish People themselves, waiting for Moses to return with the tablets from G-D. 40 days they are told to wait for this magnificent occasion. However the Jewish People miscalculate the 40 days and, thinking that Moses should be back already, they panic and create the go

(Based on Gamliel Beyderman's guest post previously published on Matzav.com) Over his Chanukah break, my 14-year old yeshiva bochur went to an unusual entertainment venue called “Escape Room” in Manhattan along with his whole class. He felt thrust into an extraordinary situation (“You have on hour to break out of the sinking sub before you run out of oxygen!”), an actor in an interactive movie. The classmates were briefly told the story outline and then the door was locked be

Our escape room will dramatize the genealogical discoveries made by Dr. Jeffrey Mark Paull in his quest to rediscover his family’s lost connection to noble past. I came across his book that for an inexplicable reason captured my imagination: In Jeffrey's own words: "The book takes the reader on a great historical adventure, beginning in Medieval France around the time of the Crusades, and ending in modern day America. In-between, the book traces the history of a family of nob