Rabbi Michael Green's Blog

What Twitter Can Teach Us about Tisha B’Av!

Ever since I can remember, I’ve been taught to be careful with my words and how they can have long lasting ramifications. That said, being that we are all human, this is a very difficult topic to grasp, as our words are often just spoken and never really carefully and tactfully communicated. To that end, Judaism stresses the importance of not participating in slander, gossip, and so on and so forth. Indeed, seemingly every Tish B’Av, thousands across the globe gather to view the Chofetz Chaim Heritage Foundation Tisha B’Av Video. This Video features different Rabbis who remind us of the Torah’s wisdom on human relations and personal development, and by extension, inspires the public to be aware of the far reaching effects that just even a few words can have…

July 14, 2010 - Read More (1 Comment) »

Jewish Law & TSA Full Body Scanners

We have formally entered the month of June! And yet, while all across the world the sun is shining, the official start of summer is not until June 21st. With the onset of summer, many individuals and families travel to sleep away camp, visit relatives in other states or countries, and so on and so forth. Indeed, the airlines capitalize on this fact and have imposed a “Summer Travel Fee!” If you thought you have seen everything, you haven’t seen nothin’ yet! Nowadays, depending upon your airline you may be charged for your hand luggage to the use of a headset, pillow or blanket. What’s more, due to the tragic events of 9-11, passengers are taxed with an additional “Security Fee.” These funds typically go to the TSA or other security needs at each airport. However, between a still lagging economy, and all of the additional fees that are lopped onto a ticket these days, there are many a person who find it cumbersome to travel via airplane. Moreover, travelers find it literally a shlep just getting to a particular gate.

June 1, 2010 - Read More (9 Comments) »

A Jewish Perspective on iPhone & iPad Apps

Rav Shimshon Pincus zt”l, was a legendary and prolific Rabbi. Unfortunately his life was cut short due to a tragic car accident. In one of his many Seforim that were published posthumously, he cites the opinion of the Zohar, who believed hundreds of years ago, that in today’s day an age we would see a lot of “wisdom” being introduced into the world. To that end, Rabbi Pincus says (see the Hebrew to the right) that he doesn’t know if the intent of the Zohar was in reference to the technological revolution that we see in front of our eyes (frankly if one buys a new computer, within a year or so, your model can become seemingly obsolete!). Nonetheless, he states that you can’t ignore the reality of how much “wisdom” and invention has appeared in such a short period of time.

May 30, 2010 - Read More (2 Comments) »

60 Minutes, 22 Minutes, 2 Minutes. No Minutes Left?

We live in unprecedented times! With a click of a button you can communicate with practically anyone in the world, transfer funds seemingly instantaneously, and purchase items ranging from diapers to wine all on the internet. And so, gone are the days when the average American could dedicate sixty solid minutes to a sole television news magazine such as CBS’: 60 Minutes. While it still broadcasts into American homes each week, they have had to “spice it up” with additions to the staff such as CNN’s Anderson Cooper or Katie Couric (who really rose to fame on another network!). In all honesty, I don’t watch 60 Minutes, what with living in Jerusalem, not having a television and all, but I do enjoy hearing it in Podcast format. All you have to do is simply download it from iTunes (here) and you can enjoy the famous…

May 27, 2010 - Read More (1 Comment) »

A Mussar Message from Steve Nash!

As a child, I was a resilient follower of my local sports teams. Frankly, that was an easy task as I grew up in Los Angeles, during an era in which the Dodgers won the World Series and the Lakers…have they ever been bad? Anyways, as time went on my interests began to wane. Nowadays, I would say that when I do tune in to sports I like to follow a different angle. Truth be told, YC noted my current interest in professional sports in this recent Tweet. That said, I’d be remiss to not mention how I’ve been inspired by the playing and preservance of the 36 year-old Steve Nash of the Phoenix Suns. Nash, a two time regular season MVP, (finally) led his team to the Western Conference Championships. However, from my prospective, win or loose, he has shown that he has a true love for the game, and by extension, a seemingly innate desire to act as a playmaker and win the NBA Title. In the previous round, in which his team defeated the San Antonio Spurs, Steve Nash was clobbered so badly that one of his eyes was swollen shut!

May 26, 2010 - Read More (1 Comment) »

Life Lessons from 13 Year Old Jordan Romero

There are many great things that have come with the comforts of contemporary society. That said, there is a side effect that sweeps across children, tweens, teenagers, and even young adults. Namely, people are increasingly coddled. Indeed, in 2008 Newsweek Magazine dedicated an entire article entitled: How to Cope When Your Adult Kids Move Back Home! What’s more, there is even a television program that follows this phenomenon. The show is called, Bank of Mom and Dad and features parents attempting to help their children cope with the financial reality of living as an “adult.” Unfortunately many of the “kids” have gone wildly astray and are besieged with credit card debt and a lifestyle that they never could have ever afforded!

May 23, 2010 - Read More (2 Comments) »

A Jewish Perspective on the Volcano, the iPad and Us!

Unless you’ve had your head stuck under a rock, you are aware of the Iceland volcano that began erupting on March 20th 2010, and for all intensive purposes shut down Europe (Flickr Pictures and YouTube Video here). Indeed, as reported here, President Obama, as well as many other leaders of the world where unable to fly in for the weekend funeral of Polish President Lech Kaczynsk, due to the volcanic ash cloud that disrupted European air traffic. Personally, I’m still aware of several bochurim as well as families that remain stuck in various parts of the world, because of the volcanic ash. Despite the fact that this volcano was located in Iceland, it affected the global economy in addition to families and businessman. All in all, the airline industry reported a loss of nearly 2 billion dollars due to the volcanic ash!

April 25, 2010 - Read More (1 Comment) »

Educating the iGeneration: Hundreds of High Quality Free Fonts!

Several months ago I was asked to give a presentation at the KISHOR SOCIAL MEDIA CONFERENCE held in Jerusalem, Israel. My particular topic was, The Facts: What Your Students are Doing with Social Media. And so, since the presentation I have found myself being asked in various venues for my insights as to how we can attempt to reach and inspire the iGeneration. The answer is not a simple one. If however we are to start somewhere, I believe the answer lies in how we present our ABC’s! Let’s be honest…