Four days of dust, heat, masses of tripping festival-goers, thumping never-ending bass, welcoming random visitors from around the planet, various combinations of food, munchy snacks and refreshments, sleeping in cars, handing out flyers, swimsuits and bare feet without a beach or pool in sight, strange Coachella restrictions (more on that...

We are.

Let me explain.

Rav Shraga Feivel Zimmerman, the current Chief Rabbi of Gateshead, England, spoke in the aftermath of a major kashrut scandal which rocked Monsey, N.Y., in 2006. He recalled the story of the Prophet Jonah that we read on Yom Kippur afternoon. The story describes a...

Here is the dilemma. You want to do a proper Seder, but you have anxious relatives, some tired kids, or need for whatever reason to get the Seder over and done with. It's not ideal - but it happens all the time and people end up skipping essential parts of...

The Nice Jewish Guys Calendar is a hit. Selling by the thousands. It might take on SI Swimsuit Calendar. Ok, maybe not. Nonetheless, this phenomenon is both serious and funny. There is a market for dating justa nice guy. I am guessing that...

I don't use chickens. After witnessing years of chickens wallowing in their own feces in small cages waiting to be schechted (slaughtered) for the ritual of Kaparot before Yom Kippur, I gave up on this custom. I once was enamored of this ancient ritual whereby the sins of a person...

"The Torah that I am prescribing to you today is not too mysterious or remote from you. It is not in heaven ... it is something that is very close to you." --Deuteronomy 30:11-13

A great illustration of this passage is contained in the Yiddish story by I. L. Peretz...

The vicious assault on Michigan State University student Zachary Tennen has been plastered across the Internets, HuffPost and Michigan newspapers. By the victim's account he was attacked because he was Jewish. He claims they yelled "Heil Hitler" and were skinheads.

The East Lansing Police on the other hand...

While I did not have the privilege to join the 90,000+ Jews who filled the MetLife Stadium Aug. 2, this milestone in Jewish life cannot be underestimated.

The Jews have endured countless public burnings of the Talmud over the centuries since the first recorded incident in 1242 when 24...

We mourn the 12 victims and 58 wounded in the senseless slaughter in Aurora. We also mourn the suicide bombing that murdered five Israelis and two Bulgarians and wounded dozens of Israelis in Bulgaria.

These two horrific events are tied together chronologically and also on a communal level. These...

Recent headlines casting doubt on the kosher status of Hebrew National at first came as somewhat of a relief. To those like myself who have avoided Hebrew National for years -- first because they never allowed outside rabbinic supervision, but did all the supervision themselves, and then starting in the...

From the moment that Matisyahu's new album "Spark Seeker" hits your ears, you realize that the singer/songwriter is on a new journey of self-discovery. Complex, deeply spiritual, worldly, upbeat, at times pop and danceable, transcontinental and electronic, "Spark Seeker" grabs you. New beats, new sounds, new music, period. This July...

Jewish organizations that are on the cutting edge are having a hard time making it to the next level. It's a worldwide phenomenon. Instead of getting to sustainability, they cannot access bridge or mezzanine funding to take themselves out of start-up mode.

As anyone in business will tell you: You...

Ahad Ha'am, a great Zionist thinker and icon, knew that one of the keys to creating a thriving Jewish culture in Palestine, and among assimilating Jews in Europe, was reviving the ancient Hebrew language. While Hebrew had been relegated to books of law and philosophy for centuries, Ahad Ha'am and...

The power of teshuva can turn this hurtful incident into a one that teaches compassion and love.

Delmon should keep swinging the bat in a Tigers uniform because Judaism believes in the God of second chances. Judaism instructs us that we must give everyone the opportunity to make amends. In...

Los Angeles is home to more Israelis than many Israeli cities. And yet, last year the Israeli Festival was cancelled after falling on financial ruin, and a lack of general community support. It seemed that this most Israeli of American cities, was going to let Israeli Independence go by without...

What do you get when you cross Passover and a massive Hip Hop Festival? A get yo' matzah kind of seder.

For the first time that I can recall, these two distinct events -- hip hop show and a Passover seder -- will be celebrated together.

The Shabbat Tent Passover...

My name is Rabbi Yonah, and I am over-wired.

Tethered to my iPhone. Waiting for the ding or buzz to announce some new tidbit of information. Someone re-tweeted. Breaking news from who-knows-where. Is that a text message? An appointment?

At the office the routine doesn't change. Even on...

Before there was Earth Day, the Jewish people introduced an "Earth Day" of the full moon of the Jewish month of Shevat.

Called Tu Bishvat, the 15th of Shevat, it marks the time of year in Israel when sap begins to flow, giving new life to the trees. Awareness...

If you want your restaurant to prosper, give free food to the homeless. This is according to the anecdotal evidence put forward by my homeless friend Yehuda. Yehuda has been on the streets for five years in Los Angeles and can can't shake a heroin addiction. He lives on small...

New Year's is a massive celebration we have been looking forward to for some time. Before We head off to the night club to party, before we pop that champagne cork, let's take a few steps back. The New Year is not just a chance to party, it is also...