Community Corner

Have you ever ridden in a driverless car?

Rabbi Avi Matmon, a member of the Queens community, traces his spiritual journey to Yiddishkeit in his recently published memoir, Stairway to Heaven: With a Stopover in Queens. Throughout the book, he weaves his personal story together with powerful quotes, Torah teachings, and ideas that influenced his own growth. He shared that his goal in writing the memoir is to inspire others to draw closer to Hashem and the mitzvos.

On Wednesday evening, September 16, Coach Menachem Bernfeld hosted a virtual shiur featuring Rabbi Uri Deutsch, who spoke about forgiveness, t’shuvah, and renewal. Coach Bernfeld shared that a basic tenet of Judaism is emunah. Yom Kippur is a significant and fateful day, when the din is sealed for the coming year. Many of us do not feel confident, clear, or secure. How do we succeed? We find ourselves groping for ways to engage in spirituality and gather merits.

Sometimes we recognize a need and think to ourselves that something needs to be done. Esther Rybakov discovered a real need and stepped forward to make a difference. She started a platform on Instagram, which she named Jewffirmations, for women to find inspiration and strengthen their bitachon and connection to Hashem.

A visit to the Ptil Tekhelet Education Center in Kfar Adumim, Israel, offers a fascinating look at the history, science, and halachic discussion surrounding t’cheiles. During our tour, the guide explained how t’cheiles was produced in ancient times, how knowledge of the dye was eventually lost, and how researchers came to identify what many believe is the original source of the biblical blue dye. He also demonstrated the dyeing process and showed us some of the equipment used today.

On Thursday evening, July 20, Rabbi Joey Haber, well-known speaker, and Rabbi Yitzchak Aminov, of Kol Yisrael, spoke at the Bukharian Jewish Congregation of Jamaica Estates on the topic of jealousy. The shiur, titled “Why Not Me? The Poison of Jealousy,” was hosted by Chazaq, Kol Yisrael, and Milana’s Jewish Kiruv Movement.