Micah Halpern

2 weeks ago | newsmax.com | Micah Halpern

One of the worst curses in Arabic is "Ibn il Kalb." Directly translated it is "son of a dog." In today's Arabic world, it also has a feminine equivalent: "Bint il Kalb."These are just two of the many spectacular curses scattered throughout Arabic. As colorful as they are, a word of warning: Do not utter them aloud. Do not! No matter how friendly you are with the person with whom you are speaking, no matter if you accompany them with a smile or a pat on the back, they are truly fighting words.

3 weeks ago | msn.com | Micah Halpern

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3 weeks ago | jpost.com | Micah Halpern

The Jewish calendar, like Jewish life, pulsates. It has a metabolism of its own, unlike any other calendar, unlike any other community. The cycle of the Jewish year heaves and sighs, from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows. There are moments of intense introspection, such as Yom Kippur, and moments of pure happiness, like Purim and Hanukkah. The year is punctuated by the three pilgrimage holidays that celebrate the centrality of Jerusalem.

1 month ago | newsmax.com | Micah Halpern

A contemporary "joke" in Israel is: How do you say ceasefire in Arabic? Time to reload! The United States has publicly acknowledged that during the Israeli-Hamas ceasefire, Hamas successfully recruited and began to train 20,000 men eager to fight for their cause. These recruits, young and even very young, are old enough to carry a weapon and plant a bomb. In plain English, the concept of a ceasefire is straightforward and clear.

1 month ago | jpost.com | Micah Halpern

I have tremendous faith in the future of the Jewish people and the Jewish world. Doomsday studies and polls do not send me into downward spirals. Many of my colleagues quake in fear for our future. They worry about virulent Jew hatred, about massive levels of intermarriage, and about simple assimilation. They look around and predict a dire future for Jews. I do not deny that what they see is there. I am not Pollyannish.