Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi

By Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel   CHULA VISTA, California — Whenever I read the Lubavitcher website, it seems as if we are reliving history.  The Lubavitcher character assassination of Shmuley Boteach reminds me of how the 17th century Dutch Jewish community treated one of its heretical spirits and his name was Uriel da Costa (1585-1640). […]

By Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel CHULA VISTA, California–One of my congregants asked a recent synagogue class, “How can we try to be respectful and understanding of the ultra-Orthodox when they are at the forefront of hostile activities like rioting at places which are open on Shabbat and more recently, vandalizing a girls’ school in Bet

“[My] book is telling the Jews to reclaim Jesus, the authentic Jesus, the historical Jesus, the Jewish Jesus” and to be inspired by his “beautiful” teachings, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach said this week in Jerusalem. By Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel CHULA VISTA, California –Shmuley Boteach reminds me a lot of Paul, the Apostle.  In fact, I

  By Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel CHULA VISTA, California — Some time ago, I had a friendly discussion with Rabbi Yisrael Goldberg, a young Chabadnik who lives in Israel. In the course of our talk, he told me that Rabbi Avraymo Levitanski (a former teacher of mine) had recently died. Avraymo was a great man;

By Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel CHULA VISTA, California — The other day, I watched an interview with the Jewish Reggae singer Matisyahu, shortly after he had shaven his beard! I could just imagine what some of his Hassidic fans were saying to one another after they heard the news, “Matisyahu! Please

By Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel CHULA VISTA, California– Stephen Hawking in the beginning of his book, A Brief History of Time, relates a story he believes originated with the scientist-philosopher Bertrand Russell, who once fielded an interesting question asked by an elderly woman after finishing a lecture he gave on astronomy: “He described how the