In the more than five decades that he was involved in Agudath Israel of America, rising from a member of their youth group to the Executive Vice President of the organization, Rabbi Shmuel Bloom encountered literally thousands of fascinating people: gedolei Yisrael, dedicated askanim, politicians from all sides of the political spectrum, and so many “just plain Jews” – who proved, by their actions, that there is no such thing as a “just plain Jew.” Rabbi Bloom met with gedolim at Agudah...

Rabbi Nachum Lehman, founder and director of CSB CARE, has devoted his life to helping people with disabilities acquire or regain their ability to daven, learn, teach and be independent and productive members of their community. It all started in 1996 when he was asked to write a program to help someone continue learning after he lost his sight. The project was extremely successful and Rabbi Lehman came to realize how many others needed similar assistance. The original software evolved into a...

In his brilliant essay on ahavas Yisrael, the Beis HaLevi, Rav Yosef Dov Soloveitchik, beautifully explains the mitzvah of loving your fellow Jew. Who does the mitzvah apply to? When does it apply? What do I need to do to fulfill it properly? The Beis HaLevi also provides incentives to help us do the mitzvah in the best possible way.Translated and elucidated by Rabbi David Sutton, author of ArtScroll’s bestselling Beis HaLevi on Bitachon, Beis Halevi on Ahavas Yisrael contains wonderful...

An Israeli child is born in a Ukrainian bomb shelter -- and United Hatzalah brings her home under fire ...A United Hatzalah volunteer scales a 12-foot-wall – and is the first to respond to the tragedy of Meron ...Eli Beer, founder of United Hatzalah, slips and breaks his leg racing to an emergency -- and manages to crawl to the choking child and save her life ...The amazing work of Israel’s United Hatzalah began, incredibly, when five-year-old Eli Beer witnessed a terror attack and dreamed of...

In Living Chessed, Rabbi Avrohom Asher Makovsky shares with us many Torah sources that talk about chessed, inspirational insights and guidance and, above all, stories of how chessed – even something as small as a compliment, a smile, or a hug – can transform the lives of both the one giving and the one receiving the chessed. In brief, readable chapters, we will discover how everyone can be a great baal chessed. In Living Chessed and in this uplifting Inside Artscroll interview, Rabbi Makovsky...

Rabbi Fishel Schachter makes us think. Makes us laugh. And makes us better.Better parents, better people, better Jews. Rabbi Schachter knows what happens in our lives. The little annoyances and the big challenges. The happiness and the angst. He knows what happens to us – because it often happens to him as well! And when “life” happens – the vanishing parking space, the bored kids on vacation, the last minute pre-Shabbos misadventures – he knows what we should do. Learn a lesson of hashgachah...

Twenty years ago, Roy (Yisroel) and Leah (Linda) Neuberger electrified the Jewish world with Roy’s book, From Central Park to Sinai, sharing the story of their return to Torah and Jewish life. Now, in the riveting From Sinai to Yerushalayim, bestselling author Rabbi Nachman Seltzer joins them on their fascinating journey, revealing new and unusual parts of the Neubergers’ lives, both before they became observant and in the two decades since they shared their story and became world-traveling...

Rabbi Ron Yitzchok Eisenman is the rav of Congregation Ahavas Israel in Passaic, New Jersey, and a renowned speaker and writer. Born and raised in Brooklyn, after marriage he spent years learning in kollel  in  Eretz Yisroel and in the States. After teaching Torah as a rebbi in yeshiva for two decades, in 1997 he was appointed as the rav of Ahavas Israel, which today hosts forty minyanim a day. In addition to his rabbinic functions, Rabbi Eisenman is a professor at Lander College for Women...

Rav Elya Meir Sorotzkin zt”l became a rosh yeshivah at a very young age and, with “blood, sweat and tears,” as he would often say, built his yeshiva into a premier institution, and, more importantly, built individual talmidim. Because he personally went through the painstaking process of self-discovery and growth, he was able to identify with the struggles and triumphs of his talmidim in a way that few could.This Inside ArtScroll interview features a conversation with a close talmid, Rabbi...

Nachman’s Schachter’s Ten Steps to Eternity is a unique book. It is a sefer that examines the ten nisyonos of Avraham Avinu through the eyes of the Midrash, with fascinating details and thought-provoking insights. It is also a book of many true, original, never-before-published stories about Avraham’s “children” – contemporary Jews who have incorporated Avraham’s beliefs and accomplishments into their own lives. This combination of insights and incredible stories leaves one amazed by how our...

Rabbi Heshy Kleinman changed the way tens of thousands of Jews daven through the bestselling classics, Praying With Fire, Praying With Fire 2, and Yearning With Fire. He also showed us how to truly take advantage of the powerful gift of teshuvah in his book, The Power of Teshuvah. Rabbi Kleinman lectures internationally on tefillah and other topics and is the co-founder of the V’Ani Tefillah Foundation, dedicated to increasing awareness of the importance and power of prayer, and to providing...

Bitachon. How to get it. How to strengthen it. How to learn to rely on Hashem. In every part of our lives. Bitachon – knowing that you can fully rely on Hashem, and only on Hashem – is an essential part of our Chovos HaLevavos, our “service of the heart.” It is the wondrous gift that enables us to enjoy the blessing of “menuchas hanefesh” – a hard-to-define concept that includes serenity, tranquility, and peace of mind. In his newest book, A Daily Dose of Bitachon, Rabbi David Sutton,...

Meaningful Minute founder and coordinator Nachi Gordon understands the power of one minute: every word a block with which you can build, every thought filled with potential to uplift – short, but so powerful. In this Inside ArtScroll interview, Nachi discusses his Meaningful Minute book and his journey working to creating the Meaningful Minute platform, ensuring that the meaningful messages he transmits have the power to impact people’s lives positively. Buy the book...

Over the last decade, tens of thousands of children have been educated and informed by ArtScroll’s Let’s Stay Safe book, which some educators have called “the most important picture book you will ever share with your children.” In this Inside ArtScroll interview, Rabbi Yaakov Horowitz speaks about the groundbreaking book, his efforts to educate children about personal safety, contemporary chinuch, and much more. [Purchase the book HERE.]

Hacham Yom Tob Yedid lived an epic life of courage and devotion through his decades as Chief Rabbi of the glorious Halab (Aleppo) community. As the community’s leader during its last days, he courageously faced challenges, torture, and threats. Amidst the confusion and turmoil, Hacham Yom Tob had the enormous responsibility of keeping his community devoted to Torah and tradition. And he accomplished the impossible: Halab remained as it had for centuries, a city where everyone kept Shabbat,...

The 13 Ikkarei Emunah, the Ani Maamins, appear in our siddurim, and many of us recite them every day after tefillah. And yet … do we understand what they mean in our own everyday lives and actions? In a new thoughtful work, Ani Maamin – A Mission for Life, Rabbi Yechezkel Elias examines each of the 13 Ikkarei Emunah. Using contemporary examples that we can all understand and relate to, he makes the often difficult concepts contained in the 13 Ikkarim clear, comprehensible, and very, very...

Rabbi Dovid Orlofsky has been involved in the field of Jewish education and outreach for over thirty years. He grew up in North Merrick, Long Island, one of six boys, of whom, he says, he is the quietest. He studied at Yeshiva Chofetz Chaim and Yeshiva Heichal HaTorah, and for nine years was the Long Island Director of the National Conference of Synagogue Youth. In 1988, Rabbi Orlofsky moved to Israel, where he lives in Yerushalayim with his wife Simi and their children and grandchildren. He...

Rabbi Shai Graucher was a ben bayis at the home of Rav Chaim Kanievsky zt”l for almost two decades, forging a most unique relationship with the gadol hador. He is also a popular author who has brought Rav Chaim’s  teachings to the English-speaking public in works such as his five-volume Rav Chaim Kanievsky on Chumash, Rav Chaim Kanievsky on Zemiros, Rav Chaim Kanievsky on Tehillim, and his latest release, Rav Chaim Kanievsky on Siddur. Reb Shai was a member of Rav Chaim’s inner circle and a...

“Without knowing the past, we are woefully ignorant about the present, and certainly have no clue as to what the future will be.” “History is our rare-view mirror. So says Rabbi Berel Wein, world-renowned historian, author and lecturer. And nobody brings Jewish history to vivid life like Rabbi Wein. Born in Chicago, Rabbi Wein went on to experience a successful career in the rabbinate, while speaking all over the world. In this captivating Inside ArtScroll interview, Rabbi Wein discusses...

One of the kedoshim of Meron was habochur Dovi Steinmetz z”l of Montreal. Since last Lag Ba’omer, Dovi’s father, Reb Shloimi Steinmetz, has become an ambassador of faith, asking people to recite the 13 Ani Maamins printed in every siddur after davening each morning l’ilui nishmas the pure neshomah of Yissochor Dov Berish ben Reb Shloime. People have responded…and how! With enthusiasm and passion, eager not just to create zechusim for this extraordinary neshomah, but to bring a little...