Without the Jews, the World Would Be a Beer Joint. Period
This letter—my grandfather's ode to Judaism—delivers one of his best lines.
Theoritology
Orit Arfa's musings on Torah, philosophy and theology.
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A Capo in Auschwitz asked me to make a Jew laugh so that he could hunt for his golden teeth
Then this happened.
This Hit TV Show Is an Answer to Mamdani
As America celebrates its 250th birthday, Apple's Pluribus dramatizes the ravages of "warm" collectivism and the heroism of "frigid" individualism
"Witek the Pole" helped me survive Auschwitz
In this letter, my grandfather tells the fascinating story of "Witek the Pole", and how Witek helped him survive by secretly trading goods in the Auschwitz subcamp
I was among the lucky ones
My grandfather, Henryk Arfa, describes how, with God's help, he averted death by hanging in the Lodz Ghetto and later the gas chamber in Auschwitz
Spinoza and the Spies
This is the drasha I delivered as part of a Kabbalat Shabbat service I led for Jewish military service members at an American army base in Bavaria on June 12, Parshat Shlach.
I Was Booed in Poland for Being a Jew
In this first published letter by Henryk Arfa, he recounts the primitive antisemitism he felt as a Jewish school kid in Poland and the power of cantorial music to uplift him
The Destructive Power of Just One Word
The story of the spies in Parshat Shlach in the Book of BaMidbar (Numbers) teaches us how one word can have the destructive force of a standstorm
From Auschwitz to America
On the 30th yahrzeit of my grandfather Henryk Arfa, I begin publishing his handwritten letters with a biographical overview
Introducing the letters of my grandfather, Henryk Arfa, Auschwitz survivor
With the transcription and publication of "Henryk Arfa's Letters," I fulfill my grandfather's wish to share his ideas with the world. And they also give me strength.