Religion: Judaism
Web site of the week: www.onlysimchas.com
February 08, 2003
Had enough bad news lately? This Web site features only simchas – happy occasions such as weddings, engagements and births. Creator Dov Katz says the site has become especially popular among Orthodox Jews. He hopes eventually to diversify to make it "a uniting force among the different elements of Judaism."
The site has struggled with one unhappy occasion: A computer crash in December shut it down for a week. But with 5 million hits that month, the creators decided that the site must go on. Visitors can again check photo galleries from bar and bat mitzvahs, engagement parties, weddings, baby-naming ceremonies and other celebrations. They can even sign in to add words of congratulations.
Onlysimchas.com grew from a simple site sharing happy occasions among friends into a fairly sophisticated virtual mitzvah (worthy deed) with worldwide reach. Jewish or not, you'll be tempted to say, "Mazel tov!" M.A.J.
