Jewish Treats

Everyone Does the Wave

One of the main mitzvot of the holiday of Sukkot is the waving of the four species: citron (etrog), palm, myrtle and willow. Trying to understand this mitzvah metaphorically, our sages…

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Jewish Treats

Singing Praises

“...The prophets of the Jewish people ordained that the Hallel be recited on special occasions and celebrations [like Yom Tov], and at times of national deliverance from peril, in…

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Jewish Treats

Holiday Music

One of the ways to celebrate the Jewish holidays, especially Sukkot -- the Festival of Joy, is through music. The Jewish music industry has exploded in recent decades, and many upbeat and…

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Jewish Treats

Ushpeezin (Oo’shpee’zin)

During the festival of Sukkot, the sukkah is intended to be our home. For example, since one would normally dine in the house, on Sukkot one dines in the sukkah. Because the sukkah is…

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Jewish Treats

Rejoicing For The World

Among the unique rituals performed on the holiday of Sukkot were the additional offerings that were sacrificed in the ancient Temple. On the first day of the holiday, 13 young bulls were…

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Jewish Treats

The Four Species

The waving of the four species is one of the most beautiful and symbolic mitzvot of the year.Indeed, there is a special commandment (Leviticus 23:40) that one make a specific effort to…

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Jewish Treats

Wave the Species

Make an effort to either obtain a set of the four species, which can be purchased at synagogues and at Jewish bookstores, or find a place where a set will be available for waving and…

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Jewish Treats

Build Your Own Sukkah

Webster's Dictionary defines a tabernacle as a temporary dwelling, which is why the Jewish holiday of Sukkot is known as the Feast of the Tabernacles. A sukkah, however, is a lot…

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Jewish Treats

Is Sukkot Part of the High Holidays?

It is clear that during the Ten Days of Penitence, we are meant to be on a higher spiritual realm. We recite Psalm 47 seven times prior to blowing the shofar on Rosh Hashana, symbolizing…

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Jewish Treats

Building on Yom Kippur’s Momentum

With Yom Kippur in the rear view mirror, we find ourselves confronting the festival of Sukkot, beginning a mere five days after Yom Kippur. While we must transition quickly from the…

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