Passover Story in Brief
On Passover, we commemorate the exodus from Egyptian slavery. The following is a brief summary: Jacob's family came to Egypt to escape a famine in Canaan. Joseph, Jacob's son and the…
Light One Candle
“Light one candle for the Maccabee children, with thanks that their light didn’t die...” Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul and Mary wrote these words in a song that cried out for the pain of…
The Book(s) of Maccabees
Chanukah is neither directly ordained in the Torah (like Rosh Hashana, Passover, etc.) nor mentioned in any other biblical text (as Purim is in the Book of Esther). The Books of Maccabees…
These Lights We Kindle
While the mitzvah of lighting the menorah is an outward-focused mitzvah - the menorah is lit in a window or doorway - it is also an opportunity for personal reflection on the deeper…
A Song to the Eternal
Not only is Adon Olam one of the most well-known Jewish prayers, but it is also one of the most frequently repeated parts of the liturgy. Depending on the community, it is included in the…
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…
The Fast of the 17th of Tammuz
Everyone knows about Yom Kippur. There are, however, several other fast days on the Jewish calendar that are not nearly as well known. (The fast of the 17th of Tammuz, which, this year,…
The Book of Ruth
Ruth was the Moabite wife of Machlon, one of the sons of Elimelech and Naomi, a wealthy couple who had fled Bethlehem during a bitter famine. Elimelech's family had settled in Moab, a…
Dipping Plagues
On the night of the seder, and whenever one recounts the story of the Exodus, the recitation of the 10 plagues presents a particularly dramatic moment. It is interesting to note that the…
Chanukah and Divine Order
Chanukah always overlaps with at least one Shabbat (if not two), and since Chanukah begins on the 25th of Kislev and lasts for eight days, the holiday always coincides with the…