“And you shall count from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day that you brought the [barley] omer of the wave offering; seven complete sabbaths…
Yizkor Thoughts: Good or Comfortable
Seemingly, one of the more depressing debates in rabbinic literature is one that the houses of Hillel and Shammai argued about for two-and-half years…
Purim: Celebrating Community
In what surely is one of the strangest, shocking and surreal of teachings, our Sages have noted that Yom Kippurim (which is what the Torah calls Yom…
Terumah: The First of Adar
The first of Adar is a very special day. “Just as when Av begins one decreases rejoicing, so too when the month of Adar begins, one…
Chanukah: The Lights and The Lights
"The mitzvah of kindling Chanukah lamps is a very beloved mitzva” (Laws of Chanukah 4:12). So writes the Rambam living in the…
Yom Kippur: Where is the Golden Calf?
Yom Kippur marks the day that G-d forgave the Jewish people for the sin of the golden calf. And precisely because G-d forgave the people on this day…
Rosh Hashanah: Looking Ahead
The haunting, powerful and frightening words of Untenah Tokef – who shall live and who shall die – is for many the emotional highlight of the High…
Tisha B'Av: Avoiding a Recession
When we think of Tisha B’Av many images enter our mind – this year sadly more than in the past. Tisha B’Av is the day we mourn our historic tragedies…
Shavuot: A New Torah
“Every day they [the mitzvot of the Torah] should be like new”. With the exception of Coca-Cola, we like that which is new. We tend to associate new…
Acharei Mot: From Pesach to Yom Kippur
“And G-d spoke to Moshe after the death of the two children of Aharon when they came close before G-d and they died” (Vayikra 16:1). The Torah…
Pesach: A Second Chance
Jewish life is all too often rather chaotic. Yet Pesach and Yom Kippur, the two central holidays of the year[1] teach the importance of …
Pesach: What Should We Read
It is hard to argue that there is a more impactful and important rabbinic decree than that of kriat haTorah, the weekly public reading of the…
Pesach: Why Eat Matza
“Rabban Gamliel would say: Anyone who does not say these three things on Pesaḥ has not fulfilled his obligation, and these are they: [the korban…
Purim Thoughts: Far, Far Away
The decree has been promulgated and publicized through the empire. 127 provinces have received “hurried” instructions that they should “destroy,…
Sukkot: The First Sin
“And you shall take for yourselves on the first day, the fruit of the hadar tree, date palm fronds, a branch of a braided tree, and willows of the…
Yom Kippur: Sinning Under Duress
“For the sin we sinned before You, b’ones u’beratzon, under duress and willingly. So begins the litany of al chets, the double acrostic…
Rosh Hashanah: Come Together
“Ubechen, Please G-d instill pachdecha, terror upon all Your works and eimatecha, Your dread upon all that You have created”. So begins the Amidah on…
Tu B'Av: Time to Dance
Our holidays form natural units, as none truly stand alone. The 49 days of the omer link Pesach to Shavuot. We begin the holiday cycle by…