Vegan Borscht
Vegan Challah
Round challah symbolizes the cycle of the year and are traditional for Rosh HaShanah; challot are traditionally braided for Shabbat. Either way, the key to delicious challah is kneading the dough.
The Roots of Shabbat
According to traditional Jewish belief, the Sabbath has its origin in God’s divine command to observe the seventh day as a day of rest and sanctification.
An Unexpected Messenger on Shabbat
I walked to Jerusalem's Ben Yehuda Street toward the end of Shabbat, thinking that I was going to wait on a park bench until Shabbat ended and the stores opened, in order to try to buy a Spiderman kippah for our son.
Big Thoughts over Brunch in Baka
Pre-Shabbat in Jerusalem is digestion time. On Friday mornings in my neighborhood of Baka, the main avenue teems with voracious brunch-devourers eager to squish a weekend's worth of consumption into one extended meal.
Celebrating Commonalities: Why a Palestinian Muslim Sang at our Shabbat Services
One Friday evening, something remarkable and beautiful happened at my congregation. I’d never seen it before, but I hope I’ll see it many times again.
It’s Hard to be a Jew at Christmas, But Even Harder on Tu BiSh’vat
It is a truth universally acknowledged that it can be difficult to be Jewish at Christmas time. It has seeped into North American cultural consciousness so thoroughly that South Park even wrote a song about it, complete with trademark expletives.
The Sacred Act of Unplugging: For Our Kids, For Ourselves
My 6-year-old son recently staged a one-man play in our kitchen. It had a simple plot – a mom with her face buried in her phone, tapping away at the keys while a kid tries to get her attention. “Tap, tap, tap… Mom. Mom. Mom…. tap, tap, tap. Mom, Mom, Mom. Tap, tap, tap. MOM! MOM!
A Cardinal's Synagogue Address: God's Will is for Peace
At some point in his or her career, every member of the clergy is called on to defend the efficacy of organized religion as a force for good.