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10 Jewish Reasons To Quit Smoking
Rosh HaShanah is over, and it’s time to start acting on your new year’s resolutions.
Preparing for the Days of Awe
During the year I spent studying in Jerusalem as a rabbinic student, it was impossible to escape the upcoming High Holy Days.
Rosh HaShanah Resources for Parents – Intentional Modeling
Following the strategy of intentional modeling, in thinking about what you will do for your kids at Rosh HaShanah this year, first think about what you want to do for YOU! It’s a stretch, I know, but if it makes you feel better it is ultimately a great thing to do for your kids.
Tashlich: Into the Deep
Tashlich was my chance to rectify my wrongs, so it had to be done right: I'd go to Ocean Beach and purge my sins in the Pacific. But before that, I read up on the ritual to make certain I did not err again.
Tu BiShvat: Customs and Rituals
The Jewish mystics of the 17th century, the Kabbalists, created a special ritual—modeled after the Passover seder—to celebrate God's presence in nature. Today in modern Israel, Tu BiShvat has become a national holiday, a tree planting festivaTu BiShvat is not mentioned in the Torah. Scholars believe the holiday was originally an agricultural festival, corresponding to the beginning of spring in Israel. But a critical historical event helped Tu BiShvat evolve from a simple celebration of spring to a commemoration of our connection to the land of Israel. After the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 C.E. and the exile that followed, many of the exiled Jews felt a need to bind themselves symbolically to their former homeland. Tu BiShvat served in part to fill that spiritual need. Jews used this time each year to eat a variety of fruits and nuts that could be obtained from Israel. The practice, a sort of physical association with the land, continued for many centuries.l for both Israelis and Jews throughout the world
Tu BiShvat: History
Although the celebration of Tu BiShvat has a long and varied history, the theme most commonly ascribed to the holiday today is the environment.
Lag BaOmer: History
Lag BaOmer is a shorthand way of saying the 33rd day of the Omer. (The numerical value of the Hebrew letter lamed is 30, and the value of gimel is three; lamed and gimel together are pronounced “lahg.”) In addition to tracking the agricultural cycle, the Omer marks the seven-week period from Passover, which commemorates the Israelites’ Exodus from Egypt, to Shavuot, which commemorates the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai.
Counting of the Omer: Blessings for Each Day
The period between Passover and Shavuot is called the “Counting of the Omer” ( Sefirat Ha'omer).
These Days of Awe
It's the children, at first, that inspire awe, the infants now walking, the toddlers talking, the grade schoolers freshly combed and pressed, the high schoolers immense, the college students all but unrecognizable in their newfound sophistication. The brief span of twelve months has metamorphosed them all.
Rosh HaShanah: History
In ancient times, there were four different New Years on the Jewish calendar. Each had a distinct significance.