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antisemitism
Hebrew Spelling
אַנְטִישֵׁמִיּוּת
Alternate Spelling
anti-Semitism
Irrational hatred of Jews.
grogger
Hebrew Spelling
רַעֲשָׁן
Alternate Spelling
grager
"Noisemaker" (Hebrew); used to drown out Haman's name during the M'gillah reading on Purim.
hamantaschen
Hebrew Spelling
אֹזֶן הָמָן
Alternate Spelling
hamantashen
Triangle-shaped pastries commonly filled with apricot jam or poppyseed spread (or other fillings) and eaten on Purim; the shape represents Haman's hat or ears
Lessons from Megillat Esther: The Need for Study and Action
When I was a child, I remember saying to my mother about the Purim story, "Maybe Haman wouldn't have done anything if he'd known Queen Esther was Jewish." King Ahasuerus' easily manipulated nature laid the foundations for the story, while Haman's vociferous antisemitism drove the story forward.
When the Queen Says No
I had been wanting to write about Queen Vashti for a while. A big part of my rabbinate and my writing focuses on uplifting the stories of women in the biblical narrative, especially those who do not get enough attention.
Every Tu BiShvat Is a Second Chance
Tu BiShvat, the precursor to Earth Day, should make us alert to our air, water, animals, and foliage – and all that we’re doing to destroy them.
Tu BiShvat: How Israel Has Planted New Seeds in the Jewish Soul
The way we celebrate Tu BiShvat has changed over the years – a case-in-point of how Jewish life and observance has been transformed in our day, due in no small part thanks to the successes of the State of Israel.
When is Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day)?
On the Jewish calendar, Yom HaShoah falls on the 27th of the Hebrew month of Nisan, which means the observance will begin at sundown on 26 Nisan.
Galilee Diary: Rainy day
Moving from the Midwest to the Mideast involved looking at rainy days in a new way. It took me a number of years to internalize the concept that rainy days are not an inconvenience, but rather a blessing.
Galilee Diary: Why is This Night Different?
"Tu" (the Hebrew abbreviation of 15th) in the month of Shvat was set (Hillel's opinion generally overrules Shammai's) as the beginning of the tithable year for tree fruit: Calculating the tithe on fruit starts again for fruit that sets after that date.