Reimagining Simchat Torah so Our Rejoicing Lasts All Year
The truth is Simchat Torah is not my favorite holiday.
There. I said it.
Why do we celebrate Tu BiShvat, the Jewish “New Year of the Trees,” in the middle of winter?
Tu BiShvat, called the "New Year of the Trees," falls at a seemingly incongruous time of year.
Why is caring for the environment emphasized on Tu BiShvat?
Tu BiShvat is a minor festival whose provenance dates only to the time of the Second Temple. However, the kabbalists who clustered around the great fifteenth-century mystic Isaac Luria of Safed placed great weight on the holiday, creating new festivities, gatherings at which hymns were sung, fruit (particularly carob) was eaten, and four cups of wine were taken (as in the Passover seder).
How to Plan a Tu BiSh'vat Seder
Everyone loves to participate in a Pesach seder. But did you know that there is an opportunity to celebrate a different seder about two months earlier?
Ode to the Moon of Shvat
Winter weighs on the soul of this author. She finds comfort, though, in the moon cycles and their symbols, laden with meaning, healing, comfort, and inspiration.
Celebrating Layers of Meaning on Simchat Torah
On Simchat Torah, I watch as the Torah scroll is carefully unfurled onto a series of long connected tables – the text so much more than designs scattered on parchment.
It’s a New Year, So Ask Lots of Questions
Questions are the lifeblood of learning and there is no better time to ask them then now.
We All Are Worthy of Blessing
On Simchat Torah, as we read the final portion of the Torah and immediately beginning again, what can the blessings to the Israelites teach us about our world today?