What Children Can Teach Us at Rosh HaShanah
A deep spiritual life is hard to find. While opportunities abound for spiritual connections (yoga, meditation, retreats and the like), for most of us it doesn’t come easy.
Pursuing Social Justice: Yom Kippur Activities for Families
#BlogElul 2013: Who’s In?
Although we’re barely into the dog days of August, the High Holidays are fast approaching. The first of Elul, the Hebrew month that precedes Tishrei and the start of Rosh HaShanah, begins at sundown this Tuesday, which means that Wednesday, August 7th is the first of Elul.
Yom Kippur Wasn't Always the Holiday It Is Now
As the summer passes its midway point, rabbis begin to think seriously about the coming Days of Awe.
Preparing for the High Holidays... With Chocolate!
As we enter into the Jewish month of preparation prior to the High Holidays, Elul, I am thinking about the spiritual aspects of chocolate.
Go Ahead, Post Your Yom Kippur Apologies on Facebook
If posting an apology online serves as a starting point for follow-up conversations, I say go for it. How could that ever be a bad thing?
The Shofar Blasts as a Metaphor for Life
If, as the Talmud tells us, the blasts of the shofar are meant to remind us of crying, (Babylonian Talmud, Rosh Hashanah 33A – specifically of Sisera’s mother – but that is another subject!), then I would offer the following.
For the Sin of Abandoning My People
I vowed that if Israel survived, I would never again abandon my people, never again be indifferent to Israel’s fate.
In It to Win It: Similarities Between Elul and the Lottery
Aside from a date, what can these two events possibly have in common? Strange as it may seem, there are a few points of comparison.
Hey, Rabbi! An Elul Q&A with Rabbi Paul Kipnes
We asked clergy across North America which music, books, art, movies and more help them get into a reflective state of mind as they gear up for the High Holidays. Here’s what Rabbi Paul Kipnes from Congregation Or Ami in Calabasas, CA, had to say.