A Pilgrimage for Our Day
Mark, on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in the yield of your land, you shall observe the festival of the Eternal [to last] seven days: a complete rest on the first day, and a complete rest on the eighth day. Leviticus 23:39 Walk around Zion, circle it; count its towers, take note of its ramparts; go through its citadels, that you may recount it to a future age. Psalm 48:13-14
Simchat Torah: Celebrating God’s Precious Gift
Immediately after the High Holidays, we celebrate Sukkot, one of the most important biblical Jewish holidays. How do we commemorate the Israelites' journey from bondage in Egypt to the Promised Land?
Waving the Flag of Egalitarianism in Israel on Simchat Torah
One of the great paradoxes of being an American Reform Jew who chose to make aliyah (move to Israel) is that the whole concept of majority and minority is turned on its head. One the one hand, as a Jew, I am culturally and ethnically now part of the majority.
The Rhythm of Jewish Time: Journeys and Dreams
Our tradition gives life to journeying. The Torah affirms wandering.
Praying for Rain Amidst Droughts and Storms
Saying YES to Youth
Hospitality: Can We Do Better?
Biblical stories often form prototypical frameworks that define and shape later Jewish behaviors.
To Test or Not to Test: Ashkenazi Jews and BRCA Gene Mutations
It's been well over a year since Angelina Jolie's New York Times op-ed brought hereditary breast and ovarian cancer (HBOC) syndrome to the world's attention.
Noah: A Case Study in Transformation
At the beginning of Parashat Noach , it is apparent that the earth and everything living on it are in need of serious transformation. We read: "The earth became corrupt before God; the earth was filled with violence" and ". . .
Rio Roots: On Being Jewish in Brazil
My grandparents came to Brazil from Europe in the 1920s, and my parents were born in Brazil. My mother's Brazilian roots were in the northern state of Maranhão, which had a very small Jewish community.