Jewish History

Hands holding chopsticks and digging into carton of Chinese food

Why Some Jews Eat Chinese Food on Christmas

Rabbi Joshua Eli Plaut, Ph.D.
We all know that eating Chinese food on Christmas Eve is a sacred Jewish tradition! The origin of this venerated Christmas Jewish tradition dates back over 100 years to the Lower East Side of New York City.
Teenagers walking down railroad tracks while visiting a concentration camp

Ghetto: A Poem

Samantha (Sami) Silk
the path that we now follow / is the Exodus our ancestors never chose / flooding with pain they died not to swallow / the past spills into the river and flows
Photo of a group of people wearing masks, superhero shirts and holding up different superhero signs that says "smash," "boom," "krunch," and "kapow."

Extraordinary Ordinary Heroes

Rabbi Deborah Bodin Cohen
Simcha Blass, Helen Suzman, Eddie Jacobson, and Abby Stein all contributed to our world in different ways. Yet, they shared traits - commitment, integrity, resolve and an inner sense that they could make a difference.
Photo of the silhouette of two women's head and upper bodies standing back to back

Women of Valor: Revisiting Biblical Role Models

Michele Braun
Focusing this contemporary lens on Deborah and Yael reveals a story of women acting so outside of expected norms that I stand in awe and am compelled to magnify their adventures for our own times.
an image of a family with baby sitting at a table with a menorah lite in from of them

Hanukkah Baby Names

Ellie Rudee
In Judaism, words are powerful; names are perhaps even more powerful. In the Torah, naming is an important theme related to identity and essence. If you find yourself looking for a name this Hanukkah, we hope this list inspired by the themes of the season will help.