Observation ·
Who Is the “Little Sister” of a Medieval Rosh Hashanah Prayer?
By PhilologosShe comes from the Song of Songs. But what is she doing there?
Rosh Hashanah
Latest Mosaic Content for Rosh Hashanah
Observation ·
Does Day Follow Night, or Night Follow Day?
By PhilologosGod’s first creative proclamation was “Let there be light,” so it might seem that the day came first. But then why does the Bible say that "it was evening and it was morning?"
Observation ·
Notes on Moving to Israel in a Pandemic
By Tamara BerensThe ancient Israelites, wandering in the wilderness, had more plentiful provisions than British Airways on this particular evening. How would I—we—get through this journey?
Observation ·
Judaism Is Mainly Text-Centered. Why Mark Its New Year with the Blunt, Inarticulate Noise of the Shofar?
By Dov LernerIn a worship service almost defined by its eloquence, Judaism mandates an unintelligible noise.
Observation ·
Rosh Hashanah Has Competition for the Beginning of the Jewish Year
By Sarah RindnerWhy the first of Nisan, which falls on this coming Saturday, would seem to be the most important date of all.
Monthly Essay ·
The New High Holy Days
By Jack WertheimerWhat happens when, once a year, the urge to accommodate every consumer fashion meets massive Jewish cultural illiteracy?
Observation ·
Rosh Hashanah Greetings, Yiddish-Style
By PhilologosThe products of the Yiddish greeting-card industry are a reminder of how wonderfully varied was the world of Yiddish-speaking Jewry.
Observation ·
How Jewish Leap Years Came to Be Calculated
By PhilologosThe method, developed by the Babylonians and kept alive by medieval Jews, is known in Hebrew as the "secret of impregnation."
Observation ·
The “Keseh” Conundrum
By PhilologosThere are three Hebrew expressions for the days from Rosh Hashanah through Yom Kippur. Two are well-known. The third? No one's quite sure what it means.
Observation ·
The Personal Prayer at the Heart of the High Holy Days
By Atar Hadari“Here am I, poor in deeds," it begins. Where did it come from and, more importantly, what does it say to us?
Observation ·
Pagan Rosh Hashanah
By Atar HadariHow a central prayer of the New Year liturgy reveals the day’s true spirit of awe and fear.
Observation ·
Remembrance of Trumpets Past
By Nathan LauferRosh Hashanah as described in the Torah looks very different from the Rosh Hashanah we know today. What happened, and what exactly are we celebrating?
