Religion & Holidays

One must pass down the mitzvot not just through education, but through action.

A prohibition related to war speaks to the spirit of Jewish courage.

What is the difference between confessing one's sins and repenting for them?

A debate over the English monarchy unveils the true nature of kingship according to the Hebrew Bible.

Why is the palm frond the only one of the four species to be mentioned in the lulav blessing?

Why doesn't a sukkah require a mezuzah?

The addition of Shemini Atzeret to the Sukkot holiday shows God's desire to be close to His people.

While Sukkot is best known for its particularistic themes, it also contains many universal messages.

The proximity of Yom Kippur and Sukkot on the Hebrew calendar suggests a deeper connection between the two holidays.

The Yom Kippur musaf prayer allows worshippers to experience the service of the past in the present.

While Yom Kippur begins on the 10th of Tishrei, one should start the holiday on the evening of the 9th. Why?

The prohibition of eating and drinking on Yom Kippur reinforces the singularity of the human soul.

The story of Amschel Rothschild and his Yom Kippur "feast" captures the joyous nature of the Day of Atonement.

The poetry of Robert Frost captures the many essences of Rosh Hashanah.

The call for sailors to man their battle stations mirrors the commandment to hear the shofar on Rosh Hashanah.

The surprising opinion of Talmudic sage prompts an explanation for why Judaism forbids cooking or consuming meat and milk together.

A psalm expresses anguish over exile and then exultantly describes the Exodus. What is the link between the psalm's two parts?

Purim’s date reveals what we are truly celebrating—and why a remarkable event seemingly described in this psalm never became a holiday.

The themes of exile and salvation are bound together in a tradition regarding the reading of the Megillah—and in these two psalms of Asaf.

The shofar has both a particularistic and universal meaning.

The contrasting moods of Psalm 27 capture the dual religious experiences of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.