Poetry

Tikva Hecht’s moving elegy for her mother, a lyric essay told in verse and art, reflects on the fragility of life and the final confession we recite in the Yom Kippur Amidah.

Zohar Atkins weighs in on contemporary anti-Semitism “culture wars” through the unique lens of poetry.

This is Not a Poem and other soon-to-be-published high holiday poems by Yehiel Poupko.

In this poetic tale from Marina Zilbergerts's recent poetry book You Were Adam (Wipf and Stock), a learned and passionate woman struggles with her yetser hara, nicknamed "Wicked." The yetser is imagined as a fantastic character who accompanies her through Jewish Toronto's banal suburbia. "Wicked '' is a sympathetic and tragic apikores who knows how to get her where it hurts, but he also speaks the truth. He is a careful social observer present with her at all times. From going on weekly shopping trips, being in shul, to more intimate moments, this demonic character becomes her unlikely friend. In an ironic twist, the lessons taught to her by her yetser help her embark on the path of repentance.

As 2022 comes to a close, the Lehrhaus team is proud to feature some highlights from our contributions this past year. Yet again, we have published at least one hundred original pieces across a wide variety of genres.

Bezalel Naor translates and contextualizes a poem by Pinchas Peli about the home of Rav Kook.

The poetry of the Mishkan: Abe Mezrich mines Parshat Terumah for its poetic potential.

Levi Morrow provides an all-new translation of Rav Elhanan Nir’s “Kavvanot for Rosh Hashanah,” and analyzes how these theological poems speak about our relationship with God and prayer on Rosh Hashanah.

In What Sons Receive: A Collection of Poems, Yael Unterman’s poetry delves into the identities of biblical figures to explore themes of family, love, and betrayal.

Award-winning poet Yehoshua November offers his thoughts on the connection between mystical intimacy and poetry.