Holidays

Joey Rosenfeld discusses the inner meanings of Lag Ba-Omer.

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.

Yehoshua Pfeffer on self-abnegating vs. life-affirming teshuva.

Yom Kippur marks the end of an 11 week period when thematic haftarot about the destruction of the Temple, consolation following its loss, and repentance replace haftarot connected to the weekly Torah reading. What can this grouping teach us about the nature of forgiveness and reconciliation? Hannah Abrams explains.

What does Shakespeare have to say about the Exodus, Moses, and the power of storytelling? Shaina Trapedo explores how the Bard's work can speak to us during this unprecedented Pesach season.

Yosef Lindell examines why Shomron Kol Titein is a fitting conclusion to the daytime kinnot on Tisha Be-Av.

Why have stories of Jewish masquerade captured audiences since ancient times? In her latest, Malka Z. Simkovich explores the hidden meaning behind dressing up, from the Second Temple to '90s cinema.

As another Pesach in isolation approaches, Will Friedman examines how Rabbinic texts take solo sedarim into account.

Poet Yehoshua November notices a defining characteristic of contemporary poetry—fixation on the ordinary. In light of Hasidic theology, November argues that appreciation for the holiness of the ordinary underlies Megillat Esther and the celebration of Purim.

Julie and Uri Goldstein offer a timely Haggadah for reflection this year.