Category: Holidays

How should I eat on Yom Kippur if I cannot fast?

How should I eat on Yom Kippur if I cannot fast?

What should I do if I need to eat on Yom Kippur? How can I honor the spirit of the day while providing my body ...
The American Altar

The American Altar

A poetic commentary and reflection on A Racial Justice Vidui/Confessional for 5785/2024's High Holiday Season.
The History and Evolution of Simchat Torah

The History and Evolution of Simchat Torah

If the Torah doesn’t tell us anything about Simchat Torah, where does this holiday come from? What does it teach us?
A Racial Justice ViduiConfessional

A Racial Justice Vidui/Confessional

We offer this contemporary “Ashamnu,” confession, for this moment. Some of the sins are ours, others are part of society's complex systems.
A Talmudic Reading Of The High Holiday Prayer Un’taneh Tokef

A Talmudic Reading Of The High Holiday Prayer Un’taneh Tokef

Un'taneh Tokef: What makes this prayer so attractive? Could it be the poignant question, “Who will live and who will die?”
תכלה שנה וקללותיה – תחל שנה וברכותיה

תכלה שנה וקללותיה – תחל שנה וברכותיה

ובאמת, לצד האסונות שידענו לאורך אלפי שנות קיומנו, ידענו גם לקום, להתאחד ולהתחזק מתוך השבר. וכך יהיה גם הפעם.
End the Year and Its Curses – Begin the Year with Its Blessings

End the Year and Its Curses – Begin the Year with Its Blessings

Despite the disasters we have faced, we have known how to rise, unite, and grow stronger from the fractures.
CARING FOR CREATION PRAYER

Caring For Creation Prayer

A short prayer, inspired by and quoting the Prophet Isaiah, connecting us to nature, the environment, and all of creation.
Promoting Isaiah On Yom Kippur

Promoting Isaiah On Yom Kippur

Engaging with Operation Isaiah is a demand to eliminate the scourge of hunger. May we see the day when healthy food is available to all.
A Meditation/Kavannah on the Shofar and Civic Engagement

A Meditation/Kavannah on the Shofar and Civic Engagement

May the shofar blasts become our catalysts inspiring us to civic participation and the preservation of our democracy.
The Shofar Is Calling Us Toward Queer Reconciliation: A Kavvanah

The Shofar Is Calling Us Toward Queer Reconciliation: A Kavvanah

The shofar's call urges us to examine our own biases and privileges, to stand in solidarity and to advocate for change.
Social Justice Commission High Holiday Reader 5785

Social Justice Commission High Holiday Reader 5785

Our tradition teaches: the sound of the shofar can literally break down the walls, both physical and spiritual. It can shatter complacency and indifference.
Approaching Tashlikh - Casting Off Racism

Approaching Tashlikh: Casting Off Racism

May our casting of the bread upon the waters lead to a concerted common effort to confront and confound racism throughout the New Year.
Hagar Enslaved Woman

Hagar, Enslaved Woman

May these Days of Awe help us understand more deeply and act more forcefully on behalf of the enslaved and marginalized in our society.
Redemption Of Captives And Freeing Hostages: So Simple Yet So Complex

Redemption Of Captives And Freeing Hostages: So Simple Yet So Complex

While Jewish law contains many opinions, the moral imperative is clear: every effort should be made to negotiate the release of hostages without delay.
Introduction to the Kaddish: For Those who Died in the Israeli War (1957)

Introduction to the Kaddish: For Those who Died in the Israeli War (1957)

Written by S.Y. Agnon in the Conservative Judaism Journal for those who died in the War of 1948, these words are especially fitting today.
A Yizkor for the Victims of October 7th

A Yizkor for the Victims of October 7th

May God remember all the women, men, and children of Israel who were brutally murdered on the 7th of October.
Yizkor for the Victims of October 7th

Yizkor for the Victims of October 7th

This Yizkor, for the victims of the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, attempts to capture the personal details of the people killed on this ...
כיצד ראוי לחגוג את שמחת תורה בשנת תשפ״ה?

?כיצד ראוי לחגוג את שמחת תורה בשנת תשפ״ה

חווינו אחד מן האסונות הגדולים ביותר בתולדות המדינה, ומאז, כיצד ראוי לחגוג את שמחת תורה בשנת תשפ״ה?
How to Appropriately Celebrate Simchat Torah in 5785

How to Appropriately Celebrate Simchat Torah in 5785

With the ongoing tragedy of October 7th and the ongoing hostage situation and war, how do we appropriately celebrate Simchat Torah in 5785?
The Danger of the Divine

The Danger of the Divine

Yom Kippur is a reminder about yirah, about awe. God is here, powerful, and dangerous. The best response to that is a sense of yirah. 
כוונה לכניסת שמחת תורה תשפ”ה

כוונה לכניסת שמחת תורה תשפ”ה

דקות לפני כניסת החג, מתכנסים בבית הכנסת, לוקחים כלי חרס שביר ביד ואומרים האלה.
Intention for Simchat Torah 5785

Intention for Simchat Torah 5785

A ritual and intention before the start of Shemini Atzeret/Simchat Torah this year in 2024/5785 based on a Talmudic story.
In Need of a Divine Hug: The Embrace of the Sukkah

In Need of a Divine Hug: The Embrace of the Sukkah

This year, we should learn to experience the embrace of Sukkot by embracing one another, knowing that God is reaching out to embrace us, too.
Welcoming Special Ushpizin for Sukkot This Year (5785)

Welcoming Special Ushpizin for Sukkot This Year (5785)

This year, as we feel as fragile as the Sukkah itself, we offer a framework for Sukkot and Ushpizin – our Exalted Sanctified Guests. 
Balance Espiritual y Arrepentimiento

Balance Espiritual y Arrepentimiento

Fasting, praying, and ancient rituals invite and inspire us to begin Ḥeshbon Hanefesh and perform sincere Teshuvah.
Spiritual Balance and Teshuvah

Spiritual Balance and Teshuvah

Fasting, praying, and ancient rituals invite and inspire us to begin Ḥeshbon Hanefesh and perform sincere Teshuvah.
Sovereign of All the Earth: The Meaning of the Malkhuyot

Sovereign of All the Earth: The Meaning of the Malkhuyot

Acknowledging God’s sovereignty marks our responsibility toward all of life, through which the one creative, life-sustaining spirit flows.
The Binding of Isaac: What Does God Want?

The Binding of Isaac: What Does God Want?

How might we make meaning of the Binding of Isaac, a troubling, watershed story that shakes us to our core? What can we learn?
A New Year Filled With Hope

A New Year Filled With Hope

Tradition reminds me that even if I don't feel hope now, it's still here. Maybe it isn't present right now, maybe we will find it.
שנה חדשה מלאה תקוה

שנה חדשה מלאה תקוה

המסורת מזכירה לי שאפילו שאני לא מרגישה את התקווה עכשיו - היא איפשהו כאן. ואולי היא נוכחת כרגע, אולי נמצא אותה.
7 Things To Do During The Yom Kippur Prayers

7 Things To Do During The Yom Kippur Prayers

Yom Kippur is 25 hours of fasting, hundreds of prayers, and thousands of words. Here are 7 things you can do to make it more ...

High Holiday Liturgy: Making Meaning from the Metaphors for God

By understanding the nuance of Divine justice, we are given a powerful model for healthier relationships in the human realm.
Holding Both Joy and Sorrow

Holding Both Joy and Sorrow

Our hearts are big enough to hold all the emotions we feel during this holiday season, as we pray, eat, and observe the holidays together.
How To Live A Morally Good Life

How To Live A Morally Good Life

The moral life, with its choices, its responsibilities, its missteps, and its modes of repair, is an integral part of what it means to be ...
How to Prevent High Holiday Burnout

How to Prevent High Holiday Burnout

The delicate balancing act of celebrating and observing the High Holidays can be mixed with a bit of overwhelm. Here's what you can do.
Davening with Leonard Cohen

Davening with Leonard Cohen

A rockstar-poet-monk and a humble Jew, a roshi and just another rabbi. In some moments, we trade places, imagining what could have been.
The power of memory making

The Power of Memory-Making

Memory-making, the way we tell ourselves our story, the way we frame our history, offers the opportunity to give us power and, ultimately, hope.
NAM Page cover

High Holiday Reader 5785: Not A Mahzor

Exploring Judaism's 2024 (5785) High Holiday Reader, Not A Machzor, includes essays to inspire a meaningful Holiday season.
How To Get Religious Accommodations At Work

How To Get Religious Accommodations At Work

Want to know your rights as a Jew in the workplace? Need religious accommodations? Find out what your rights are and how to exercise them.
Acknowledging Jewish Trauma: A Tishah B'Av Chronicle

Acknowledging Jewish Trauma: A Tishah B’Av Chronicle

Ongoing memory and grief help us heal. In acknowledging Jewish trauma, and learning the Tishah B'Av chronicle, we can learn to do just that.
All Flesh Is Grass: Shabbat Nachamu

All Flesh Is Grass: Shabbat Nachamu

Shabbat Nachamu reminds us to ask: how do we find comfort, and how do we comfort others? We can learn this from nature.
Why This is the Year to Celebrate Tu B’Av

Why This is the Year to Celebrate Tu B’Av

Tu B'av reminds that Jewish people join together in tragedy and in love and joy, helping explain why this is the year to celebrate it.
Medieval Musings on the Emotional Content of a Fast

Medieval Musings on the Emotional Content of a Fast

Can we do work and labor on Tisha B'av? What role do our emotions play in that? The Medieval posek Terumat HaDeshen has an answer.
Why Does Tisha B'Av Get So Much Play At Camp?

Why Does Tisha B’Av Get So Much Play at Camp?

Tisha B'Av at camp is unlike anywhere else in the Jewish world. So why does Tisha B'Av get so much play at camp?
Tu B’Av: Finding Joy and Love During The Mournful Summer

Tu B’Av: Finding Love and Joy During The Mournful Summer

What is Tu B'Av and why is it a time to find love and joy during the mournful summer? It comes between Tisha B'Av and ...
Listener of Prayer

Listener of Prayer

"Listener of Prayer" is an important phrase in many of our blessings and prayers. Learn more about why that is.
Tisha B'av in Rome 1949

Tisha Be-Av In Rome, Under the Arch of Titus (1949)

Rabbi Abramowitz z''l: "...Tish'a be-Av amid the ruins of the Roman Empire [was] fraught with inner meaning and significance...in 1948"
Jerusalem: Our Singularly Plural Capital

Jerusalem: Our Singularly Plural Capital

What is the significance of Jerusalem, our singularly plural capital, as our capital city? What makes it so important?
When Can a Jewish Wedding Happen?

When Can a Jewish Wedding Happen?

There are times when a Jewish wedding can happen and times when weddings cannot, either according to laws or customs.
Shabbat for Jewish Pets and Their Owners

Shabbat for Jewish Pets and Their Owners

Here are a few tips to celebrate Shabbat for Jewish pets and their owners and how to enhance your family's Shabbat experience.
Celebrating Shavu’ot with Seven Species Cookies

Celebrating Shavu’ot with Seven Species Cookies

What better way to celebrate Shavu’ot than by making a delicious treat from these seven species?
Sorrow, Psalms and Freedom

Sorrow, Psalms, and Freedom

US Slaves were given a Bible without Psalms, with no access to the freedom stories. How does this impact a Jewish understanding of Juneteenth?

Shavuot 5784: Tiny Tikkun

Shavuot is often considered a holiday of converts. Our Tiny Tikkun collects some texts on conversion to study with a friend or on your own.
Common Terms in Torah Study

Common Terms in Torah Study

The Exploring Judaism team has prepared this printable sheet of common terms you might encounter in your Torah study that might help you out.
Temple Envy

Temple Envy

This an exploration of my "temple envy" through the emotions of grief, wonder, and desire for Jewish unity during a recent vacation to Nikko.
I fought in Jerusalem in 1967: A Yom Yerushalayim Reflection

I fought in Jerusalem in 1967: A Yom Yerushalayim Reflection

Fifty-seven years have passed since my company fought in the streets and alleys of Jerusalem, yet I remember it as if it happened yesterday.
Mysteriousness of the Makom

Mysteriousness of the Makom

The mysteriousness of the makom comes into view when looking at all of the divine places, especially mountains, in our literature.
Remembering and Observing United States Memorial Day

Remembering and Observing United States Memorial Day

Remembering and observing United States Memorial Day can be found in the remembrance and observance of Shabbat.

Ten Torah Resources You Should Know

Here are our top ten Torah resources you should know, including Conservative/Masorti organizations and resources for kids and families!
Gathering Our People: Yom HaZikaron and Yom Ha’Atzma’ut

Gathering Our People: Yom HaZikaron and Yom Ha’Atzma’ut

While I express my love for Jewish tradition, I am also holding the Jewish people in my hands and giving them a kiss as well.

A Yom HaZikaron like no other… God-willing

Yom HaZikaron is different this year. Our troops are still falling and getting wounded. The sense of loss and mourning is not theoretical.
Through My Children’s Eyes: Yom HaAtzmaut & Yom HaZikaron

Through My Children’s Eyes: Yom HaAtzmaut & Yom HaZikaron

Rabbi Rackover reflects on Yom HaZikkaron and Yom HaAtzmaut: For the first time, my daughter was afraid to share her Jewish identity. My heart broke.
Yom Ha-Atzma'ut: Sow With Tears, Reap with Joy

Yom Ha-Atzma’ut: Sow With Tears, Reap with Joy

Yom Ha-Atzma’ut in 2024, as in 1948, is a time of rejoicing and weeping. Just as then, today, too, we have much work ahead.
Why You Should Listen to Holocaust Testimonials

Why You Should Listen to Holocaust Testimonials

As the number of Holocaust survivors declines, we must listen to their testimonials. They give us unique insight into the impact of the Shoah.
Lactaid Carrier Giveaway (Shavuot 5784)

Lactaid® Carrier Giveaway (Shavuot 5784)

Come prepared with an Exploring Judaism Shavuot Lactaid* Carrier! Exploring Judaism knows how to make Torah more digestible.
Spheres of Sustainability: Malkhut and Sovereignty

Spheres of Sustainability: Malkhut and Sovereignty

For this week of the Omer's sphere of sustainability, look at malkhut, sovereignty, as we stand at the threshold between earth and heaven.
Why Doesn’t This Sephardi Jew Eat Rice on Passover?

Why Doesn’t This Sephardi Jew Eat Rice on Passover?

There is a powerful meaning in continuing traditions that I inherited directly from my family. Kitniyot is only a part of that story.
Recovery and the Four Cups

Recovery and the Four Cups

For many of us, freedom is choosing four cups of grape juice: Look at the four cups on Passover through the lens of addiction recovery.
Spheres of Sustainability: Yesod and Foundation

Spheres of Sustainability: Yesod and Foundation

For this week of the Omer's sphere of sustainability, look at yesod, foundation. Learn about the space between physical and spiritual worlds.
Spheres of Sustainability: Hod and Thanks

Spheres of Sustainability: Hod and Thanks

For this week of the Omer's sphere of sustainability, look at hod, thanks. It is seen in the inner beauty and splendor of physical beings. 
Spheres of Sustainability: Netzach and Eternity

Spheres of Sustainability: Netzach and Eternity

For this week of the Omer's sphere of sustainability, look at netzach, eternity. Learn about using this sefirah when thinking about endurance
Spheres of Sustainability: Tif'eret and Beauty

Spheres of Sustainability: Tif’eret and Beauty

For this week of the Omer's sphere of sustainability, look at tif'eret, beauty. Tif'eret brings us into balance with everyday blessings.
A SEAT FOR THOSE WHO CAN'T COME HOME

A Seat For Those Who Can’t Come Home

This year, as we prepare the seder, we encourage an extra setting at your table—an empty chair for our family still in captivity in Gaza.
Embracing Kitniyot on Passover

Embracing Kitniyot on Passover

This essay advocates for Ashkenazi Jews to embrace kitniyot on Passover, to enhance dietary diversity and align with modern interpretations.
Spheres of Sustainability: Strength and Gevurah

Spheres of Sustainability: Gevurah and Strength

For this week of the Omer's sphere of sustainability, look at gevurah, strength. Learn about using this gevurah when we face challenges.
Spheres of Sustainability: Chesed and Goodness

Spheres of Sustainability: Chesed and Goodness

For this week of the Omer's sphere of sustainability, look at chesed, goodness. This week, stand in awe before God's world.
Spheres of Sustainability: Making the Omer Count

Spheres of Sustainability: Making the Omer Count

By looking at the spheres of sustainability, we are making the Omer count. Explore the connections between the Omer and caring for the Earth.
Pesaj en la Sinagoga

Pesaj en la Sinagoga

Hay servicios vespertinos y matutinos en Pesaj, como en todos los festivales, con algunos cambios litúrgicos.
Pessah à la synagogue

Pessah à la synagogue

Il y a des offices du soir et du matin à Pessah, comme pour toutes les fêtes, avec quelques changements liturgiques.
El Séder: Un Resumen

El Séder: Un Resumen

El Séder de Pesaj es, para muchos judíos, la fiesta ritual más importante del año.
Le Seder Un Aperçu

Le seder : un aperçu

Le seder de Pessah est pour de nombreux juifs, le repas rituel le plus important de l’année.
La Cacherout de Pessah

La cacherout de Pessah

Toutes les règles habituelles de cacherout s’appliquent à Pessah, auxquelles s’ajoutent une exigence supplémentaire : l’interdiction de hamets dans une maison juive.
Kashrut en Pesaj

Kashrut en Pesaj

Todas las leyes normales de kashrut se aplican en Pesaj con un requisito adicional: la prohibición de jametz en un hogar judío.
Que Es Jametz

Que es Jametz?

La sustancia prohibida, jametz, se define como la mezcla del grano de cualquiera de las cinco especies de cereales (trigo, cebada, avena, espelta y centeno) ...
Qu’est-ce que hamets?

Qu’est-ce que le hamets?

Le hamets est toute nourriture faite à partir des 5 espèces de céréales (blé, orge, avoine, épeautre, seigle) humidifiées, et cuites après 18 minutes.
Thèmes de la Pessah et du jeûne des premiers-nés

Thèmes de Pessah et du jeûne des premiers-nés

Ces trois concepts : liberté – rédemption - printemps interviennent ensemble dans les différents aspects de l’observance de Pessah.
Temas de Pesaj, Nisán, y el Ayuno de los Primogénitos

Temas de Pesaj, Nisán, y el Ayuno de los Primogénitos

Estos tres conceptos (libertad, redención y primavera) se combinan en diferentes aspectos de la observancia de Pesaj.
Omer Mixtape 2024: Week 7 Malkhut and Shekhina

Omer Mixtape 2024: Week 7 Malkhut and Shekhina

For the Omer Mixtape 2024: Week 7 Malkhut and Shekhina, Rabbi Jenna Stein Turow put together a playlist on this sefira of king and queendom.
Omer Mixtape 2024: Week 6 Yesod

Omer Mixtape 2024: Week 6 Yesod

For the Omer Mixtape 2024: Week 6 Yesod, Rabbi Jenna Stein Turow put together a playlist on the sefira of Yesod, bonding and integrity.
Omer Mixtape 2024: Week 5 Hod

Omer Mixtape 2024: Week 5 Hod

For the Omer Mixtape 2024: Week 5 Hod, Rabbi Jenna Stein Turow put together a playlist on the sefira of Hod, gratitude and humility.
Omer Mixtape 2024: Week 4 Netzach

Omer Mixtape 2024: Week 4 Netzach

For the Omer Mixtape 2024: Week 4 Netzach, Rabbi Jenna Stein Turow put together a playlist on the sefira of Netzach, endurance and confidence.
OMer Mixtape 2024: Week 3 Tiferet

Omer Mixtape 2024: Week 3 Tiferet

For the Omer Mixtape 2024: Week 3 Tiferet, Rabbi Jenna Stein Turow put together a playlist on the sefira of Tiferet, truth and balance.
Omer Mixtape 2024: Week 2 Gevurah

Omer Mixtape 2024: Week 2 Gevurah

For the Omer Mixtape 2024: Week 2 Gevurah, Rabbi Jenna Stein Turow put together a playlist on the sefira of Gevurah, strength.
Days of the Omer Playlist

Exploring Judaism’s Omer Playlist

Exploring Judaism's Omer playlist is meant to accompany you throughout the seven weeks leading up to Shavuot: Bring a bit more music to life!
Omer Mixtape 2024: Week 1 Chesed

Omer Mixtape 2024: Week 1 Chesed

Week one of the Omer focuses on the sefira of Chesed, lovingkindness. Rabbi Jenna Stein Turow explains her playlist focused on this theme.
Omer Mixtape 57842024

Omer Mixtape 5784/2024

The Omer Mixtape 5784/2024 counts the Omer using secular music as inspiration for spiritual reflection, connected to the weekly sefirah.
A Whoop and Two Challahs: Doubling Our Loaves on Shabbat

A Whoop and Two Challahs: Doubling Our Loaves on Shabbat

A whoop and two challahs! Learn why doubling our loaves on Shabbat is important and how to observe this mitzvah.
Reparations: The Difficulty and Bravery and Asking

Reparations: The Difficulty and Bravery of Asking

Look at reparations and the difficulty and bravery of asking, through the lens of slavery in Egypt, slavery in America, and the Holocaust.
What Can the "Push/Pull" of Purim Teach Us About Antisemitism

What Can the “Push/Pull” of Purim Teach Us About Antisemitism

What can the "push/pull" of Purim teach us about antisemitism? Esther teaches us a strategy that could help us find new ways to antisemitism.