Tag: Israel

They're Home and We are Starting the Torah Anew

They’re Home and We are Starting the Torah Anew

We are preparing to conclude our high holiday season with Simchat Torah – the celebration of completing the Torah reading cycle. One of the curious ...
October 13, 2025 Holidays Israel

Standing Together for Israel: Parshat Vayeilech

In Parshat Vayeilech, as Moshe addresses the people of Israel, we think about the land and the state as well, and discuss standing together.
October 3, 2025 Parashat Vayelech Parashat Vayelech Dvar Torah
Action and Responsibility: The Lessons of Noah

Action and Responsibility: The Lessons of Noah

Our test is not just about personal survival or individual righteousness — it's about collective action and shared responsibility. 
February 10, 2025 Parashat Noach Parashat Noach Dvar Torah
Haftarah for Va-yiggash

Haftarah for Va-yiggash

The haftarah connects to the parashah through the reconciliation of the twelve brothers and the prophecy of a reunited Israel.
December 1, 2024 Ezekiel Neviim (Prophets)
Reflections on Death (1973)

Reflections on Death (1973)

Heschel writes in 1973 in "Reflections on Death": Life here and now is the task. Every moment can be an achievement.
September 22, 2024 CJ Journal - 1945-1959 Confronting Death
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.
September 20, 2024 CJ Journal - 1945-1959 Conservative Judaism Journal
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. 
September 20, 2024 Holidays Observing Sukkot
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"
June 30, 2024 CJ Journal - 1945-1959 Conservative Judaism Journal
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.
May 19, 2024 Holidays Israel
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.
May 9, 2024 Holidays October 7th and Israel-Hamas War

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.
May 9, 2024 Holidays October 7th and Israel-Hamas War
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.
May 9, 2024 Holidays October 7th and Israel-Hamas War
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.
May 9, 2024 Holidays Torat HaShaah
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.
April 15, 2024 October 7th and Israel-Hamas War Passover
Being a Conservative Jew in Jerusalem

A Conservative Jew in Jerusalem

What is it like being a Conservative Jew in Jerusalem and how do we understand the holiness of the holiest place in the world?
December 26, 2023 Conservative Judaism Israel
Psalms for this Time of Crisis in Israel

Psalms for this Time of Crisis in Israel

Seven psalms as a liturgical response to our individual and collective emotions, including grief, fear, rage, desperation, and others.
October 19, 2023 Hebrew Bible Israel

Hearts Broken But We Will Keep Living

Amidst the heartbreak over the war in Gaza, appreciating our lives and feeling joy is an act of resistance and affirmation of life.
October 18, 2023 Israel Living

Prayer for Israel

Rabbis Nicole Guzik and Erez Sherman offer a prayer for Israel. This was first offered at a vigil on October 8th, 2023.
, October 13, 2023 Israel Living
Prayer for kidnapped israelis

Prayer for Kidnapped Israelis

A prayer for kidnapped Israelis by Hamas and are being held in Gaza.
October 13, 2023 Israel Living
Prayer for Simchat Torah War

Prayer for Simchat Torah War

Prayer for Simchat Torah War by The Rabbinical Assembly of Israel and Masorti Israel.
, October 13, 2023 Israel Living
Prayer for the Welfare and Return of Israel’s Captured and Missing

Prayer for the Welfare and Return of Israel’s Captured and Missing

Prayer for the Welfare and Return of Israel's Captured and Missing by the Rabbinical Assembly of Israel and Masorti Israel
, October 13, 2023 Israel Living
Talking to Kids About Israel (October 2023)

Talking to Kids About Israel (October 2023)

Rabbi Rebecca Rosenthal offers some wisdom on how to talk to children of all ages about what is happening in Israel in an appropriate way.
October 13, 2023 Children Israel
Violence in Israel: Self-Care and Mental Health

Violence in Israel: Self-Care and Mental Health

The bombing at Hebrew University was a transition moment in my life. I got by for about a month and then started to break down. ...
October 9, 2023 Interpersonal Interactions Israel

Exploring Judaism and the Crisis in Israel

October 9th, 2023 In the two years since we launched, Exploring Judaism has significantly impacted the Conservative/Masorti presence on the internet. We have worked to ...
October 9, 2023 Exploring Judaism Blog Israel
Encountering the Shema: 7 Questions

Encountering the Shema: 7 Questions

Rabbi Mordecai Miller reflects on the Shema with 7 questions: Throughout my life, I’ve tried to understand what this sentence really means.
January 25, 2023 Every Day Liturgy
Hanukkah: History and Context

Hanukkah: History and Context

What is Hanukkah's historical context? What does it actually commemorate? Who was Judah and the Maccabees?
, November 30, 2022 Hanukkah Holidays
Yom HaShoah, Yom HaZikkaron, Yom Haatzma'ut, and Yom Yerushalayim

Yom HaShoah, Yom HaZikkaron, Yom Haatzma’ut, and Yom Yerushalayim

What are the commemorative holidays of Yom HaShoah, Yom haZikkaron, Yom Haatzma'ut, and Yom Yerushalayim and what do we do on them?
April 25, 2022 Holidays Yom Haatzma'ut