Essays
A Non-Parting Party
Our sages explain the significance of Shemini Atzeret. Shemini Atzeret is the one-day festival that immediately follows the seven-day festival of Sukkot.
Read More
The Missing Festival
Other than a few parenthetical references, the Mishnah makes no mention of the story and laws of Chanukah. This explains why.
Read More
The Third Month: Being Beautiful
The third month of the Hebrew year, Kislev, has the potential to make us all beautiful.
Read More
The Month of Teves
Teves focuses us on the Temple from two angles. First, the end of Chanukah celebrates of the return to the Temple. And secondly, the fast day on the 10th of the month marks the siege against Jerusalem.
Read More
The Mudswamps of Hella
The Rebbe expounds on Channukah: The more you fight it, the deeper you sink, your every move counteracted by this noxious blend of water and soil….
Read More
The Angel and the Drunk
On Yom Kippur we fast and pray, on Purim we party. Yet the Zohar sees the two days as intrinsically similar.
Read More
Beyond Structure
Purim: It’s not our logic & plans that run the world but a higher force that may manifest in random experiences within which lies the greatest power of all.
Read More
A Singular People: Jewish Uniqueness
Purim celebrates the salvation of a singular people: Torah, the festivals, circumcision and tefillin are symbols of Jewish uniqueness.
Read More
A Roll of Dice: The Purim Lots
Purim derives its name from the lots cast by Haman. It is not some incidental detail but the single event that most expresses what Purim represents.
Read More
