JVO Blog

A Halachic View of ‘Freedom of Religion’

Posted on 12/24/2019 by Rabbi Ben Hecht in Holidays

It’s Chanukah time and Jews, around the world, are again celebrating this holiday which is said to mark our nation’s freedom from the tyranny of the Syrian-Greek overlords who controlled the land...

Oh NO, Not Another Hanukkah Article!

Posted on 12/08/2019 by Moshe Daniel Levine in Holidays

About a month ago I was ordering a latte at a local coffee shop. The barista, a 40ish year-old man, asked if I minded a quick question about Judaism. “Of course” I responded, always excited to...

The Hidden Irony of Chanukah Decorations

Posted on 11/21/2019 by Rivkah Lambert Adler in Holidays

Every year around this time, Jewish people begin to comment on social media about the availability, or lack of availability, of Chanukah decorations, Chanukah stamps, menorah-shaped cookies, Maccabee...

Sukkot by Dani Shira Plung

Posted on 10/18/2019 by Guest Blogger in Holidays

Last Sukkot—which fell at the end of September, by the Gregorian calendar—I went home, to my childhood house, in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh, where my parents still live. There are...

History, Memory, and Sukkot

Posted on 10/17/2019 by Moshe Daniel Levine in Holidays

One of the central dialectics within Judaism is the interplay between history (what actually happened) and memory (what events are embedded into our national consciousness). It is clear that the historical...

Guess Who’s Building A Sukkah? A JVO Photoblog

Posted on 10/16/2019 by Rivkah Lambert Adler in Holidays

NOTE: Please don't be discouraged by the image formatting in this post. The content has the potential to completely change your paradigm about Sukkot.On erev Sukkot, the Jerusalem Post’s lead...

Justin Trudeau did T'Shuvah

Posted on 10/06/2019 by Moshe Daniel Levine in Holidays

In a few day’s time millions of Jews will gather in synagogues across the globe praying for forgiveness. We have sinned throughout the year. Sinned against God. Sinned against our fellow humans. And...

Jewish Training Wheels

Posted on 10/06/2019 by Marcia Goldlist in Holidays

On Rosh Hashana, at one of our meals, an interesting question was posed. Why do we have so many holidays bunched together: Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur and Sukkot? Would it not be more effective to have them...

Praying to Avoid Embarrassment

Posted on 10/02/2019 by Rabbi Yaakov Bieler in Holidays

Praying to Avoid Embarrassment In the prayer that is offered by the congregation between Shacharit and Musaf, on the Shabbat prior to the advent of a new Jewish month, commonly known as “Birchat...

The Question

Posted on 09/26/2019 by Rabbi Ben Hecht in Holidays

The Value of the Question The Torah reading for the Second Day of Rosh Hashanah is the powerful account of the Akeidat Yitzchak [the Binding of Isaac] (Bereishit 22:1-19). We are told how God commanded our...

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