Related Blog Posts on Arts and Culture and Yiddish

Judaism and the Jedi: What Do Darth Vader and Jewish Mystics Have in Common?

Rabbi P.J. Schwartz

“It’s true. All of it: The Dark Side, the Jedi. They’re real.”

These are the first words we hear from Han Solo, the former smuggler and member of the Rebel Alliance, in Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

It’s been almost 40 years since the original Star Wars film hit the big screen, but its stories in the theater, books, television, video games, and other media highlight themes that continue to resonate with us today.

In particular, the Star Wars mythology can be understood through a Jewish lens.

Yiddish, English, and the Languages of Our Lives

Mindy Leaf

I found myself looking over a list of words from my husband's first Yiddish class with growing unease. Rather than standard language lessons, the class featured more of a story-and-culture format, with sprinklings of Yiddishisms thrown in.

Why Some Jews Eat Chinese Food on Christmas

Rabbi Joshua Eli Plaut, Ph.D.
We all know that eating Chinese food on Christmas Eve is a sacred Jewish tradition! The origin of this venerated Christmas Jewish tradition dates back over 100 years to the Lower East Side of New York City.