5 Things to Avoid on Yom Kippur in Favor of a Spiritual Workout
To devote ourselves to an accurate accounting of the soul, it is customary to refrain from five specific activities related to our bodies on Yom Kippur.
A New Beginning and a Chance to Become Our Better Selves
During the 10 days of repentance and especially on Yom Kippur, we struggle with ourselves, shedding our flaws and the parts of our spirit that detract from our holiness.
Please Join Us, But Not Just on the Days of Awe
We want you to come to High Holiday services, but we want you to come back, too -- when it’s less crowded and when we can welcome you and show you what we’re all about.
Returning to the People – and the Parents – We Want to Be
I don’t want to raise my children in a home with yelling. And yet, when I slip in a way that’s human and understandable, I fail both myself and my children.
The Enemy Within: Taking Action Against Sexual Assault
Sexual violence is a denial of the Jewish belief in the fundamental dignity of every individual and an abhorrent violation of the sanctity and wholeness of the body and health of another person.
JewV’Nation Fellowship Focus: Deborah Fishman
Deborah Fishman is the founder of FED: curated, four-course dinner parties that feature a themed performance or talk: “It’s like TED, but you get fed.”
Listening as a Way to Refine and Renew our Soul Power
When I’m seeking an emotional reaction at this difficult moment in history, I listen to music, including specific pieces by Leonard Bernstein and Aaron Copland.
A Poem for Tashlich: “Stale Bread and Old Sins”
Tashlich (to cast), a ritual practice of Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jews, customarily takes place on the afternoon of Rosh HaShanah near a natural body of water.
On the Virtue of a Bent Finger: A Challenge for the Days of Awe
At recent years’ Days of Awe services, I could swear I saw index fingers popping out all over the place – fingers of accusation, not of ownership or responsibility.
A Bit of Israeli Cuisine in Philadelphia
I caught up with Chef Michael Solomonov, James Beard Award-winner for best Mid-Atlantic chef, to talk about the defining influences that shaped his career as a chef.