There is one person in the family who thoroughly embraces Purim, and that is my 8 year old boy. He always relishes the idea of getting dressed up. This year he is drawing on his experiences of his time in Israel. He wants to get dressed up as a religious rabbi and carry his new […]
Festivals
Read Hebrew Online
Wow, the Jewish community is the middle of such a busy period, so many festivals, so much praying, so much food – and so much Hebrew reading! If anyone asks me “why should I learn to read Hebrew?” I will say one word – festivals. The Jewish festivals revolve around prayer, praising G-d, and the […]
Shavuot – Learn Hebrew Online
As we approach Shavuot, the first thing that comes to mind is cheesecake and blintzes! After all, Shavuot is the festival where dairy is the primary food to eat, because it is also a harvest festival. But, there is indeed a more serious reason for celebrating Shavuot, and that it is z’man matan torateinoo, the […]
Pesach
Pesach is by far my favorite festival; the rituals, the beautifully set table, the songs and so much more. I’m lucky because my father taught me to read Hebrew. Having the Hebrew background makes the Seder so much more meaningful. The Hebrew readings in the Haggadah have a certain depth which isn’t found in English. […]
The Festival Of Purim
Purim, one of my not-so-favourite festivals. Oy! The noise of the noisemakers (graggers in Yiddish) – after a while it gets under my skin! BUT, if I take a step back and think about it, it is actually an extraordinary festival. To think that the evil Haman drew “purim” – “lots” to decide which date […]