Galilee Diary: Chanukah Gelt
Growing up in the Reform community in the US in the 50s and 60s, I remember the constant discussions of the Chanukah-Christmas dilemma. Was it possible to disengage Chanukah from the seasonal linkage to Christmas, and keep it somehow true to its roots? Or was it doomed to be "the Jewish answer to Christmas," which increasingly meant an orgy of shopping and materialism?
My Thanksgivukkah Anxieties
When I first heard the term “Thanksgivukkah”—the convergence of Chanukah and Thanksgiving—and that it was happening this year, I must admit that I became a little anxious because it brought back some of my interfaith marriage insecurities that I thought were long gone.
This Hanukkah, Light One Candle for the Rohingya People
Crises often continue long after they disappear from the headlines, and the ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya people in Burma is no exception.
12 Catchy, Modern Hanukkah Songs
8 Great Jewish Apps for Hanukkah
Need a last-minute Hanukkah present for the technology-lover in your life?
Eileh Ezkerah
Eileh Azkara (These I Remember) is the lament that recounts the martyrdom of ten rabbis during the Roman brutality of 2000 years ago.
8th Night for Ethan
Galilee Diary: Distance
Asher did not dispossess the inhabitants of Acco or the inhabitants of Sidon, Ahlab, Achziv, Helbah, Aphik, and Rehob. So the Asherites dwelt in the midst of the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land, for they did not dispossess them.
How to Host a Mahj Madness "Fun"draiser at Your Temple
Many Baby Boomers remember listening to the sounds of tiles clicking on their mother’s game tables and smelling the smoke wafting from their cigarettes. Usually a lovely lunch or snack was served by the hostess and the games went on for hours. This was the social world of Post WWII housewives.
Marilyn Monroe's Prayer Book is Up for Auction
The upcoming auction of Marilyn Monroe’s personal prayer book is making news. The siddur contains many pencil notations in the margins from when she was learning about Judaism