Category Archives: Holidays and Feasts

Comfort, Comfort My People

Comfort, Comfort My People
Shabbat Nachamu is the Sabbath that follows Tisha B’Av, the day marking the destruction of the temple. Nachamu is the Hebrew word for comfort and so Shabbat Nachamu is also called the Sabbath of consolation. The passage read on this day of grief and reflection is Isaiah 40, starting, “Comfort, comfort my people.” After the destruction of the…
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Uncut Stone

Uncut Stone
The altar that was built, first in the tabernacle and then in the temple, was made of uncut stone. God commanded specific instructions on its design and use. The Biblical picture of atonement was being drawn and they were reminded with each sacrifice. …you shall build an altar to the Lord your God of uncut…
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New Life

New Life
There are plants in my yard that I thought were dead, but after ignoring them I found they had started to grow again. Maybe they were close to dead, or maybe they were just dormant. Seeds can look lifeless. But plant a seed, even after a thousand years, and it may still sprout. This is…
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Extra Time?

Extra Time?
February 29 is an odd occurrence. It’s a “make up” day to keep our seasons on track, as calculated on the Gregorian calendar. The Jewish calendar is tied more closely than ours to observational astronomy – the relative rotations of the earth, the moon the sun. Because days go from sunset to sunset, a day…
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