Celebrate

As Jews reclaimed the land long celebrated by Tu Bishvat and revived Jewish life on it, the holiday was again transformed.

The rabbis of antiquity used prohibitions to shape a Shabbat experience in which creative activity is set aside to make time for matters of the spirit. First of two parts.

The spiritual meaning behind the day of rest.

Shabbat observed at home is a day immersed in an atmosphere of rest, relaxation, and rejoicing.

In connecting the two, the Torah makes Shabbat a symbol of compassion and humane treatment for those in need of liberation.

The Bible itself is the source of the notion that Shabbat is a foretaste of the perfected world that is yet to come.

Same concept as the Ashkenazi one, different approach

Not all sources agree on the origins of the holiday.

Explaining the use and meaning of the Hanukkah lights.

When tradition is silent, symbolic explanations arise.

How did this Sukkot tradition develop?

This lively ancient Sukkot ritual included juggling and gymnastics.