Shavuot

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Sharona Margolin Halickman

Feb 4, 2025, 8:05 PM

All of Israel are friends

In the first verse of Parshat Beshalach, Shmot 13:17 we read: When Pharaoh sent away the people, God did not lead them by the way of the land of the Plishtim although it was the shortest route; for God said,...

Jun 13, 2024, 11:17 PM

Marriage Lessons from the Sotah and Shavuot

The topic of marriage has become a dominant theme in this week’s holiday observance of Shavuot as well as this week’s Torah portion of Naso and has implications for the trials and tribulations that we as a nation are...

Jun 12, 2024, 2:10 AM

Shavuot? I’ll have to give you a rain check

Shavuot 2023, Kibbutz Nirim (Adele Raemer)

I can't celebrate this harvest holiday if I'm not home on my kibbutz rejoicing with those brutally torn from us on Oct. 7

Jun 11, 2024, 8:03 PM

Are We Moving Towards or Away From Sinai? Shavuot 5784

It was exactly a year ago, on the eve of Shavuot that the last of the Eyn Samia shepherding community finished dismantling their homes and fled their homes because of State backed settler violence. Since then, another 20 communities...

Walter G. Wasser

Jun 11, 2024, 6:34 PM

Talmudic Wisdom on Projection and Psychology

As we celebrate Shavuot, a festival commemorating the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai, it's fitting to reflect on the enduring wisdom of our ancient texts and how they continue to illuminate our understanding of human nature. One...

Shayna Goldberg

Jun 11, 2024, 6:31 PM

Torah, my anchor

As strong winds blow from all directions And stormy waters toss us back and forth, It is easy to feel untethered and lost. Sometimes we float aimlessly, Looking for direction, A captain to steer us and make us feel safe. Other times we feel like...

Jun 11, 2024, 6:27 PM

Secrets of Shavuot 2

In my first essay on Shavuot, I pointed out that the Hebrew name “Shavuot” means “weeks” and that the command to observe it as a holiday is in Exodus 34:22; Deuteronomy 16:9, 10, and 16; and Leviticus 23:15 and...

Jun 11, 2024, 4:15 PM

This Shavuot: A time of reckoning

'Moses Receiving the Tablets of Law,' by Chagall, 1966. (Wikimedia Commons)

If we look to the Torah for why we do what we do, then we must make sure that the outcomes of those actions promote peace, compassion and human perfection

Jun 11, 2024, 11:53 AM

The Book of Ruth: A counter-midrash

FOREWORD In anticipation of Shavuot, I taught a couple of classes about the Book of Ruth. In one, I focused on how the rabbis demonized Orpah for leaving Naomi and choosing the gods of Moab over the true God who...

Jun 11, 2024, 7:39 AM

Shavuos: The Lifting of The Veil

Shavuos is not merely the anniversary of the day 3336 years ago when we received the Torah on Mount Sinai. The Sages teach that every year on this date, we receive the Torah anew. In this sense, Shavuos is...

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