Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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Hebrew is one of the oldest spoken languages in the world and the sacred language of the Jewish people. It is the only language ever to be revived as a spoken language - nearly 2,000 years after it ceased being one. A Brief History of Hebrew Hebrew was the language spoken in biblical times by the ancient Israelites. One of the original names for this language, and the one it is called today, is ivrit, because it is the language spoken by a people called the ivrim, or the Hebrew people. But it...
Passover, the annual celebration of the Exodus from Egypt, is one of Judaism’s most beloved holidays — and also the one that requires the most preparation. The Torah teaches that one should remove leaven or hametz (understood by Jewish tradition to mean food that is made from one of five forbidden grains and food that has been fermented) from one’s home — it should neither be seen nor found in one’s possession. Traditionally, Jews attempt to clean all the leaven from their homes, chasing out the cracker crumbs and stray Cheerios wherever...
Passover is one of Judaism’s most beloved holidays — but it can also be one of the most expensive. Passover requires a menu that avoids all hametz (leavened products) and often necessitates the purchase of many new foods that are certified kosher and free of hametz. Jews also attend one or two seders — elaborate festive meals with multiple courses. Complying with Passover rules of kashrut alone can present a financial burden, as many Jews find themselves in need of purchasing one or two extra sets of dishes or cooking utensils, or other...
Oy vey! - also: Oy vavoy! Oy vey iz mir! Oy gevalt! Or quite simply: Oy! - is an iconic Jewish expression that conveys the weariness of a people overly familiar with hardship and oppression, as well as the resilience of a people that finds hope and sometimes even humor in catastrophe. It's both heavy and light. It's tragic and funny. It's so much better with a thick Yiddish accent. But where did it come from? The word "oy" goes back thousands of years, all the way to the Hebrew Bible. In that cl...
Jewish tradition is opposed to magic, divination, and sorcery. Exodus 22:18 reads: "You shall not allow a witch to live." And Deuteronomy 18:10-11 is more elaborate: "Let no one be found among you who consigns his son or daughter to the fire [i.e. who offers their child as a sacrifice, as some neighboring religions did], or who is an augur, a soothsayer, a diviner, a sorcerer, one who casts spells, or one who consults ghosts or familiar spirits, or one who inquires of the dead." Magic of this...
The Jewish tradition of leaving stones or pebbles on a grave is an ancient one, and its origins are unclear. It is a custom or tradition, rather than a commandment, and over time many interpretations have been offered for this practice. Common explanations for this custom include: • Warning To Kohanim (Jewish Priests) During the times of the Temple in Jerusalem, Jewish priests (kohanim) became ritually impure if they came within four feet of a corpse. As a result, Jews began marking graves w...
Tisha B’Av, the ninth day of the month of Av (which month coincides with July and/or August), is the major day of communal mourning in the Jewish calendar. Although a large number of disasters are said to have befallen the Jews on this day, the major commemoration is of the destruction of the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem in 586 B.C.E. and 70 C.E., respectively. Central to the observance of this day is fasting. Tisha B’Av Ideas & Beliefs Although the exact date of the destruction of each of the Temples — the ancient centers of Jewis...
Looking for a Judaism 101 book to start your Jewish learning? The most frequent emails we receive at My Jewish Learning are variations of this: “Help! I want to learn about Judaism, and I know almost nothing. Where do I start?” Although we joke that we should advise people to read every article on our site, the fact is that Judaism is a huge and overwhelming topic. And the problem is not a shortage of readily available information. Rather, it’s that there are so many articles, resources and books out there that it is difficult to know where...
The Jewish world has a longstanding aversion to tattoos. Even among largely secular Jews, the taboo against body ink remains powerful - a disinclination attributed both to the tattooing of concentration camp inmates during the Holocaust and the myth that tattooed Jews can't be buried in a Jewish cemetery. As tattooing has grown increasingly mainstream in recent years, some Jews have even embraced it as a way to honor ancestors tattooed by the Nazis. While some liberal Jews have taken a fresh...
For many Jews today, pets are beloved household members who are often considered part of the family. That is despite the commonly held perception that Jewish observance and pet ownership are incompatible. There is no Jewish prohibition against owning pets. And while we know of no studies on Jewish pet ownership, anecdotal evidence suggests that pet ownership is not uncommon among Jews, even in the Orthodox community. Today, some Jews have even created Jewish life cycle rituals and mourning...
Along with Passover and Sukkot, Shavuot is one of the three major Jewish pilgrimage festivals. It falls out precisely 49 days after the second day of Passover, a period of time known as the Omer, and marks the giving of the Torah to the Jewish people on Mount Sinai. Here are nine things you might not know about this springtime holiday. Shavuot is the holiday of Jewish paper-cutting Shavuot is a springtime festival, a period when the earth is coming into full bloom (in the northern hemisphere...
The “evil eye,” ayin ha’ra in Hebrew, is the idea that a person or supernatural being can bewitch or harm an individual merely by looking at them. The belief is not only a Jewish folk superstition but also is addressed in some rabbinic texts. The term is also sometimes used to describe evil inclinations or feelings of envy. In several pieces of Midrash, rabbis suggest that the evil eye played a role in various incidents in the Torah. For example, they say that Sarah cast an evil eye on Hagar while Hagar was pregnant, causing her to miscarry bef...
Making your own Haggadah is not just a money-saver, but also a great way to educate yourself about the Passover seder, add a unique twist to your seder and have a more meaningful and satisfying holiday. For generations, enterprising seder leaders have been sticking post-it notes in their favorite parts of existing Haggadahs, adding in photocopied readings or even cutting and pasting from multiple Haggadahs and combining it all in a looseleaf binder. The Internet makes the project of creating a...
With costumes, spiels and lots of drinking, Purim, which in 2021 starts at sundown on Thursday, February 25th, is one of Judaism's most raucous holidays. You might know about beautiful Esther thwarting evil Haman's plans, the custom of getting drunk and what hamantaschen are. But we're guessing there's a few things about this holiday that might surprise you. 1. Esther was a vegetarian (or at least a flexitarian). According to midrash, while Queen Esther lived in the court of King Ahasuerus, she...
Gragger - Pronounced GRAH-gur. Yiddish for "noisemaker." Graggers are used during the reading of the megillah (see below). When the reader speaks the name of Haman the congregation tries to drown out the evil name using noisemakers and booing. Hamantaschen - Pronounced HAH-mun-TAHSCH-un. Yiddish for "Haman's pockets," known in Hebrew as "oznay Haman" meaning "Haman's ears." A triangular cookie with a filling (typically jam or poppyseed) inside, traditionally eaten on Purim . Matanot l'evyonim -...
On the night of Nov. 9, 1938, synagogues, Jewish schools and Jewish-owned businesses were targeted in violent riots throughout Nazi Germany. This map shows many of the synagogues destroyed on Kristallnacht. At least 267 synagogues were burned down or destroyed in the pogroms, which is known as Kristallnacht, the “night of broken glass.” The map shows the extent of the damage. Jewish institutions and businesses were desecrated, torched and looted by Nazi paramilitary troops and civilian sym...
(MJL via JTA) — Here are some important Hebrew words and terms you may encounter over the High Holiday season. Akedah — Pronounced ah-keh-DAH. Literally “binding,” the Akedah refers to the biblical story of the binding of Isaac, which is traditionally read on the second day of Rosh Hashanah. Chag sameach — Pronounced KHAG sah-MAY-akh. Literally “happy holiday,” a common greeting on Rosh Hashanah and other Jewish holidays. Elul — Pronounced el-OOL (oo as in food). The final month of the Jewish calendar, it is designated as a time of reflect...
Question: Is there a reason we blow the shofar on Rosh Hashanah, and why don’t we use a trumpet or some other instrument? I know it’s traditional, but is there a reason that the shofar is so special? Answer: Well, I don’t want to toot the shofar’s horn too much, but it really is pretty special. Allow me to explain. In the Torah, we’re given a commandment that on the first day of the seventh month (Tishrei) “you shall observe complete rest, a sacred occasion commemorated with loud blasts.” (Leviticus 23:24) These loud blasts, or teruah, were...
The Torah tells us that Sarah, the matriarch of the Jewish people, laughed when told she’d give birth in her old age. Since that moment, it seems, Jews have continued laughing — at themselves and their predicaments, at each other, even at God. And beneath that laughter, and the humor that sparked it, lies the story of the Jewish people throughout the age. History Jewish humor as a genre got its start in 19th-century Eastern Europe, where Yiddish folk tales found the humor in the often-difficult everyday life of the shtetl (village). The gre...
Chanukah is one of the most widely celebrated Jewish holidays in the United States. But that doesn't mean there is nothing new to learn about this eight-day festival. From the mysterious origins of gelt to an Apocryphal beheading to Marilyn Monroe, we've compiled an item for each candle (don't forget the shammash!) on the Chanukah menorah. 1. Gelt as we know it is a relatively new tradition - and no one knows who invented it. While coins - "gelt," is Yiddish for coins, or money - have been part...
Passover is among the most celebrated of Jewish festivities, a time when families typically gather together from wherever they may be dispersed to engage in the ritual retelling of the exodus from Egypt. Circumstances don’t always allow for large gatherings, yet Jewish tradition tells us that we are still obliged to retell the story of our ancestors’ liberation. According to Maimonides, even if one is alone on the Seder night, he must ask himself the question: Why is this night different? At a time when many people may be celebrating the hol...
With costumes, spiels and lots of drinking, Purim, which starts at sundown on Monday, March 9, is one of Judaism's most raucous holidays. You might know about beautiful Esther thwarting evil Haman's plans, the custom of getting drunk and what hamantaschen are. But we're guessing there's a few things about this holiday that might surprise you. 1. Esther was a vegetarian (or at least a flexitarian). According to midrash, while Queen Esther lived in the court of King Ahasuerus, she followed a...
Chanukah is one of the most widely celebrated Jewish holidays in the United States. But that doesn't mean there is nothing new to learn about this eight-day festival. From the mysterious origins of gelt to an Apocryphal beheading to Marilyn Monroe, we've compiled an item for each candle (don't forget theshammash!) on the Chanukah menorah. 1. Gelt as we know it is a relatively new tradition - and no one knows who invented it. While coins-"gelt" is Yiddish for coins, or money – have been part o...
Shavuot, the "Feast of Weeks," is celebrated seven weeks after Passover (Pesach). Since the counting of this period (sefirat ha-omer) begins on the second evening of Passover, Shavuot takes place exactly 50 days after the (first) seder. Hence, following the Greek word for "fifty," Shavuot is also referred to sometimes as Pentecost. Although its origins are to be found in an ancient grain harvest festival, Shavuot has long been identified with the giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai. Shavuot in...
(My Jewish Learning via JTA)—How do you pronounce Chanukah? Is there a correct spelling for the holiday? Why does Chanukah last eight days? These are just some of the frequently asked questions about the Festival of Lights. Here are the answers to those and many more. How do you pronounce Chanukah? English speakers generally pronounce it HAH-nuh-kuh. However, some people prefer the Israeli pronunciation, which is khah-new-KAH. Is there a correct way to spell Chanukah? Chanukah is a Hebrew word, not an English one, and there is no standard t...
