Religious Life

With the holiday of Sukkot beginning at sundown on Sunday, many families and congregations are busy erecting the holiday’s namesake hut — the sukkah. While its form is familiar, what is the deeper meaning of the fragile, temporary structure, and what does it represent? Why is this building different from all other buildings?

The day plays out much the same way every year, around when summer transitions into fall.

Parshat Ki Tavo, Deuteronomy 26:1–29:8

Parshat Shoftim, Deuteronomy 16:18–21:9

Long commutes are nothing new for those living in Los Angeles, but Rabbi Allison Lawton’s commute may look a little different than most.

Parshat Va’etchanan, Deuteronomy 3:23–7:11

Parshat Matot-Masei

"To whom shall I turn when the clouds of the present eclipse the rays of tomorrow?... I enter the sanctuary, again, to await the echo of your promise. — Rabbi Harold from “When I Cry”

Parshat Sh’lach Lecha, Numbers 13:2

Parshat Naso, Numbers 4:21–7:89

Parshats Behar-Bechukotai; Leviticus 25:1–26:2, Leviticus 26:3–27:34

Parshat Acharei-Kedoshim, Leviticus 16:1-20:27

Parshat Shemini, Leviticus 9:1–11:47

Passover

While I love Passover, I find breakfast the most challenging meal during the holiday of unleavened bread. Removing foods made with flour and grains from breakfast menus means digging deep into the creative side of my brain.

In the Friday night Kiddush we recite at the Shabbat table every week, there is a phrase that is puzzling at best, nonsensical at worst: “Blessed are You … Who has sanctified us ... gave us His holy Sabbath … a remembrance of creation.” So far, so good. Observance of the Sabbath is a reenactment of creation, where the Creator worked on the world for six days and rested on the seventh. We, too, work for six days and rest on the seventh — a remembrance of creation. But then we continue, “For that day is … a memorial of the Exodus from Egypt.”

Preparing the Seder plate can seem overwhelming, but it needn’t be.

Parshat Vayakhel-Pikudei, Exodus 35:1–38:20

Parshat Ki Tisa, Exodus 30:11–34:35

Parshat Ki Tisa, Exodus 30:11–34:35

In keeping with the spirit of Purim, perhaps the most irreverent of Jewish holidays, the Chabad of the East Valley’s CTeen program is going to bake what it is dubbing “America’s Largest Hamantash” on Feb. 27. Though Jewish News was unable to confirm if the hamantashen will be the largest in the U.S., with an estimated cooked weight of at least 11 pounds, it’s safe to say it will be one huge pastry.

Just one week after passing a controversial law criminalizing phrases indicating Polish responsibility for crimes against Jews during the Holocaust, Poland’s ruling party has sponsored a new bill including a clause that would criminalize kosher meat slaughter. If the law is passed, anyone found guilty of slaughtering animals in accordance with traditional Jewish practice would face a prison sentence of up to four years.

After many long hours of fundraising and more than a year of construction work, the Phoenix Mikvah held its grand opening this past weekend. Members of the greater Phoenix community were able to tour the new state-of-the-art facility and learn more about it. Guests in attendance — most of them from Orthodox congregations — came from all over to celebrate.