Nineteen hundred years ago, the twenty-five thousand pupils of Rebbe Akiva all died in the days of the Omer between Pesach and Shavuot. This was a punishment for not treating each other with enough respect. The majority of the days Omer are in the month of Iyar. Thus Iyar is a time for us to work on improving respect for others.
A hallmark of all repressive regimes is book burning. One of the tragedies that we mourn on the 17th of Tammuz is the burning of the Torah – the ultimate repression of the ultimate “book.” Having trouble viewing this video? Please click below to see additional formats:
Pesach has matza, the Seder, the four cups of wine, "Ma nishtana.…" Succot has the Four Species and the succah. Shavuot, however, has no single identifying mitzva, no recognizable landmark in its scenery. Why?
With only a few days till the end of the Jewish year, shouldn’t we be breaking out the Champagne and the party hats? Please click below to see additional formats:
Have you ever noticed that from the Earth, the Sun and the Moon look exactly the same size? Is it just a coincidence? Maybe there's a deeper meaning to this?
The World was created in Tishrei with the “Big Bang.” The “Big Bang” gets quieter all the time – but you can still hear it humming its song… Please click below to see additional formats:
The three sons of Noach (Noah) represent three world views: "The world is what I can feel." "The world is what I can know." And "The world is more than I can know." Their three names reveal this.