Educational Resources

Holiday Insight: Passover

Passover (Hebrew: פֶּסַח Pesach) commemorates the story of the Exodus, in which the ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt. Passover begins on the 15th day of the month of Nisan in the Jewish calendar, which is in spring in the Northern Hemisphere, and is celebrated for seven or eight days. We retell the story of Passover as if we ourselves were slaves and are now free. On the second night of the holiday, we begin counting the days to Shavuot, the holiday in which we as a nation, were ready to receive the Torah.

Fun facts:

• Passover is one of the three main holidays (Passover, Shavuot, and Sukkot) where during the time of the Holy Temple people would journey to Jerusalem to join together to celebrate.
• Not only do some people have a cup for Elijah at their seder, they also have one for Miriam, Moses’s older sister.
• There are more than 10 different kinds of matzah.
• There is a running theme of 4 at the seder: 4 cups of wine, 4 questions, 4 sons.
• Seder night is the only night that we are commanded to tell our children the story of our redemption ourselves. This cannot be fulfilled by anyone else!

Passover Recipe

Below are the recordings from 11^th Mitzvah, a learning initiative for lay leaders, on the texts related to Passover.   You can also read the Lesson and Reflections Booklet from those sessions for more insights.

Session 1: Video and Audio
Session 2: Video and Audio
Session 3: Video and Audio

You can watch Jennifer Rudick Zunikoff’s video “Mr. Moses” here. 

Make sure to check out our library as well for lots of Passover related books, movies and Haggadot available to borrow.

Holiday Insight:  Shavuot

The festival of Shavuot (or Shavuos, in Ashkenazi usage; Shabhuʿoth in Classical and Mizrahi Hebrew Hebrew: שבועות, lit. “Weeks”) is a Jewish holiday that occurs on the sixth day of the Hebrew month of Sivan (late May or early June). Shavuot commemorates the anniversary of the day G-d gave the Torah to the entire Israelite nation assembled at Mount Sinai, although the association between the giving of the Torah (Matan Torah) and Shavuot is not explicit in the Biblical text. The holiday is one of the Shalosh Regalim, the three Biblical pilgrimage festivals. It marks the conclusion of the Counting of the Omer.

Shavuot literally means “weeks”. We count 7 weeks from Passover, which commemorates our physical Exodus from slavery, to Shavuot, which commemorates our spiritual commitment at the foot of Mt Sinai. It is there that we received the Torah as a unified people and acknowledge that the Torah was given to all Jewish people for all time.

Ideas and Resources for Shavuot Study
1.    Read the Book of Ruth. The story connects us to our roots as an agricultural people and reminds us to take care of the stranger among us. You can access the text to the book of Ruth in Hebrew and English here. But don’t stop there! Play around on the Sefaria website and you can read any text there! Find yourself a study partner (Child? Spouse? Neighbor? and study away!)

2.    Review the Ten Commandments! Like Sefaria in the paragraph above, Mechon Mamre is another great source for Hebrew and English text. Think about the commandments and their implications for you today. This article can stimulate your thinking about their modern relevance.

3.    Study from amazing online educators!

• Pardes is a non-denominational learning community based in Jerusalem where students grapple with classic texts. Check out the Pardes online learning site where you can study about Shavuot with their faculty.
• Rabbi David Fohrman offers a unique visual presentation and seeks to help viewers uncover personal layers of meeting in text. Challenge your perception of Shavuot here.
• Various Reform Rabbis and educators share their encounters with sacred text in video and with study guides for Shavuot here.
• Rabbi Mishael Zion is the Director of Education for the Bronfman Youth Fellowships and the author of the blog “text and the city”. He has this study guide for Shavuot. Rabbi Mishael Zion is the Director of Education for the Bronfman Youth Fellowships and the author of the blog “text and the city”. He has this study guide for Shavuot.

4.    Discover your roots! One of the reasons we read the Book of Ruth is that King David is her direct descendent. Shavuot is also one of the holidays during which we recite the yizkor prayer to remember family members who have passed away. You can learn about your own Jewish lineage on this website.

5.    Take a virtual tour of Jerusalem! Shavuot is one of three pilgrimage holidays (in addition to Passover and Sukkot). In ancient times, Jews traveled to Jerusalem for each of these holidays. The experience in Jerusalem was one of unity and joy. The establishment of the State of Israel created a unique bond between the people working the land and this holiday. Check out this article about the history of flower crowns in Israel and remember to beautify your house with flowers!

Holiday Insight:  Rosh Hashana

What you should know about Rosh Hashanah

Paper Mosaic Rosh Hashana Card

Tashlich Card

Holiday Insight:  Yom Kippur

Yom Kippur (Hebrew: יוֹם כִּפּוּר or יום הכיפורים), Also known as Day of Atonement, is the holiest day of the year for the Jews. Its central themes are atonement and repentance. Jews traditionally observe this holy day with a 25-hour period of fasting and intensive prayer, often spending most of the day in synagogue services. Yom Kippur completes the annual period known in Judaism as the High Holy Days (or sometimes “the Days of Awe”).

Jonah Book

Holiday Insight:  Sukkot

Sukkot (Hebrew: סוכות or סֻכּוֹת, sukkōt, or sukkos, Feast of Booths, Feast of Tabernacles) is a Biblical holiday celebrated on the 15th day of the month of Tishrei (late September to late October). It is one of the three biblically mandated festivals Shalosh regalim on which Jews were commanded to make a pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem.

Build a wind chime for Sukkot

Holiday Insight: Chanukah

• The word Chanukah in Hebrew means dedication.
• Maoz Tzur/Rock of Ages is traditionally sung during Chanukah after lighting the candles.
• The original Menorah in the Holy Temple had 7 spots for oil, where the one we light today has 9 including the Shamash – helper candle.
• The dreidel in Israel has the Hebrew letters for the words Nes Gadol Haya Poh- a great miracle happened here) where in every other part of the world the dreidel has the Hebrew letters for Nes Gadol Haya Sham (a great miracle happened there).
• The Hebrew word for donut is sufganiya, and the Hebrew word for latke is leviva.
• Chanukah is about Pirsumei Nisa – publicizing the miracle. Many people light their Chanukah candles in their windows or even outside to publicize the religious freedom that was won by the Maccabees for the Jewish people.

Chanukah Blessings and Songs

Chanukah Recipe

Dreidel instructions

Holiday Insight:  Purim

Purim is celebrated with abandon, in a riot of colorful costumes, with noisemakers during the reading of the Scroll of Esther (the megillah), food and drink, and the giving of tzedakah. Purim originated in the 4th C in the Persian Empire, when the evil Haman convinced the King Achashverosh to kill all the Jews. The king’s new wife, Esther, is the heroine and saves the day and the Jewish community. This reversal of fortune sets the tone for a topsy turvy holiday.

Hamentachen Card