Beyond the Exodus from Egypt
Apr 15, 2016 By Arnold M. Eisen | Commentary | Shabbat Hagadol | Pesah
Most of us, at one time or another, have asked the question about the Passover seder that the Haggadah attributes to the “wicked son”: What is the point of all this? At such moments of skepticism, we probably understand why an annual family gathering is worthwhile, we perhaps remember fondly the seders of our youth, and we may even confess to being moved by the rituals reenacted at the seder table year after year: reciting the four questions, dripping wine from cup to plate at the recital of the ten plagues, singing Had Gadya. But really, we ask: Why is the event of Israelite slaves leaving Egypt over 3,000 years ago (if it ever happened in the first place) so important that an entire holiday is devoted to it (not to mention countless daily prayers)?
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Confronting Our Own Shortcomings
Aug 9, 2011 By Andrew Shugerman | Commentary | Text Study | Tishah Be'av
It may sound strange that I look forward every summer to observing Tish’ah Be’Av. The saddest day on the Hebrew calendar is also the one I have found most consistently meaningful since my teenage years.
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Purim: The Triumph of Understanding Over Hatred
Feb 12, 2013 By The Jewish Theological Seminary | Podcast or Radio Program | Purim
Taken from the archives of “The Eternal Light” radio program, this 1954 commentary on Purim is delivered by Murray Bellow, a noted civic leader of the time.
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Little Purim
Feb 12, 2013 By The Jewish Theological Seminary | Podcast or Radio Program | Purim
A 1951 episode of “The Eternal Light” radio program about a boy and his violin on Purim.
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Elijah at the Seder Table
Apr 7, 2001 By Ismar Schorsch | Commentary | Shabbat Hagadol | Tzav
The Shabbat just prior to Passover is known as the Great Sabbath, Shabbat ha-Gadol.
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Memory: Judaism’s Lifeblood
Mar 2, 1996 By Ismar Schorsch | Commentary | Purim
My father died 14 years ago. This week I will observe his Yahrzeit once again.
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A Message for 9/11
Sep 17, 2001 By Ismar Schorsch | Commentary | Rosh Hashanah
When the high priest in the days of the Temple emerged from the Holy of Holies on Yom Kippur, he intoned a special prayer for those inhabitants of ancient Israel who lived at heightened risk from natural catastrophes, that “their homes might not become their graves.”
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Yom Hasho’ah: Documents From the JTS Library and Songs by Johanna Spector
Apr 28, 2014 By Library of the Jewish Theological Seminary | Public Event audio | Yom Hashoah
Dr. Johanna Spector (1915–2008), who taught Ethnomusicology at JTS, was a Holocaust survivor who documented Jewish music from around the world. This special Holocaust Memorial Day commemoration will highlight her life and work, as well as The JTS Library’s Johanna Spector Archives and Holocaust-related materials.
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