Soul Food: A Guide to Food Blessings
Most positive mitzvahs (commandments) are associated with a bracha (blessing): lighting candles or saying kiddush over wine on Friday night for example. This also includes some necessary activities that are not commanded per se, such as eating food and safe travel or using the bathroom, for which we still thank G-d with a bracha either […]
Why Hanukkah Is Not Jewish Christmas
There’s no denying that Christmas has become a global, industrial-scale phenomenon, and so the source of dilemma for many Jewish people and other minorities in the West: to what extent to join in or even be accidentally included? However, Christmas is not a Jewish holiday by any stretch. Many Jewish businesses in the last century […]
Get Lit: All About Hanukkah Candles
Hanukkah lasts a total of 8 days, and on each evening one lights an extra candle so by the end of the holiday the menorah should have 8 flames. In the original history, the Jewish liberators of Jerusalem rededicated the Holy Temple that had been desecrated with Greek pagan practices. The process for this needed […]
How to Recite the Hanukkah Blessings
Before you get to the Hanukkah blessings, also called brachas in Hebrew, it is always good to have a reminder of when to include the blessings when lighting the Hanukkah menorah. Gather your household together and set your candles out right-to-left for the appropriate night (1 for the first night, 2 for the second, etc.). […]
