A pandemic Passover without family? Not necessarily
Every year on Passover, Jews ask the same question that is at the heart of the recitation of the Haggadah during the seder: Why is this night different from all other nights? But this...
Pesach Sheni 2020
The holiday of Pesach (Passover), the most widely observed and celebrated Jewish holiday in America and the world, is approaching fast. This holiday is special for so many reasons, in part by the fact...
Welcome online faces to Passover ‘bruncheon’
This year, I’m not going overboard. I’m not even using my late mother’s dinner service for 20; instead, it’s plastic ware. Everything has changed in the era of corona, Passover included.
Yet we must celebrate...
Major Orthodox groups urge Jews to limit Passover prep to just the ‘essentials’
Leaders of six major Orthodox organizations released a joint statement on Monday asking Jews to limit preparations for Passover to only essentials as a further measure against the health threat presented by the coronavirus...
Colel Chabad aids Israel’s most at-risk during pandemic and ahead of Passover
Colel Chabad will distribute food stamps to an additional 30,000 families living below the poverty line, as approved by Israel’s Ministry of Welfare, in order to provide security for Israel’s most at-risk population during...
Orthodox Jewish leaders in Florida dissuade Passover visitors due to coronavirus
Ahead of Passover and deep into the coronavirus pandemic, Orthodox Jewish leaders and medical professionals in Florida have warned against an exodus of visitors from their homes to the Sunshine State to celebrate the...
A Talmud-based Passover tale for children
The Passover Mouse by Joy Nelkin Wieder, illustrated by Shahar Kober; Doubleday Books for Young Readers, 2020;ISBN 9781984-895530; 24 pages including author’s note and glossary; $17.99
Somewhere in Eastern Europe, in a little Jewish village, a...
Coronavirus outbreak forces American Jewish communities to reassess Purim festivities
Jews around the world are expected to gather in synagogues on Monday night to hear the story of Queen Esther and how the Jews of Persia were saved from annihilation.
That, however, was before the...
Who’s their favorite Purim person and why?
You may not find it surprising that Mordechai and Esther are the most popular in our (wildly unscientific) JNS “Favorite Purim Person” poll.
After all, Esther was a young orphan girl living in Shushan, the...
Purim, Adar, celebration and happiness!
In the United States and worldwide, Purim begins on the evening of Monday, March 9, and continues through the day of Tuesday, March 10. (Shushan Purim, celebrated in walled cities like Jerusalem, starts a...