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One of my favorite activities to bring to a classroom of elementary school-aged religious school students is a deceptively simple art project: "Draw a Jew." Easy, no? In fact, I encourage you to do so, even just in your own mind, as you read these words.

"A Seat at the Table" is a metaphor for the Chassidic adage that no matter what one has done to stray from the teachings of Torah he or she will not be abandoned by their family. This is similar to the sentiment expressed in Robert Frost's poem, "Death of the

Jewish women for almost five thousand seven hundred seventy years have struggled with a tradition that moved them into a life of modesty, early marriage and motherhood.

by Marc Rosenstein
(Originally published in Ten Minutes of Torah and Galilee Diary)

Blow the shofar on the new moon, on the full moon for our feast day, For it is a law for Israel, a ruling of the God of Jacob.
-Psalms 81:4-5

Shorashim is located on the west

You shall live in booths seven days; all citizens in Israel shall live in booths, in order that future generations may know that I made the Israelite people live in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt, I the Lord your God. -Leviticus 23:42-43

As an inveterate - my wife would say obsessive - participant in on-line discussions, list-servs, Facebook, and blogs, I was interested to learn in a recent thread on iWorship that not all Reform congregations follow the Torah reading protocol for Rosh Hashanah

by Marc Rosenstein
(Originally published in Ten Minutes of Torah and Galilee Diary)

In the seventh month, Ishmael son of Nethaniah son of Elishama, who was of royal descent and one of the king's commanders, came with ten men to Gedaliah son of Ahikam at Mizpah;

It's not as though I don't have any unread books on my bookshelf.  In fact, sometimes it feels as though most of them are unread and there's just no time to pluck one from the shelf, curl up and get lost in its pages.  Among my recent acquisitions still

by Marc Rosenstein
(Originally published in Galilee Diary and Ten Minutes of Torah)

These are the festivals of the Lord, holy convocations, which you shall proclaim at their proper time. -Leviticus 23:4

One of the things that many immigrants from