As any bar or bat mitzvah celebrant can explain, the haftarah is a passage (or passages) selected from among the prophets, and chanted on Shabbat, holy days, and festivals, following the prescribed ...

The custom of reading the Haftarah, originated in Israel. The Haftarah is taken from the section of Navi and read on the actual Shabbis that its Prophesy was revealed (historically). The Haftarah was ...

The two parashot Acharei Mot and Kedoshim are invariably combined in non-leap years (as this year 5780 is), and invariably read separately in leap years. But there is something unique about this ...

The Torah portion of Ki Teitzei is the sixth parasha in the book of Deuteronomy (Devarim). It is a continuation, in its entirety, of Moshe Rabbeinu's farewell speech to the nation. This Torah portion ...

One of this country’s most incisive theological sources is The Onion. A few years ago, it featured a story accompanied by two photos. The first was a beautiful, idyllic pastoral scene; the second was ...

Two new mobile apps are poised to revolutionize bar/bat mitzvah preparation, and possibly the whole practice of learning to chant Torah. This week, Rabbi Charlie Schwartz and Russel Neiss — Jewish ...

This year, January 18 will mark 74 years since my Bat Mitzvah. I am considering relearning my Haftarah to celebrate the 75th ...

“The wolf shall live with the lamb and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them” Isaiah 11:6 ...

This haftarah is the one exception” (Divrei Hashkafa, p. 30-34). Amos, an early prophet, does not mince words in calling out the thievery and corruption that had overtaken the kingdom of Israel, with ...

In case you’ve ever wondered why services for the High Holy Days are so boring, you can blame the prophet Joel: The people purify themselves – and then they stand there. And stand there. And stand ...

This week’s haftarah (Isaiah 51:12-52:12), the fourth of the Seven Haftarot of Consolation read after Tisha B’Av, speaks with piercing clarity to the challenges confronting Israel and the Jewish ...

King David’s final words are not a farewell. They are a summons. A summons to responsibility, to faith and to moral resolve.