The Meaning of ‘Semicha’
How did a word that means “leaning” become the way to describe the act of becoming a rabbi?
Jewish Word | Why We Say ‘Next Year in Jerusalem’
Seders all over the world this Passover will end with the words L’Shanah Ha Ba’ah b’Yerushalayim—“Next year in Jerusalem.”
From the Newsletter | The Russia-Ukraine War, Through the Lens of Vietnam
The spectacle of civilians—some armed, but most unarmed—becoming the target of Russian artillery, air power, tanks and automatic weapon fire in Ukraine has captured the attention of ordinary Americans.
Jewish Word | The Joyful Power of Hallelujah
In American culture, the word “hallelujah” is so associated with Christian prayer and music—and overall rejoicing and jubilation—that people often forget it is originally Hebrew.
An Interview with Nahum Barnea
In an exclusive interview with Moment senior editor George E. Johnson, Israel Prize-winning journalist Nahum Barnea offers fresh insights on how Naftali Bennett, Israel’s new Prime Minister, will govern and why it may be different in both method and substance from his predecessor and from what people may have assumed based on policy positions and priorities Bennett has espoused as a member of Benjamin Netanyahu’s inner circle. Barnea focuses on how President Biden’s long experience and record in Middle East politics presents opportunities for Israel in the years ahead regarding the region and Iran in particular, and why Bennett will depart from Netanyahu’s approach to seeking allies among Americans in general and among American Jews.
Jewish Word | The Mourner’s Kaddish
The Mourner’s Kaddish, a prayer with ancient roots that a person says upon the loss of a parent, sibling or spouse, is one of the most instantly recognizable Jewish prayers of all time.
When One’s Duty and the Right Thing are not the Same
A Jewish Vietnam Veteran looks back 50 years on the moral journey that changed his life.
Like a distant thunderstorm, at first unseen and unheard, the...
Jewish Word | Challah
The word “challah” made its first appearance more than 2,500 years ago.
Are We All Hasidim?
In a world in which any Jew is a potential target of anti-Semitism, it is the most visible Jews who are most threatened. Jews with black hats, with tight curls hanging down below their ears and black coats and women wearing modest head coverings, they are the most vulnerable. Jews in synagogues. In Brooklyn, as in Jersey City and Monsey, violence against individuals in their Hasidic communities is almost an everyday event. If someone wants to do harm to a Jew, Hasidic Jews and their communities are and have become easy targets.
Jewish Word | Shamash
n the 1946 film The Big Sleep, based on the Raymond Chandler mystery of the same name, Carmen—the promiscuous, drug-addicted younger sister of Lauren Bacall’s character—sizes up Philip Marlowe, played by Humphrey Bogart, and asks him, “What are you, a prizefighter?” Bogart responds, “No, I’m a shamus.” “What’s a shamus?” she inquires. “It’s a private detective,” he answers. Yes, Bogart is using the Yiddish version—more popularly spelled “shammes”—of the Hebrew word, “shamash.”
Talk of the Table | A Tu B’Shevat Seder for Mystics
The epigram, “They tried to kill us. We survived. Let’s eat!” sometimes serves as a tongue-in-cheek synopsis of Jewish holidays: Passover, for example, recounts the original Jewish survival story in an extended banquet punctuated by four cups of wine.
At the Wandering Que, Kosher Meets Texas Barbecue
About five years ago, we decided to do a one-time, five-day barbecue pop-up kosher restaurant. We served nearly 6,000 people in four days, and I realized then and there that I was onto something.