Category: Friday Evening

When the doors to the world reopen, I wonder, will I run to my next must-do?

To make Shabbat special, watch, read and listen to rich Jewish resources in your weekly Virtual Shabbat Box.

The Amidah section in my copy of This Joyous Soul is a sea of dog ears

Rabbinical school did not teach me about the energy within sacred text or ritual.

The tent is a physical reminder for us to take time to be close to our loved ones and to ourselves.

Every week seems to fly by faster than the one before it. As a result, it’s important to stop, slow down, and take time to reflect. Within the Jewish tradition this space to reflect is created on

Sometimes, the hardest thing about observing rituals is not choosing or creating the rituals themselves: it’s about making time for them. We may be super well-intentioned. We may crave the mindfulness and connections that come with a ritually engaged life. But the hectic pace of everyday schedules have a tendency to get in the way of even the best intentions.

It feels like a superpower: to know how to stop time, command presence with another being, and articulate the gift that says, “I see and love you. Keep going.”

My father brought a tradition to our Friday night dinners. It was an opportunity to convey his love and hopes for his children—in particular, the hope that Jewish values would be important to us.