How do you celebrate Thanksgiving during a pandemic? The medical, financial, social and emotional challenges, coupled with the stresses we are experiencing within civil society, have made this a hard time to focus on our blessings. How can we express gratitude at a time of such difficulty? Somehow we must. Our country is not in…
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Holidays
Opinion
We need Thanksgiving more than ever this year
Americans are in desperate need of some common ground. That’s why, this year, Thanksgiving isn’t coming a day too soon. No matter our political views, our…
Parenting
Parenting through this pandemic Thanksgiving
There will be four people at my Thanksgiving table: my husband, my two children and me. They’re the same people I sit down to dinner with every night. And…
Recipe
Learn about Sigd with the flavors of Ethiopia
The holiday of Sigd originated with the Beta Israel, the Jews of Ethiopia, and has been recognized as a state holiday for all Israelis since 2008. This…
Torah
Adam and Eve and the problem of loneliness
The Torah column is supported by a generous donation from Eve Gordon-Ramek in memory of Kenneth Gordon. Bereishit Genesis 1:1–6:8 The holiday of Simchat…
Torah
Under the sukkah with the Rabbi of Chelm, the city of holy fools
The Torah column is supported by a generous donation from Eve Gordon-Ramek in memory of Kenneth Gordon. First day of Sukkot Leviticus 22:26–23:44 It’s the…
History
75 years ago, Holocaust survivors celebrated Sukkot on their own terms
The festival of Sukkot, which begins five days after Yom Kippur, is traditionally referred to as the time of our rejoicing. It is an upbeat, celebratory…
Religion
Bay Area Jews weigh pandemic risks: To gather under the sukkah or not?
For some, Sukkot is the first Jewish holiday during the pandemic that can be observed in a relatively normal way. After all, one of the holiday’s main…
Bay Area
In North Bay, fire and smoke disrupt an already unusual Yom Kippur
Rabbi Stephanie Kramer and her family were at home when they got the call to evacuate, just as Kol Nidre was ending on Sunday evening. “A very loud alert…