Sorrow and Hope

Biblical Feasts

Sweet Treats and Family Fun: The Delightful Traditions Surrounding Hanukkah

During the season when daylight is short in Israel and sheets of rain are accompanied by frigid winds, the holiday of Hanukkah (Festival of Lights) offers a welcome reprieve. For eight days, this lively holiday is filled with the warmth of light, the sweetness of festive foods and the joy of family time. Join me

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The Season of Our Rejoicing

Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles) commemorates the 40 years Israel wandered the desert en route to the Promised Land, living in temporary huts, or sukkot—with nothing but the faithfulness of God to provide for their daily necessities in a barren wilderness. Today, their descendants celebrate Sukkot according to God’s command, “You shall dwell in booths for

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Israeli Celebrations—Expressions of Joy, Sorrow and Hope

Israel’s Independence Day, Jerusalem. It is well past midnight, but the capital is more alive than ever. From the Old City to Jaffa Street—and all across the country—Israel celebrates. Standing on the crowded streets amid a thousand other revelers, it is easy to be swept up in the merriment. Foreigners and natives alike dance together

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Shavuot: The Torah, Mount Sinai and Ruth?

Each of the biblical feasts celebrated in Israel comes with its own set of Scriptural instructions, tried traditions and weird and wonderful customs. The Feast of Tabernacles signals seven joyous days of dwelling in temporary booths, and Purim (Feast of Esther) means dressing up in dazzling costumes. On Rosh HaShanah (Jewish New Year) the piercing

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From Rosh HaShanah to Sukkot: Three Weeks of the Holy, Joyous and Awesome

The rhythm of life in Israel is governed by an annual cycle of feasts. The year flows from Passover through Shavuot (Feast of Weeks) and on to Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles), infusing the everyday with the holy, joyous and awesome. Yet even amidst a calendar marked with times set aside to celebrate, the three-week period

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Sukkot – The Season of Our Joy

The rhythm of life in the Land of Promise is governed by a cycle of annual holidays, days set aside in the 12-month Israeli calendar to celebrate what Leviticus 23:1 calls, “The feasts of the Lord…” Some are solemn, dedicated to repentance and rededication. Others are more exuberant, a joyous celebration of God’s might, care,

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The Season of Miracles

Jews around world will soon be recounting the miraculous story of Hanukkah. The actual miracle of Hanukkah, however, depends on which historical source you consult. The extra-biblical Books of the Maccabees opt for the miracle of the military victory over the Seleucid Empire. Yet the Talmud (rabbinic commentary) relates another miracle. When the Temple was

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The God of Israel vs. the gods of the Age

Passover is the most widely celebrated of all Jewish festivals with the vast majority of Jewish people worldwide acknowledging the holiday in one way or another. This year, the festivities begin on Friday evening April 22 and end April 29. For the strictly observant, the routine activities of going to work or school and carrying

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Simchat Torah – Rejoicing with the Beloved

ChameleonsEye/shutterstock.com Thousands of years ago, King David poured out his passion for the Word of God in a skillful song. “Oh how I love Your Torah!” he sang, “It is my meditation all the day” (Ps. 119:97). Today, some three millennia later, the same heart of love still beats within the descendants of Israel’s famous

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The Biblical Feasts

{image_1}The Bible talks about a number of special holidays called ”feasts.” Today, these biblical feasts continue to be celebrated in Israel and around the world by Jewish people and an increasing number of Christians as well. Christians often refer to them as “Jewish” feasts, but what does the Bible say? “And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: “The feasts of the LORD, which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, these are My feasts”’” (Lev. 23:1–2).

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