Connect the Carob Eating Custom of Tu B'Shvat with Lag B'Omer

Carob fruit for Tu B'Shvat. But Carob fruit for Lag B'Omer? A fitting fruit if you ask me since on Lag B'Omer so many  Jews hailing from the Middle East honor the memory of Rabbi Shimon Bar-Yochai -- one of Rabbi Akiva's outstanding students and author of the Zohar. The carob connection is simple. Legend has it that he and his son hid from the Romans in a cave, where the two learned Torah for 13 years. The miraculous appearance of a carob tree and a spring of water next to the cave provided the nourishment they needed to survive.

Here's the next Tu B'Shvat/Lag B'Omer connection that I'm spinning in my head. Most of us are familiar with the Tu B'Shvat Seder -- a veritable fruit feast. Oddly enough, one of the Lag B'Omer customs practiced by Jews from Tunisia, Libya and Morocco is to hold a feast honoring Rabbi Shimon Bar-Yochai because Lag B'Omer was a memorable date in his life -- on this same date (not year) he became a certified teacher, got married and passed away.

And you thought this minor holiday is only marked by bonfires!


Carob tree photo credit

Connecting Shofar Blowing to Civilian Sirens

My mind goes back to last year when 20-year old cousin Michael spent his Spring semester at Tel Aviv University. "Wow!" he said. "What an unbelievable experience Israel Memorial Day is." He explained: "No sales, no barbecues, no merrymaking!" What he experienced was respect to the fallen, as the entire country came to a standstill with the sound of silence at the sound of the siren -- be it on the road or in the shuk.

This got me thinking. Shofar blowing. Sirens. Around the world, civil defense sirens warn against potential danger as well as sound "the all clear" signal. Israel has a special siren call in case of imminent attack or danger. Now let's connect the dots. During Biblical times the shofar was used as a way to mark the start of a war. Take a look at Joshua and the story of Jericho. The use of numerous shofarim was part of the battle plan.

Then and now, be it in Biblical Israel or the modern state, the shofar/siren was used for numerous purposes.   Back then, what better way to announce the beginning of Rosh Chodesh or to usher in Rosh Hashanah -- the New Year? During the First and Second Temples the sound of the shofar was incorporated with trumpet blowing to signal special occasions and ceremonies. Little wonder that the Chief Rabbi of the Israel Defense Forces -- Shlomo Goren -- made sure to blow the shofar at the Wailing Wall when Israel recaptured Jerusalem's Old City during the Six Day War.

Today? Aside from civil defense purposes and silent commemorative moments on Yom Hashoa and Yom Hazikaron, sirens are sounded every Friday to signal the beginning of Shabbat. A new custom? Not at all.  When the Jews returned (to Israel) from exile in Babylonia, a  priest blew the shofar to signal the people that it's time to stop work and get ready for Shabbat. Travel to the Jewish community living in the island of Djerba off the coast of Tunisia, and you'll find a living example of this custom.

Time for a shofar blowing class or competition?
Think about it and have a Shabbat Shalom.


Shofar blowing photo credit
Siren photo credit

Origins & Customs of Yom Hashoah

It's always fascinating to find out why specific dates are chosen for memorial holidays. Yom Ha'shoah is a good example. Is there an obvious date for remembering this horrific carnage which lasted so many years? While some voted for Tisha B'Av when many other catastrophes occurred in Jewish history, the original plan was to hold Yom Ha'shoah on the 14th of Nisan -- the anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising (April 19, 1943), which this memorial in Warsaw symbolizes.

Sounds perfectly logical, but it didn't work. Who could stop, mourn and remember when the country was in full swing with Passover preparations? Let's not forget that the 15th of Nisan is the first day of Passover. To paraphrase a famous American quote: "Jerusalem, we have a problem." And boy, was it a problem! First Passover, then a mere 12 days after the last day of Passover, Israel Memorial Day. What to do? Obviously sandwich it in during this season of remembering. And so, in 1953 Israel's Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion and its President Yitzhak ben-Zvi passed a law stating that Yom Ha'shoah is to be celebrated on the 27th of Nisan.

Today, the official ceremony marking the day is held at sundown, at Yad Vashem's Warsaw Ghetto Plaza. The national flag is lowered to half mast and Holocaust survivors light six torches symbolizing the six million who perished.  Promptly at 10 a.m. the next morning a siren is sounded, and the entire country comes to a standstill (more on sirens next week).  All public entertainment places are closed. Ceremonies are held in schools, military bases and public institutions. Entertainment shows on TV and radio are put on "hold"as well, substituted by documentaries on the Holocaust and low-key songs.

"B-O-R-I-N-G?" Not at all. "M-E-A-N-I-N-G-F-U-L!" Especially in this day and age of existential threats to Israel's existence. Yom Ha'shoah is more than a time to remember. It's a day to reflect.


Warsaw Ghetto Memorial Photo Credit

My Theme for this Year's Seder: Social Protest

My late father had several wonderful Passover customs. I've already told you about his bringing home strangers to our seder table. Another custom of his was connecting the seder with current events. This is not a kiddie oriented custom, but let's face it -- adults also need a picker-upper so that they won't feel it's "same old, same old" when the Seder rolls around.

I've tried to continue this custom (sometimes successful, sometimes not) and this year I'm saying to myself, it's a no brainer. All the social protest that has been going on in Israel and America is a natural segue to the Haggadah and the story of Passover.

So that's my theme for this year and I'm going to do it through visuals that are going to prominently stand on the seder table -- without taking away from the significance of the seder plate, of course. To begin with, I'm going to make a a small hand-written poster shouting "Let My People Go." Next, if a picture is worth a thousand words, try these 4,000 words worth of pictures out for size.

Along with my hand written placard, this reminder to Pharaoh:

Seamlessly moving to current events, when today we're not slaves, but many of us are feeling downtrodden. Remember the social protests in Tel Aviv last summer on those sizzling, summer nights?

If you'd like to put up some photos with Hebrew protest banners, try this or another option.

Closer to U.S. shores, here are some images for you, especially if you feel you belong with the 99%:

Get the picture? This year the story of Passover and the reading of the Haggadah speak to us loud and clear. Give photos the opportunity of getting that message across.

Wishing all of you a meaningful and memorable Seder.


Egyptian Slaves Photo Credit
Tel Aviv Social Protest Photo Credit
99% Photo Credit
Wall Street Protest Photo Credit

Bring the Custom of "Kimcha d'Pischa" to Your Seder Table

This week I'm going to put fun Passover customs to the side and focus on a more serious tradition --  Kimcha d'Pischa.


This ancient custom is traced to the Jerusalem Talmud. Its literal meaning is "flour for Passover", which is exactly what the Rabbis instructed fellow Jews to give the poor who had no means of baking their own matzot.

Today, Kimcha d'Pischa has evolved into food packages for the needy. Certainly, this is an admirable form of charity and a wonderful way to get children involved in helping the poor. Yet, you don't have to be penniless to be poor. Assistance to the needy does not begin and end with food or money. My late father began a custom in our family, which I continue to this day. At the end of synagogue services on the first and second nights of Passover, he rounded up the lonely and brought them home to sit around our Seder table. My hat goes off to my late mother who never made a fuss. Equal credit goes to my entire family, including aunts, uncles and cousins who warmly welcomed the strangers sitting next to them.

My family was not alone in this generous act. While researching Kimcha d'Pischa I found a family in Poland who did the exact same thing. I'm sure that if I made the effort, I would find others as well. Tying this tradition to the actual Seder night is easy.  You are told to pass down the story about the birth of our nation to your children. The hagaddah reminds us that we were strangers in Egypt. Connect the dots, bring strangers to your table and pass down an expanded Kimcha d'Pischa custom that will give added meaning to your seder nights and the lives of your guests.


Flour photo credit

Combine Passover Customs from Tunisia, Yemen and Turkey for a Unique Model Seder

It's that time of the year again. Time to make seder -- which literally means "order" in Hebrew. This year try a new world order by combining customs from 3 countries. It's a thinking-out-of-the-box suggestion and I promise it will engage your children and students.

Start your Passover tour by going to Tunisia with a custom that I brought up last year -- sitting on mattresses. They're comfortable, definitely have reclining space, and yes, they make the experience a lot more authentic for children.

Next stop: Yemen. Forget about the seder plate. They have a seder table, meaning they place all the symbols on the table itself. I suggest you use either very low tables or the floor. Put down a tablecloth and arrange the Passover food symbols on all four corners and/or in the middle.  Make it plentiful, yummy and colorful, with an aroma that can't be beat.

Final destination: Turkey. Jews living in this Western Asian country follow the wonderful Sephardic custom of beginning the Seder with a play. I always bring up this custom because it's my favorite. It has the Purim costume element with a family member dressing up as one of the Children of Israel. S/he conducts a short dialog with the seder leader by answering the questions: "Who are you?" "But I thought you are a slave, where are you going?" "What was it like in Egypt?"

Get the picture? A homespun, down to earth approach in this day and age of ready made props and video clips.

Enjoy! I'll be back with more Passover customs.

Photo credit

This Purim Step, Stomp & Walk Tall

Back in the 1960's Nancy Sinatra made it big on the music scene thanks to her hit These Boots Are Made For Walking and its popular refrain: One of these days these boots are going to walk all over you.

Did she have Haman in mind when she sang this song? Sure enough one of the Purim customs I recently found is to write the name of Haman on the sole of your shoes, and stamp your feet really hard every time Haman's name is called out during the Megillah reading until his name is erased. Unfortunately, this custom was not connected to a specific country but it did remind me of a French Purim custom that I posted in 2010 in which Haman's name was either printed or engraved on 2 stones knocked together during the Megillah reading.

Contact me if you have any other creative customs for obliterating Haman's name. I'll be happy to post them.

Purim Sameach. Happy Purim.


Photo credit