Simhat Torah

The breached walls we must rebuild this Seventeenth of Tamuz - opinion

This fast day is a reminder that destruction begins inside when unity fails and division takes root.

An ultra-Orthodox jew prays at the Westen Wall July 17, 2002 on Tisha B'Av
The wedding of Miriam Shani and Ofek Dotan at the Kedar sheep farm near Ma'ale Adumim, June 2026.

Beyond the Headlines: A fallen soldier's widow remarries, stories of renewal inspire - opinion

AN ISRAELI flag seen next to a sign pointing toward a protected space outside Mahaneh Yehuda Market in Jerusalem.

Freedom under fire: Independence Day and the shared song of Israel-Iran resilience - opinion

Members of the Agranat Commission investigate the military’s failures in the prelude to the Yom Kippur War.

Fifty years on, Israel repeats previous mistakes leading to the October 7 massacre - opinion


Simchat Torah renews our ability to tell 2 Genesis creation stories

What can Simhat Torah and Jewish values teach us about the way we view and teach American history?

SIMHAT TORAH smiles.

What is Shmini Atzeret about, anyway?

Shmini Atzeret doesn’t get much respect because we struggle to know what to make of it. f course, it’s a Biblical holiday just as much other holidays.

 A young man holds up a giant etrog at a Sukkot market in Jerusalem.

Simhat Torah candle-lighting times for Israel and the US

See Simhat Torah times for your area.

Shabbat candles

On Simhat Torah, a call for inclusion

On Simhat Torah, we dance in celebration. For the differently-abled, this may be a time of not joy — but frustration. The differently-abled may dance differently, but we should always dance together.

  A CAMPER arrives at Camp Simcha.

Reflections on Simhat Torah and ‘simha B’Torah’

It’s instructive to explore the background of Simhat Torah. Doing so allows us to decide how to express our personal delight and happiness in Torah in a variety of ways

 WOMEN DANCE with a Torah on Simhat Torah at the the Tel Aviv Port in 2019.

Simhat Torah was included as a 'new' holiday. Could we add more?

If a holiday can be added to the Hebrew calendar millennia after Revelation, why can we not add holidays that address the issues of our own time and be recognized by all Jews?

A SIMHAT Torah flag, waved jauntily during hakafot.

Hoshana Raba, Simhat Torah: What you need to know about the holiday

A rundown of the rules, times, history, and meaning of the unique Jewish holidays.

Israeli jews dance as they hold a Scroll of a Torah during Simhat Torah celebrations at Habima Square, Tel Aviv. The worshippers are marking the end of the annual cycle of the reading of the Torah and the beginning of the next cycle. October 10, 2020. Photo by Tomer Neuberg/Flash90

Bennett to eschew Netanyahu-style props at UN

The core message of the speech will be to defend Israel against the double standards it faces.

 Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett attends a memorial ceremony for the fallen Israeli soldiers of the 1973 Yom Kippur war, at the National Hall of Remembrance, Mount Herzl, Jerusalem. September 19, 2021.

Grapevine: October 14, 2020: Shades of black

The movers and shakers of Israeli society.

President Reuven Rivlin, flanked by Social Equality Minister Meirav Cohen and Yehuda Meshi-Zahav.

Haredim in Jerusalem, Modi'in Illit violate coronavirus restrictions

Major violations took place among the centers of hassidic sects in the Mea She'arim neighborhood of Jerusalem, as well as in several synagogues in Modi'in Illit.

POLICE IN Jerusalem detain a haredi protester last week.