(JTA) — In any other year, the mask-decorating party planned for later this month at Congregation Beth El Ner Tamid in Broomall, Pennsylvania, would make perfect sense: Costumes are part of the ritual for festive Jewish holiday of Purim, which begins...

Is  every mitzvah, every commandment equally important?  In some sense, of course — if we understand God as the source of mitzvot, commandments, then every mitzvah is an equal opportunity to obey or disobey God and God’s will for us.  And plus,...

This recipe originally appeared in The Nosher.Bringing new life to hamantaschen was a challenge. People are dead set on their favorite flavors like classic poppy seed and apricot. Of course, newer directions such as Nutella and rainbow funfetti are a...

Last Friday, we woke up to the horrific news of massacres at the Al Noor and Linwood mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was another sucker punch to the gut so soon after the killings at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh. As of now, we know...

Ingredients:2 c. all-purpose flour1 tsp. ground cardamom½ tsp. salt¼ tsp. double-acting baking powder1 1/3 cups sugar4 large eggsFinely grated zest of half of amedium orange2 cups blanched almond flour or mealOrange blossom water or water, formoistening...

Every year before Purim, my inbox and social media fill up with dire exhortations from rabbis and yeshivas warning against the dangers of celebratory excess – as if drunkenness on the holiday were something new.In reality, the after-Purim regrets have...

Most of us know Purim as the quintessential festival of unbridled joy and a time for exuberant merrymaking. However, in the midst of all the revelry, Purim also offers us an opportunity to participate in four special rabbinically ordained mitzvot, which...