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This week we read the Song of Moses, one of Moses’ final speeches to the Children of Israel before his death. The only other words Moses speaks to the nation after this are the words of blessing in Deuteronomy Chapter 33

Today Hebron and Kiryat Arba are full of Jews who have come from all over Israel and from all over the world, to settle in the first Jewish city in history.

Sondra Oster Baras, an Orthodox Jew who has devoted her life to reaching out to Christians all over the world to bless Israel, explains the Jewish Sabbath (Shabbat) so that Christians can gain a better understanding of how Jews revere and observe this holy day.

This Shabbat is also the holiday of Simchat Torah, the day we celebrate the conclusion of the annual cycle of reading the weekly portions of the Five Books of Moses, the Torah.

This week we celebrate one of my favorite holidays… Succot, the Feast of Tabernacles. It is quite remarkable that the Torah readings discuss sacrifices brought to the Temple thousands of years ago.

I find the Rosh HaShanah selections special and never fail to feel a thrill and a sense of awe as we read them each year. On the first day, we read the story of the birth of Isaac, beginning with the words, “And G-d visited Sarah as he had said” (Genesis 21:1).

Today Hebron and Kiryat Arba are full of Jews who have come from all over Israel and from all over the world, to settle in the first Jewish city in history.

There is a common joke among Jews that summarizes all of our Jewish holidays in one sentence: They tried to kill us, G-d saved us, let’s eat. It doesn’t quite apply to every holiday, but certainly Passover, Purim and Hanukkah fit the bill. And the statement certainly tells us a great deal about Jewish culture.