Jewish Religion

Why does a week have seven days?

My curiosity is over the origin of the seven-day week.  Understandably days, years, and months are marked by astronomical events.  Days are measured by sunset to sunset, or dawn to dawn.  Years are derived from the annual cycle of the sun.  Months are derived from the 29 &1/2 day cycle of the moon, simplified via reduction to a unified 28 days per month, plus addition of leap years to periodically accommodate the growing overage of days. The seven-day week doesn’t apparently have an astronomical connection.  Historically, scholars have considered the week to be a Hebrew invention, derived from its creation story. [Irv Jacobs, MD]

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Irv Jacobs, MD, Jewish Religion

‘Great Torah Roll’ fun at Seacrest Village

Rabbi Leah Herz created a fun-filled Simchat Torah learning session called “The Great Torah Roll”  for residents of the Seacrest Village Retirement Community in Encinitas when she had the entire Torah unrolled and held by staff, volunteers, and residents, some of whom were in wheelchairs. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, The World We Share, Theatre, Film & Broadcast

With Bereishit we begin learning Torah

The Maharal, Yehuda Aryeh Löwe of Prague, teaches, “that we are called to deal kindly with all of humanity and certainly not to cause harm to anyone’s physical being, financial welfare, or personal dignity nor to disgrace or diminish the Divine image in our fellow.” The diversity of humanity is a crucial component of this understanding. After all, we learn in 1:27 that G-d created mankind b’tzelem Elohim, “in [the divine] image.” [Michael Mantell, PhD]

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Jewish Religion, Michael Mantell

15th Jew in space in first all-female space walk

Astronaut Jessica Meir, who earned her doctorate from the Scripps Institute of Oceanography here in San Diego, on Friday was part of the first all-female team to do a space walk from the international space station. She and fellow American  astronaut Christine Koch were tasked with repairing a power control unit – a job that in the slow motion of space took seven hours and 17 minutes, including interruptions to take congratulatory calls from President Donald Trump, Vice President Mike Pence, Presidential Advisor Invaka Trump, and NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Cantor Sheldon Foster Merel, z"l, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Middle East, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, USA

Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life Synagogue charts re-opening

Nearly one year after the worst anti-Semitic attack in U.S. history that claimed the lives of 11 people worshiping inside a Pittsburgh synagogue building, the Tree of Life*Or L’Simcha Congregation announced it will move forward with rebuilding plans that reflect resiliency, strength and community collaboration. [News Release]

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Jewish History, Jewish Religion, USA

Memories of a childhood sukkah

The Jewish custom of once a year building a little hut or sukkah in one’s garden or backyard supposedly harks back to the time many thousands of years ago when the Hebrews were wandering in the wilderness after having left Egypt and had to live in makeshift huts or tabernacles, more or less in the way the Bedouin Arabs live today. Like many aspects of the Jewish religion, practice and history are bound up together. [Dorothea Shefer-Vanson]

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Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, International, Jewish Religion, Middle East

Pottery indicates some Israelites worshiped multiple deities

Moses, ‘following G-d’s orders,’ carves a second pair of tablets following which he receives additional orders regarding entrance to the promised land: Ch. 34: vv. 12-13 “Beware of making a covenant with the inhabitants…No, you must tear down their altars, smash their pillars, and cut down their sacred asherim).” [Irv Jacobs, MD]

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Irv Jacobs, MD, Jewish History, Jewish Religion

Two S.D. Jewish community builders lauded

I had the honor on Wednesday night to be the speaker at the Beth Israel Men’s Club. My topic was the historic contributions of two Jewish San Diegans who had been members of Congregation Beth Israel: Marcus Schiller and Jacob Weinberger.  Both men were immigrants to this country from Europe, both had been active in the political life of San Diego, and both helped to form institutions that are prominent in our local Jewish community.

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Donald H. Harrison, International, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, USA

Global Shabbat project expects a million plus participants

rom November 15-16, 2019, more than 1 million Jews in over 1,500 cities around the world, including San Diego, will unite for the annual international Shabbat Project. Last year, the Shabbat Project attracted more than 1 million participants in 101 countries across 1,511 cities and towns. This year, organizers believe the initiative will top those numbers.

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International, Jewish Religion, Middle East, USA

Rosh Chodesh not observed as Torah commands

Like all other biblical holidays, Rosh Chodesh is not observed today as required by biblical law. This is because of changed social circumstances and because the principle element of the biblical worship was animal sacrifices, which was discontinued after the Romans destroyed the Jewish Second Temple in 70 CE. Additionally, the name of the celebration was changed from “Chodesh” to “Rosh Chodesh,” which in the Torah did not mean “New Moon,” but “First Month” and referred to the month now called Nissan when Passover occurs.

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Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish Religion

New Mexico’s Crypto-Jews subject of informative tour

When Jordi was just ten years old, his grandfather said, “This is how we butcher a chicken,” as he demonstrated the kosher slaughtering method. Jordi’s grandfather thereby revealed that the family was Jewish, a startling surprise for a young boy in the 1990s living in Spain, whose family was ostensibly Roman Catholic like everybody else. This revelation, that they were Crypto-Jews (secret Jews), had a profound effect on Jordi, who eventually became the first rabbi in 500 years to be ordained in Spain.

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International, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Steve Kramer, Travel and Food, USA