Jeremy Rosen
ARTICLES BY: Jeremy Rosen
What Is the Fast of Gedaliah — and Why Does It Matter?
The day after Rosh Hashanah is known as Tsom Gedaliah -- the Fast of Gedaliah. But who was Gedaliah? After the Babylonians had conquered Judea in...
Rosh Hashanah 2026: New Years and Signs
Rosh Hashanah is the most multifaceted of our festivals. The Torah itself doesn't call it a New Year or Chag (festival). It is simply called Yom...
Who Were the Jewish Prophets, and Why Did They Disappear?
Prophecy features in many religions and societies. But trying to understand it in Judaism presents a challenge because the role of the prophet, or prophetess,...
Shabbat Vaetchanan: What Should We Learn From Moses’ Death — and Life?
The question of why Moshe was not allowed to go into the Land of Canaan is problematic, because a close reading of the text reveals...
The 9th of Av Is Worth Fasting for – and the Saddest Part Is That Many People Don’t Understand Why
What is so different about the fast of the 9th of Av (coming up next week), as opposed to all other post Biblical fasts? Unlike all...
Why Is Moses Not Called Mosheh? A Journey Through Biblical History and Translation
The first translation of the Bible was by Ptolemy the Second, some 2,200 years ago, into Greek. But Greek has letters and sounds that Biblical...
Shabbat Matot Masei: The Importance of Tribes and Leadership
The two portions of the Torah this week concern the route that the Israelites took to reach their Promised Land. The parsha also contains laws...
Are the Jews Destined to Be a Nation That Dwells Alone?
There are two portions of the Torah that we, in the Diaspora, will read this Shabbat. The first was the crisis initiated by the reports of...
Archaeology and Facts Prove the Jewish Connection to the Land of Israel
We live in a world of lies and misrepresentations. Nowhere is this more obvious than in regard to the long history of the Jews. The...
How Did Zoroastrianism Affect Judaism?
There is a well-known quote from the Prophet Isaiah: “God says: Who creates light and creates darkness: Who makes peace and creates evil: I am...
Why Do We Read the Book of Ruth on Shavuot?
All Biblical festivals and special days relate to time -- whether it is daily, monthly, annually, or seasonally. Awareness of the natural world comes with...
A New Book Shows How Archaeology Proves the Jewish Connection to Jerusalem and Israel
I have always enjoyed history and archaeology. That's why I bought a new book that was recommended to me: When the Stones Speak: The Remarkable...
Shabbat HaGadol and the Story of Elijah
“Behold I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great awesome Day of God, and he will reconcile fathers to children and children to fathers” (Malachi...
Shabbat Vayikra: Learning From the Traditions of the Past
The term for rabbinic ordination is Semicha. It means laying hands on someone, which implies confidence, identifying with the person, and expecting there to be...
