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Virtual Simchat Torah Box
Your Virtual Simchat Torah Box holds hand-picked resources for celebrating Simchat Torah with all of your senses.
(In 2020 Simchat Torah falls on Sunday, October 11 for communities following the Diaspora calendar, and together with Shemini Atzeret on Saturday, October 10 for communities following the Israeli calendar.)
Watch: Mah Tovu
“Mah tovu ohalekha / How beautiful are your tents…” Sung by Rabbis Annie Lewis and Yosef Goldman. Sourced from Ritualwell
Read: Intention Upon Restarting the Annual Cycle of Torah Readings
Devon Spier offers some thoughts as we read the end of Deuteronomy and roll back the Torah to begin at the beginning of Genesis once more. Sourced from Ritualwell
Watch: Blessings Before Reading the Torah in ASL
Rabbis Darby Leigh and Roni Handler demonstrate the blessings recited before the Torah reading in American Sign Language (ASL). Blessing text can be found here. Sourced from Ritualwell
Listen: ‘I Keep My Goodness Flowing to You’
This practice, introduced by Rabbi Lauren Tuchman, can be done as a meditation practice, as well as an intention setting for when one is in a conflictual situation with someone dear to them. Sourced from Reset. For more practices, sign up for Harvesting Resilience: 30 Days of Spiritual Practice Before the Election. Receive a daily 5-minute practice to nourish your heart, mind and spirit. Register here!
Read: ‘Remember Me’
This poem by Elizabeth Tragash was written for a yizkor service when we remember our loved ones. Our tradition teaches that when we inscribe them upon the pages of our memory, they live on in us. Sourced from Ritualwell
Read: Taking Down the Sukkah
In his d’var Torah, Rabbi Lewis Eron describes the emotional and spiritual process he goes through as he dismantles his sukkah and puts it away for another year at the close of the holiday season. Sourced from ReconstructingJudaism.org
Listen: The Dogma of Jewish Time
Abigail Pogrebin, a noted journalist, spent a year observing the major and minor Jewish holidays, and then writing about her experiences. She discusses what each holiday asks of each of us, and how the Days of Awe challenge us to consider our own mortality and think about how we will prioritize our lives and spend our time and energy. Sourced from Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations
Listen: Dreams — Judaism’s Forgotten Practice
Rabbi Haviva Ner-David, an Orthodox feminist turned “post-denominational, interspiritual rabbi,” discusses how dreams offer each of us a tool to better understand ourselves and our world –— if we only know how to use it. Sourced from Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations
These resources were drawn from:
