Jewish Holidays

At the conclusion of Neilah, at the final moments of Yom Kippur, we have a dramatic "Declaration of Faith:" The Chazan says Sh'ma Yisrael, & we repeat it; he says Baruch Shem K'vod Malchuto 3 times & we repeat it; & he then says "Hashem Hu Ha-Elokim" 7 times & we repeat it. What is the meaning of all this?

Invasion of the Body Snatchers - Yom Kippur

I am taking the liberty of sharing some of my holiday memories with you. Nostalgia can be very alluring, but there is also always a modicum of hard-headed realism that memories of the past always evoke.

Is it universally accepted that everyone in Eretz Yisroel is required to observe two days of Rosh Hashanah? Why do we read the specific haftarah that we do on the second day of Rosh Hashanah? How can our tefillos refer to the second day of Rosh Hashanah as the ‘Day of Judgment,’ when we were already judged on the first day?

In Orot HaTeshuva 11, Rav Kook describes two types of Teshuva - sudden Teshuva and gradual Teshuva

There are those who wonder how we can ask God to return us in Teshuva (repentance). After all, Teshuva is our job. I heard once from Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu, that every Teshuva contains an aspect of man and an aspect of the Blessed Creator, Who sends man an awakening to repentance.

Must children hear shofar blowing, at what age, when, and how many?