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Jewish Holidays and Commemorations

Ta’anit Esther: (Dawn to Dusk on Monday, March 2)  

The Fast of Esther is a Jewish fast from dawn until dusk on Purim eve, commemorating the three-day fast observed by the Jewish people in the story of Purim. The fast commemorates two communal fasts undertaken by the Persian Jewish community of Shushan in the Book of Esther to pray for salvation from annihilation.

• 🧿 Host a break fast meal for Ta’anit Esther
• 📖 Explore resources from A Mitzvah to Eat and discuss alternatives to fasting on Jewish fast days
• 📖 Learn about the association between Esther and historic conversas

Purim: (Sundown on Monday, March 2 to Sundown on Tuesday, March 3)  

The story of Purim is recounted in the Book of Esther, whose heroine plays the leading role in saving her people from a massacre planned by the book’s villain, Haman. The word Purim means “lots” and refers to the mechanism by which Haman chose the date for the Jews’ destruction. The holiday is traditionally celebrated with wild abandon (costumes, drinking, feasting, revelry), by reading the megillah, and by giving gifts to friends and the poor. Here are some Purim Nuggets to help you plan!

• 📖 Fending off Haman — Krav Maga Program
• 🧿 Costume/Crazy Hat Party — Look at this sheet with costumes throughout the ages
• 🧿 🌱 Mishloach Manot — Have a misloach manot exchange event (have everyone bring something to swap), or make mishloach manot to give to friends.
• 🧿 Megillah Reading — collaborate with a local synagogue and go to a megillah reading
• 🌱 Gifts for the Poor — Tikkun Olam (collect food or other needed objects for a local shelter and deliver, or make bags for those who are housing insecure in your area and have participants deliver them)
• 📖 Not your grade school Megillah — there are many sexual innuendos and adult themes that appear in the Megillah that would make for great conversation (ie, Consent, sexual exploitation, gender roles, alcohol use, vanity, respect, hiding/broadcasting Judaism)
• 📖 What would you do Purim Discussion — Using each of the pivotal moments, include discussion questions at a program
• 🧿 Purim shpiel — song writing contest. In small groups participants need to take a pop culture song and write a parody using the Purim story
• 🧿 Host a Purim party with themed drinks inspired by the characters in the Purim story with these Purim Character Cocktail/Mocktail Cards

Rosh Chodesh Nisan: (Sundown on Wed, March 18 to Sundown on Thu, March 19)

Start of month of Nisan on the Hebrew calendar. Rosh Chodesh, is a minor holiday that occurs at the beginning of every month in the Hebrew calendar. It is marked by the birth of a new moon. Themes of the month include service, growth, freedom, achievement, community, and justice.

• 🧿 Passover herb planting. Basil, cilantro, coriander and dill all sprout quickly. Plant on Rosh Chodesh Nisan to have them ready for use at Passover.
• 🧿 Consider hosting an At the Well Rosh Chodesh Circle.
• 🧿 Register for the Jewish Studio Projects Rosh Chodesh virtual art-making event check their calendar for the dates/time.

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Torah Portions

Saturday, March 7th: Parashat Ki Tissa – “When You Take”

In this Torah portion, Moses stays with God on Mount Sinai for 40 days and 40 nights. There, he is given the Ten Commandments on stone tablets. Fearing Moses will never return, the Israelites turn to Aaron, who demands that everyone bring him their gold, so he can make a golden calf. When Moses comes down the mountain and sees the people dancing around this idol, he smashes the tablets on the ground. God punishes with a plague all the Israelites who were involved. Moses builds a tent to be his meeting place with God.

• 📖 Top 10 list exercise – Look through this list of Jewish values and write the Top 10 values/laws that you would write on your tablets? 10 values/laws that you would write on your tablets?
• 🧿 Go on a hike to mirror Moses’s actions in this parashah. Consider doing some hitbodedut (spontaneous prayer)!
• 🧿 Have a craft night of etching or engraving stones as you learn about the Ten Commandments

Saturday, March 14th: Parashat Vayak’hel-Pekudei – “And [Moses] Assembled – Account”

This week is actually a double parashah, where two Torah portions are read. In the first, God commands the Israelites not to do any work in the sanctuary on Shabbat. The Israelites then gather gifts for God, so Moses appoints Ohaliab and Bezalel to use the gifts to build God a portable sanctuary. In the second portion, the sanctuary is completed. Moses anoints Aaron and his sons to make their priestly positions official, and God’s presence fills the sanctuary. When The Tabernacle is done, we are taught that there is a Cloud over it when it’s time to rest, and a pillar of fire when it was time to move.

• 📖 Channel your inner Bezalel and Oholiab with a craft night program. Make candles with a Jewish twist, host a paint and sip through a Jewish lens, create Kabbalistic tie-dye or use resources from the Jewish Studio Project to shape a unique program
• 🧿 Host a Shabbat of journeys and have a map of the world and have food from around the world, and have people put a pin on places they’ve been. Embrace your inner “points guy” and have everyone bring a different travel hack for cheap booking, lodging, traveling.

Saturday, March 21st: Parashat Vayikra – “[God] called”

In this Torah portion, God describes the laws of animal sacrifice. God explains the different sacrifices that atone for guilt or sins and distinguishes between sins committed inadvertently and sins committed on purpose.

• 🧿 Havdalah Spice Vibes – Thinking about how the sacrifices were “pleasing odors” to God, experiment with your vibe for the upcoming week.
• 🧿 Use the Elul Reflection Journal program or the Alternative Fire Tashlich program to host a mid-year personal check-in program to see how people are doing with their goals and self-growth.

Saturday, March 28th: Parashat Tzav – “Command”

In this Torah portion, God continues to describe the different laws of sacrifices. A distinction is made between sin offerings, burnt offerings, and homage offerings, with each following its own process. God then commands the priests to make another offering that ordains themselves in their positions.

• 🧿 Explore the idea of spiritual hametz (leavened food) in preparation of Passover. What might it mean to offer or let go of the things we are struggling to release?
• 🧿 Explore the idea of gratitude and the Korban Todah (gratitude offering). Perhaps use this as a chance to eat a bunch of bread before Passover!
• 📖 Host a bonfire or barbecue night inspired by burnt offerings, using this Making Bonfires Jewish resource

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Secular Celebrations and Remembrances

March 1st (Su): National Black Women in Jazz and the Arts Day

• 🫂 Talk about the connection between Jazz and Judaism as you celebrate black women in Jazz and the arts
• 📖 Learn about the brief but meteoric career of Goldye, Di Shvartze Khaznte (the Black woman Cantor)

March 2nd (Mo): National Read Across America Day

• 📖 🌱 Host a blind date with a book night – Curl up with a book, hold a book drive, a book swap, and/or have a Jewish book discussion!
• 📖 Enjoy some short fiction with this Jewish short story program

March 2nd (Mo): National Old Stuff Day

• 🧿🌱 Celebrate Erev Purim and National Old Stuff Day with this Purim themed Torah and Clothing Swap!

March 7th (Sa): Global Day of Unplugging

• 🧿 A great chance to lean into Shabbat and power down the digital world for a day! Try hosting a tech free Shabbat meal!

March 8th (Su): International Women’s Day

• 🫂 📖 Celebrate the contributions of women in Jewish life. Look at women rabbis, scholars, trailblazers. Click here for some great role models.
• 📖 Learn about women’s prayer and historical examples of women’s prayer leadership
• 🫂 Host a program to celebrate in an RSJ( Russian Speaking Jewish) way a program celebrating women. In Russia this is a huge holidays. Women receive flowers as they are beautiful and also symbolize spring. This is a time to take stalk of many of the accomplishments women have made. You can speak on the Suffrage movement in the US and the UK.
• 🫂 Host a movie night watching a A League of Their Own, and speak on how much farther we are in women’s sports now.

March 9th (Mo): Popcorn Lover’s Day

• 📖 What goes better with popcorn than a movie? Pick one with a Jewish theme and munch on a popcorn bar while you watch. (We have programs for comedies, horror, rom-coms, and lots of individual movies like A Real Pain, The Prince of Egypt, and Wicked.)
• 📖 The mockumentary For Your Consideration (directed by Christopher Guest) offers a behind-the-scenes look at the fictional film, “Home for Purim.” Host a watch party for your community followed by a discussion on portrayals of Judaism in film and television – when do they make us feel seen, and when do they make us cringe?

March 30th (Mo): National Take a Walk in the Park Day

• 📖 Consider taking a walk and using the hitbodedut for Cheshvan program. It’s okay that Cheshvan is long gone. Never a bad time for some hitbodedut (spontaneous prayer)!