The Times of Israel https://www.timesofisrael.com/topic/torah/ News from Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish World Tue, 09 Jun 2026 16:00:28 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://static-cdn.toi-media.com/www/uploads/2018/11/toi_icon_512-200x200.png Torah | The Times of Israel https://www.timesofisrael.com/topic/torah/ 32 32 Did medieval Jews hide a ‘secret synagogue’ in tarot cards? Boston exhibit turns over clues https://www.timesofisrael.com/did-medieval-jews-hide-a-secret-synagogue-in-tarot-cards-boston-exhibit-turns-over-clues/ Wed, 20 May 2026 15:17:08 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=3808235 'Torah in the Tarot,' named for researcher Stav Appel's book of the same name, runs through June at the Vilna Shul, makes claim the deck was created by early crypto-Jews

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]]> Posthumous Bible commentary by ex-UK chief rabbi seeks to unseat a synagogue staple https://www.timesofisrael.com/posthumous-bible-commentary-by-ex-uk-chief-rabbi-seeks-to-unseat-a-synagogue-staple/ Mon, 01 Sep 2025 01:52:48 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=3629341 'Ethical insights that apply to people's everyday lives': Five years after Jonathan Sacks died suddenly from cancer, Koren Publishers releases commentary culled from his works that it believes sets a new standard

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]]> Two congregations, two opinions as Torahs hit the floor at separate NYC synagogues https://www.timesofisrael.com/two-congregations-two-opinions-as-torahs-hit-the-floor-at-separate-nyc-synagogues/ Thu, 28 Aug 2025 01:24:42 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=3628421 Accidental dropping of the cherished scrolls can impact local communities - and the Jewish news cycle - while how it's dealt with can teach us much about contemporary Jewish values

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]]> Veteran educator charts new spiritual path rooted in her Jerusalem garden https://www.timesofisrael.com/veteran-educator-charts-new-spiritual-path-rooted-in-her-jerusalem-garden/ Sat, 19 Jul 2025 06:09:07 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=3584479 Yiscah Smith's new book, 'Planting Seeds of the Divine,' blends Hasidic wisdom, personal transformation and contemplative practice

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]]> What happens when a seemingly odd couple becomes friends and Torah study buddies? https://www.timesofisrael.com/what-happens-when-a-seemingly-odd-couple-becomes-friends-and-torah-study-buddies/ Sun, 15 Sep 2024 13:33:11 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=3366894 In their new book, Reform journalist Abigail Pogrebin and Orthodox Rabbi Dov Linzer show genuine warmth and respect for one another while not dancing around their differences

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]]> Book publisher sends thousands of sacred texts to IDF soldiers https://www.timesofisrael.com/book-publisher-sends-thousands-of-sacred-texts-to-idf-soldiers/ Thu, 30 Nov 2023 11:35:14 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=3165288 Koren Jerusalem creates special wartime compact edition of the Book of Genesis, with foreword written from the frontlines

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]]> 300-year-old Sephardic Torah ornaments to be displayed at US museums for 1st time https://www.timesofisrael.com/300-year-old-sephardic-torah-ornaments-to-be-displayed-at-us-museums-for-1st-time/ Fri, 11 Aug 2023 08:34:15 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=3069869 Works by Abraham de Oliveyra, the first known licensed Jewish silversmith in London, are bought jointly by Boston's Museum of Fine Arts and NYC Jewish Museum

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]]> After Quran, request filed with Swedish police to burn Torah outside Israeli embassy https://www.timesofisrael.com/request-filed-with-swedish-police-to-burn-torah-outside-israeli-embassy/ Wed, 05 Jul 2023 14:07:56 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=3046571 Self-described free-speech advocates submit 3 requests to burn religious texts in what will likely spark further global uproar after Quran was burned outside a mosque in Stockholm

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]]> Next treasury chief Smotrich: ‘Following the Torah will lead to financial abundance’ https://www.timesofisrael.com/next-treasury-chief-smotrich-following-the-torah-will-lead-to-financial-abundance/ Thu, 08 Dec 2022 07:11:30 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=2893807 Far-right leader says he plans to examine 'the macro and the micro' of Israel's economy once he enters office, but stresses that above all he is a religious Jew

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]]> Herzog presides over quasi-biblical gathering revived by his grandfather https://www.timesofisrael.com/herzog-presides-over-quasi-biblical-gathering-revived-by-his-grandfather/ Thu, 13 Oct 2022 14:14:27 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=2851881 Every 7 years, the people of Israel are commanded to hear their king read from the Bible; in the absence of a monarch, thousands turn out for a presidential reenactment

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]]> An ancient, Torah-reading assembly during Sukkot gets a 21st-century revival https://www.timesofisrael.com/an-ancient-torah-reading-assembly-during-sukkot-gets-a-21st-century-revival/ Tue, 11 Oct 2022 09:24:26 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=2850068 The Jewish ritual of hakhel, where men, women and children gathered in Jerusalem to hear the king read Torah passages, is now inspiring Jews worldwide

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]]> Rabbi spends 7 years translating the Torah into Romanian https://www.timesofisrael.com/romanian-rabbi-spends-7-years-translating-the-torah-into-romanian/ Tue, 06 Sep 2022 18:47:01 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=2830780 With an eye on translating the entire Bible, Rabbi Sorin Rosen is taking a moment to appreciate the texts that are already changing the way Romanian Jews engage with tradition

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]]> They set out to produce an ‘accessible’ Mishnah. The price tag: $645 https://www.timesofisrael.com/they-set-out-to-produce-an-accessible-mishnah-the-price-tag-645/ Tue, 21 Jun 2022 01:51:56 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=2782426 Oxford University Press annotated version of notoriously cryptic Oral Torah compendium comes steep even for an academic title, but may become more affordable in the future

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]]> Conservative movement introduces non-binary liturgy for Torah honors https://www.timesofisrael.com/conservative-movement-introduces-non-binary-liturgy-for-torah-honors/ Thu, 09 Jun 2022 02:33:42 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=2777547 In unanimous vote, rabbinical panel signs off on lightly tweaked liturgy to accommodate people who do not identify as male or female to avoid 'embarrassment and disrespect'

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]]> Meet the Israeli entrepreneurs putting the Bible on the blockchain https://www.timesofisrael.com/meet-the-israeli-entrepreneurs-putting-the-bible-on-the-blockchain/ Sat, 20 Nov 2021 13:39:46 +0000 https://www.timesofisrael.com/?p=2649643 Yonatan Bendahan and Yuval Meyraz, cofounders of CryptoVerses, sell biblical verses as unique pieces of digital art - and the proceeds help fund a publicly available digital Torah

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