Simhat Torah

'Acharei Hachagim': A diary entry from after the holidays in Israel

A look in the life of an Israeli resident the day after the Tishrei holiday season ends.

 Signs calling for the freedom of hostages are seen in Tel Aviv.
 AVIAD NEIMAN, a father of four little children and husband to a young wife, fell a few hours before Simchat Torah this year in Lebanon.

The intangibles of the war can’t be measured - opinion

 A CHILD holds a Simchat Torah flag featuring photos of the hostages, a prayer for their release, and a slogan: ‘Singing together for their return.’

Celebrating amid loss, unity, and hope - opinion

 Israeli rescue and recovery unit search damaged cars for human remains and other evidence, following the October 7 attack by Hamas from the Gaza Strip, on a field near Netivot in southern Israel, November 1, 2023

Unity in Netivot: Spending Simchat Torah with evacuees - opinion


On Simchat Torah, we pray to be led out of darkness and to a brighter future for us all - editorial

The duality of mourning and joy coexisting reminds us of the importance of honoring both the pain and the celebration, as we find strength and meaning in this complex emotional experience.

 Israelis visit the site of the Supernova music festival massacre in southern Israel, during the the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah, October 24, 2024.

'The hole in our souls deepens everyday,' says sister of hostage Yarden Bibas

Over the past year, the return of the hostages, once a national consensus and top priority, now seems weighed against the security of the state and its citizens.

 Yarden and Ariel Bibas, who are both still in Hamas captivity

Is Israel fighting the October 7 War or the Simchat Torah War? - opinion

By referring to the war as both the “Oct. 7 War” and the “Simchat Torah War,” we evoke different dimensions of this tragedy and its far-reaching aftermath.

 IDF soldiers operate in southern Lebanon, October 22. 2024.

Former PM Bennett calls for state October 7 probe in emotional post on X

"I often ask myself if there was more I could have done that day."

 FORMER PRIME MINISTER Naftali Bennett attends the funeral of Avraham Munder and reinterment of Avraham’s son Roee, murdered on October 7, at the Kibbutz Nir Oz cemetery.

How should we observe Simchat Torah this year? - opinion

We need to seek a middle path between the usual joy of Simchat Torah and the mourning necessitated by the disaster of Simchat Torah 5784 on October 7.

 A Jewish man reads the first letters in the torah scroll during Simchat Torah celebrations at the Western Wall in Jerusalem Old City, October 10, 2020.

'Who’s the fool who told you boys don’t cry?' Approaching Simchat Torah with sorrow

This was the year an entire nation learned to cry – unashamedly and without restraint.

 EDEN GOLAN after singing ‘Hurricane’ at a rally calling for the release of the hostages at Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, in May.

Simchat Torah: Grasping the divine strands of joy

It’s strained, if not seemingly impossible, to embody joy right now. The divine strands of joy around us are so dim as to be nearly invisible.

 A hand is seen reaching towards the heavens in this illustrative image.

Come together: The importance of unity on Simchat Torah - opinion

It is precisely at the one-year anniversary of Hamas's massacre that the holiday of Simchat Torah comes along, with its unique message about the centrality of unity.

 An illustrative image of Jews celebrating with Torah scrolls on Simchat Torah.

Shemini Atzeret and Simhat Torah 2024: Candle-lighting times for Israel and US

See chag times in your area.

Shabbat candles

The Herzogs host displaced youth ahead of Simhat Torah - opinion

Herzog, who has taken a particular interest in the hostages, mentions them at every opportunity, and did so  when concluding his session with the youngsters.

 President Herzog and his wife Michal in a Q&A session with displacwd youth.

On Simchat Torah, we dance because we refuse to let the darkness win - opinion

How can we dance again? It’s not just a question for Simchat Torah; it’s a question for every moment we face after loss, after tragedy, after the world splits wide open.

 An illustrative image of Jews celebrating with Torah scrolls on Simchat Torah.