Rosh Chodesh is a minor Jewish holiday that happens on the first day of every month and literally translates to “head of the month”. Watch our explainer video to learn the significance of this monthly holiday.

This holiday has long been considered a special holiday for women. Some say that this is because women of Israel did not offer their jewelry for the creation of the Golden Galf so they were given Rosh Chodesh, a day when they could abstain from work. Others connect the lunar cycle of the holiday to a woman’s menstrual cycle. For thousands of years, Rosh Chodesh has been a holiday where women gather together for a variety of activities, from reciting prayers, to sharing a meal, discussing Jewish ethics and working for social change.

The Menorah has been a Jewish symbol and part of Jewish traditions for centuries. But you may have noticed that some menorahs have 7 branches and others have 8 branch? What’s the deal? Find some answers in our quick explainer video featuring Joshua Mallett.

A seven branch menorah are where the candle holders are all on one line. There is no helper candle, or Shamash. This menorah once stood in Jerusalem’s temple and many synagogues today have these menorahs on the bimah (altar).

An eight branch menorah is known to many as the Hanukah menorah. On this menorah, the eight candle holders are all on one line with a ninth candle, or the helper candle (Shamash), out of placed in height or position. This menorah represents the miracle of Hanukah where the oil lasted eight days instead of one.

Looking to learn more about Chanukah? Go here!

Tisha B’av is the day of mourning in Judaism. On this day, the ninth of Av, a series of major tragedies of the Jewish people occurred including the destruction of the first and second temples in Jerusalem.

It’s a day of mourning for getting kicked out of Israel, for the destruction of Jerusalem, the Medieval  expulsions from various lands. Watch our video to learn more about the significance and meaning behind this day.

Why do Jewish holidays move around on the calendar? Why do we have Chanukah sometimes on Thanksgiving? Find some answers and learn more about how the Jewish calendar works in this video featuring Joshua Mallett.

The Hebrew calendar, or the Jewish calendar is a lunar calendar where as the Gregorian calendar is a solar calendar. The Jewish calendar is synced to the moon so the first day of the month is a new moon and the 15th day of the month is a full moon.

Problem is a lunar calendar is 10 or 11 days short of the solar, Gregorian calendar. In order to keep up with the seasons, every three years or so (or seven times within a 19 year period), we add a whole extra month: Adar II. Adding an extra month helps prevent Passover from occurring in the winter and Chanukah from occurring in the fall!

Straight from the BimBam (G-dcast) archives comes a silly but educational video about counting the Omer. In 2013, we brought together 30 individuals from Moishe House to write and record 49 facts about the Omer.

We’re not going to give too much but the Omer is a verbal counting of each day between Passover and Shavuot.

What is an Omer and why do we count it? Learn everything you need to know about this Jewish ritual and the minor Jewish holiday called Lag B’Omer in this video featuring Miriam Heller Stern, the National Director of the School of Education at Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion, and BimBam Board Member.

We’re not sure that Charlton Heston and Yul Brynner’s Ten Commandments has aged that well, despite the fact that we all grew up on it? You decide. Or let these grade school kids figure it out for you.

Happy Passover from BimBam!

Get in the Passover spirit but learning the words to this silly classic Passover song featuring Jason Mesches. 🐸🐸🐸

Happy Passover! Chag Sameach!

Let’s get crafty for Passover. Learn how to make your very own matzah cover with Berkeley artist Claire Sherman. No sewing skills required! Special thanks to Elisheva Anisman and Shira Anisman for the beautiful examples shown in this piece!

Why do we need to cover the matzah? The best way to explain this is to think about Shabbat. On Shabbat, we cover the challah before saying the blessing. The challah is also covered while we say the blessing over the wine because we don’t want the challah to get jealous that we had the wine first. Similarly, the matzah is covered while we say the blessing over the wine and before saying the blessing for the matzvah.

What is Shabbat? Shabbat (the Jewish Shabbath) is a weekly 25-hour observance that begins just before sundown each Friday and ends at nightfall on Saturday. Shabbat is a dedicated time each week to stop working and focus more on the pleasures of life.

It’s definitely not easy, especially in a time when we are always working from running errands to checking emails, it seems to never stop. Shabbat is a time to recharge. Watch this video to learn more about why and how Jews observe Shabbat.