Havdalah Mark Podwal (b. 1945) Digitial archival pigment print on paper 7 7/16 x 7 9/16" USA, 2020 © Mark Podwal Havdalah, Hebrew for “separation,” is the ceremony performed at the conclusion of Shabbat and festivals marking the passage from the sacred to the everyday. Blessings are recited over a cup of wine, a lit [...]
Blessing the Shabbat Lights Mark Podwal (b. 1945) Digitial archival pigment print on paper 7 7/16 x 7 9/16" USA, 2020 © Mark Podwal The two candles lit on Shabbat eve symbolize the biblical commandments, zakhor v’shamor, “remember” and “observe” the Shabbat (Exodus 20:8; Deuteronomy 5:12). It is customary to light two single-wick white candles, [...]
Blessing the New Moon Mark Podwal (b. 1945) Digitial archival pigment print on paper 7 7/16 x 7 9/16" USA, 2020 © Mark Podwal Rosh Hodesh (head of the month) is a minor holiday that marks the beginning of every Hebrew month. The Torah instructs that on Rosh Hodesh the people are commanded to be [...]
Tishah B'Av Mark Podwal (b. 1945) Digitial archival pigment print on paper 7 7/16 x 7 9/16" USA, 2020 © Mark Podwal The fast day of Tishah B’Av (the ninth day of the Hebrew month of Av) commemorates the destruction of the two Temples in Jerusalem. It has also come to memorialize other tragedies for [...]
Shavuot Mark Podwal (b. 1945) Digitial archival pigment print on paper 7 7/16 x 7 9/16" USA, 2020 © Mark Podwal The Festival of Shavuot falls on the sixth day of the Hebrew month of Sivan. The festival’s name, Shavuot, which means “weeks,” denotes that the festival occurs exactly seven weeks after Passover (Exodus 34:22). [...]
Lag Ba'Omer Mark Podwal (b. 1945) Digitial archival pigment print on paper 7 7/16 x 7 9/16" USA, 2020 © Mark Podwal Beginning on the second night of Passover, Jews observe the ritual of Sefirat HaOmer (Counting the Omer), based on the Torah’s commandment to mark the time between the barley and wheat harvests (Deuteronomy [...]
Kashering for Passover Mark Podwal (b. 1945) Digitial archival pigment print on paper 7 7/16 x 7 9/16" USA, 2020 © Mark Podwal According to Jewish law, pots, dishes, and utensils that are used year-round absorb chametz (leaven) and therefore may not be used during Passover. To be used for Passover, they must go through [...]
Baking Matzah Mark Podwal (b. 1945) Digitial archival pigment print on paper 7 7/16 x 7 9/16" USA, 2020 © Mark Podwal Matzah at the seder (ritual service and ceremonial dinner) on the first night of Passover represents the unleavened bread that the Children of Israel ate in their haste to leave Egypt. In the [...]
Bringing Wheat to be Ground into Flour for Passover Mark Podwal (b. 1945) Digitial archival pigment print on paper 7 7/16 x 7 9/16" USA, 2020 © Mark Podwal The Torah prohibits the eating of leavened bread during the festival of Passover, which is also called “The Feast of Unleavened Bread” (Exodus 13:3). When the [...]
Shabbat Parah Mark Podwal (b. 1945) Digitial archival pigment print on paper 7 7/16 x 7 9/16" USA, 2020 © Mark Podwal Shabbat Parah, the “Shabbat of the Red Heifer,” is the third of four special Shabbats during the month or so before Passover. Shabbat Parah’s special Torah reading, Numbers: 19:1–22, describes a ceremony of [...]
