Rosh Hodesh

Crescent moon and stars in a colorful, cloudy sky blending green, blue, and yellow hues.

The first of each Jewish month—the celebration of the new moon, its slender crescent barely visible in the night sky—is a day historically associated with women’s renewal and celebration.

In recent decades, Rosh Chodesh has become an occasion for Jewish women to gather for learning, ritual, and spiritual exploration, and to mark life passages. Rosh Chodesh groups, meeting monthly, offer a women’s space in time. (Some men’s gatherings have begun as well, sometimes associated with kiddush levanah, celebrating the coming full moon.)

Latest Rituals

“Even the angels must bend down, melt the snow in their hands / to smell its sweet fragrance.”
Close-up of a white rose with dew drops on its petals.
At sunset the oryx finds water inside shrubs. // Magician of the desert, it links its straight horns to the sky.
Embroidered branch with green leaves and clusters of pink flowers on a light fabric background.
“The comfort of your presence The call of my being toward your light…”
A red heart shape painted on the cracked, textured surface of a tree trunk with moss patches.
This ritual focuses on transforming grief through creative expression
Crescent moon and stars over a tranquil lake with grassy hills, under a purple twilight sky.
“Let Av hold what hurts. / Let it draw us near.”
Tree branches with dense, green, sunlit leaves hanging down, creating a shaded, tranquil atmosphere.
“The wilderness ahead blurs into an unknowable future…”
Vast desert landscape with rocky formations and a distant horizon under a partly cloudy sky.
“Ribono shel Olam / Make me like our mothers and heroines…”
Field of red flowers under a cloudy sky at sunset, with sun setting near the horizon and trees silhouetted.
A Responsive Reading for the month of Adar
Silhouetted bush against a golden sunrise in a misty field.
“Even in the ecosystem of things created by humans there remains the promise of Sovereignty…”
Ancient, sprawling tree with twisted branches and thick roots in a lush, green forest setting.
“They name boats after women – No wonder.”
Wooden rowboat on a calm lake with green lily pads and gentle reflections in the water.

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