Strange Rosh Hashanah Customs

Join Rabbi Uri Cohen as he tries to understand the origins and meanings behind some of the seemingly strange traditions of Rosh HaShanah. We will examine eating the symbolic foods, dipping the apple in the honey, the perplexing problem of eating nuts, and the custom of not sleeping on Rosh Hashanah.

                                            
                                            Next Class
                                        September 10, 2026
4
Days
23
Hours
12
Mins

                                                Timezone
                                            
                                            Time of Class
                                        
                                                        Thursday                                                    

                                                        6:00 pm

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August 20, 2026 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Strange Rosh Hashanah Customs: Why Is It Okay to Have Symbolic Foods on Rosh Hashanah?

Class description

Handouts

RH1 Simanim Sheet By Rav Uri.pdf RH1 Creative Simanim Chart IN COLOR.pdf

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September 10, 2026 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Strange Rosh Hashanah Customs: Sleeping During the Day on Rosh Hashanah

Class description

Rabbi Uri Cohen

Rabbi Uri Cohen has been teaching at Midreshet Moriah since 2005. He learned at Yeshivat Shaalvim and Yeshivat Hamivtar, and received Semikhah from RIETS (YU) and Yeshivat Hamivtar. He also holds Masters degrees in Medieval Jewish History and Jewish Education from Yeshiva University. For two years, he was an ATID Fellow. Through Torah MiTzion, he and his wife Dr. Yocheved Engelberg Cohen served as the first members of the Syracuse Kollel, and later as the first couple of the Jewish Learning Initiative on Campus (JLIC) at Princeton University. They now live in Ramat Beit Shemesh. His eclectic lecture topics have included Talmudic Misogyny in Context, Harry Potter and the Value of Fantasy, Contemporary Orthodox Responses to Homosexuality, and How Not to Do Outreach.