Rabbi & Rebbetzin Corner

November has arrived! Naturally, Thanksgiving and Veterans Day are the stars of the 11th month of the year, given that both are federal holidays. But aside from those two showstoppers, there are plenty of other observances, awareness days and November holidays to mark down on your calendar. Among them you'll find a variety of food holidays including National Lemon Cream Pie Day, French Toast Day, Cake Day, Gingerbread Cookie Day, Stuffing Day, Apple Cider Day and Cranberry Relish Day, just to name a few.

November is a fall month of harvest, pumpkin pies, and the peak of our fall colorful leaves in Coastal Virginia. November is a month filled with warmth, reflection, and preparation. As autumn transitions to winter in the Northern Hemisphere and spring blooms into summer in the Southern Hemisphere, November offers a mix of seasonal beauty and cultural richness. It’s a time for gratitude, with Thanksgiving celebrations in the United States, and a period for honoring history and traditions through observances Veterans Day. Thanksgiving falls on Thursday, November 26th, 2026.

November is the 11th month of the Gregorian calendar. Its name is derived from “novem”, Latin for “nine,” an indication of its position as the ninth month in the early Roman calendar. November is the last of four months to have a length of 30 days (the other three are April, June, and September). There is still time to register and attend the MJAA Southeast Reginal Conference in Orlando, Florida next month, December 18th – 20th, 2026! This conference is a profound way to show your love and support for the Jewish people! To stand with us in solidarity. https://mjaa.org/southeast2026/

November has witnessed significant historical events. On November 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. The Berlin Wall fell on November 9, 1989, marking a pivotal moment of the end of the Cold War. Additionally, November 19, 1978, saw the tragic Jonestown mass suicide in Guyana. It is always a relief in November when the clocks turn back, and we all get an extra hour of sleep. But get your extra beauty sleep in while you can. There is growing consensus that changing the clocks twice a year is not necessary and may be eliminated in the future. This year the clocks are set back one hour at 2:00AM November 1st, 2026.

     The official birthday of the United States Marine Corps is November 10th, 1775, when the Second Continental Congress established the Continental Marines during the American Revolution. The Marine Corps celebrates this date annually to honor their legacy of honor, courage, and commitment. The United States Marines were tasked to conduct ship-to-ship fighting, provide shipboard security and discipline enforcement, and assist in landing forces. Its mission evolved with changing military doctrine and foreign policy of the United States. Owing to the availability of Marine forces at sea, the United States Marine Corps has served in nearly every conflict in United States history! Semper Fi!

Veterans Day occurs on Wednesday November 11th, 2026, It is an official United States public holiday that honors military veterans, that is, persons who served in the United States Armed Forces. It coincides with other holidays, including Armistice Day and Remembrance Day, celebrated in other countries that mark the anniversary of the end of World War I; major hostilities of World War I were formally ended at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, when the Armistice with Germany went into effect. The United States previously observed Armistice Day. The U.S. holiday was renamed Veterans Day in 1954.  Veterans Day is not to be confused with Memorial Day; Veterans Day celebrates the service of all U.S. military veterans, while Memorial Day honors those who died while in military service.
 
        We experienced the Presence of Adonai profoundly in our Yom Teruah, [EC2] Ten Days of Awe, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, and Simchat Torah Services last September and October! A season of repenting, forgiveness, Joy and Happiness! We look forward to celebrating Thanksgiving as a nation. The traditional teaching for the "First Thanksgiving" is the celebration that occurred at the site of Plymouth Plantation, in 1621, however that wasn’t the first. The Plymouth celebration occurred early in the history of what would become one of the original thirteen colonies which became the United States. However, there was another, more modest Thanksgiving at Berkley Plantation, Virginia on the banks of the James River in 1619, two years before the Pilgrims even landed at Plymouth.

Thanksgiving is celebrated by gathering with loved ones, sharing a festive meal, and expressing gratitude through traditions and activities. Traditional Thanksgiving celebrations are often centered around a family meal, typically featuring roasted turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, green bean casserole, baked macaroni & cheese, and pies like pumpkin, apple, or pecan. Many families also break the turkey wishbone, watch football games, or tune into the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade as part of the festivities. Thanksgiving is about expressing gratitude to God for His providence and blessings upon us! A key part of Thanksgiving is sharing what you’re thankful for. Some families create a Thankful Tree, where everyone writes their blessings on cards and hangs them on branches. Others may go around the table during dinner to verbally express gratitude, fostering a sense of connection and reflection.

The act of Thanksgiving is biblical, not the American holiday, but the act.  It is a sacrifice of thanks commanded in Torah where one gives heartfelt thanks to Adonai for many reasons including but not limited to: recovery from illness, delivered from danger, safe return home from a trip or journey, provision and sustenance, or any other reason for thanking Adonai for His blessings:

Leviticus 7:12. If a person offers it for giving thanks (todah {to-dah'}: to give thanks, laud, praise, to confess, give praise to God, songs of liturgical worship in the Psalms, hymn of praise, thanks offering, sacrifice of thanksgiving), he is to offer it with the thanksgiving sacrifice (Zevach Todah: Zevach is an animal sacrifice but is not a Korban, not a sin sacrifice. It’s a sacrifice of covenant righteousness-fellowship with God) of unleavened cakes mixed with olive oil, matzah spread with olive oil, and cakes made of fine flour mixed with olive oil and fried.

Todah is an act of worship whose root word is Yadah, is from the root yad that means hand. So Yada is an extended hand, worshipping the Lord with extended hands. "Thanksgiving" (Todah) is an extension of the hands, avowal, adoration, the kehillah, the congregation of worshippers offering a sacrifice of praise.  In Leviticus 9:22 Aaron raised his hands toward the people and blessed them after offering the sacrifice.  Raised hands signifies praise and worship, accepted of sacrifices, and blessings!  We raise our hands to give thanks for the blessings in our lives to the glory of God.  We find Yada being used when Adonai intervened in the affairs of His people with miraculous deliverance.  Yadah is our response to answered prayers and when Adonai reveals Himself through His word, through revelation, or the manifestation of His presence. Yadah is a believer’s natural response for Adonai’s blessing upon us or His divine intervention on our behalf. As you gather with family and friends this Thanksgiving give thanks to the Lord for all that He has done for you and all that He will do for you! Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, and His mercy endures forever! This is the very purpose of this day, give Him thanks!!

May you have a blessed and peaceful Thanksgiving!

Rabbi and Rebbetzin Carlson!