Tu B’Shvat is a Jewish holiday that’s considered the New Year of the Trees. Tu stands for the number 15, and Shvat is the name of the month in which the holiday falls. The fifteenth of Shvat, which falls in the winter, is the official date of this New Year—one of four new years on the Jewish calendar!

Tu B’Shvat, also called the “birthday of trees,” takes place in the dead of winter. You might think that the spring, when the trees blossom and bloom, would be a much more appropriate time. Or maybe even autumn, when the trees display their brilliant colors. But winter, when we celebrate the life of the trees, is a time when the trees seem least alive. Many are completely bare and look all but dead. To understand why Tu B’Shvat is the New Year for Trees, we have to look beneath the surface…

In this episode, Fellowship President and CEO Yael Eckstein shares about the celebration of Tu B’Shvat, and the lessons we can learn from this joyous ancient observance.

Listen now—then see what you know about this Jewish celebration of God’s Creation!

And listen to more of Yael’s Bible teachings on her daily podcast, The Chosen People.

Six years ago, The Fellowship lost its beloved founder, and Yael Eckstein lost her beloved father. The sudden passing of Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein on February 6, 2019, left a hole in the hearts of so many—his family, his friends, and the millions of lives touched by his lifework.

On this podcast, Yael celebrates her father’s extraordinary life with a special guest—Beryl Eckstein, her father’s younger brother. In this very personal and emotional episode, Beryl recalls growing up with Yechiel, walks us through the early, painful days when his brother was ostracized by the Jewish community for his work reaching out to Christians, and honors the lasting legacy of Rabbi Eckstein’s historic bridge-building work.

You won’t want to miss this inspiring tribute to a man whose vision literally changed the course of Jewish-Christian relations.

For more information on today’s episode visit mybiblicalroots.org.

What does it really mean to be kind? The definition of kindness, according to Jewish thought, is not be as simple as we might think.

On today’s podcast, host Yael Eckstein explores Jewish teachings from the Bible about what true kindness is… and what it isn’t. And these lessons can be gleaned from the biblical laws of eating kosher! We’ll also discover how acts of authentic kindness can impact our lives in ways we could never imagine.

Listen now!

And listen to more of Yael’s teachings from the Bible on her daily podcast, The Chosen People.