Click this photo to read our Passover story.
HOLIDAYS CONVERGE THIS YEAR
PASSOVER—Start with this overview by Holidays columnist Stephanie Fenton, who explains the background of this festival that is the most widely observed Jewish tradition each year. Over the past decade, our online magazine has published more than a hundred Passover-themed stories and we are recommending some of our most popular holiday reading:
Debra Darvick shares Passover reflections from her book This Jewish Life.
Our Feed The Spirit columns, over the years, have published delicious Passover stories including tasty recipes. Here’s a story that includes Vegetable Kugel you can make at home. And here’s a column with a great recipe for potato gnocchi, a preparation that can be made kosher for Passover.
Fanny Neuda’s Passover prayer was written more than 150 years ago and was recovered by poet Dinah Berland—and Dinah gave us permission to publish that prayer 10 years ago! Since we first published that text, thousands of readers around the world have read that prayer in our pages.
Rabbi Bob Alper is famous coast to coast as the rabbi who does clean standup routines—and often has appeared on stage with comedians who are Christian and Muslim to promote interfaith understanding. Bob has written many stories, and two books, for us over the past decade. Here’s one of our most popular Bob Alper columns about the stories he tells in Life Doesn’t Get Any Better Than This.
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AND HAPPY EASTER, TOO!
Click this image to read about Resurrecting Easter.
2018 NEWS—We’ve been writing about the Christian season of Lent, looking forward to Easter, for more than a month, so this week we’re devoting our top holiday billing to Passover. But you’ll also find lots of inspiring stories about Easter in our online magazine. Our major news in 2018 is featured in this interview with Bible scholar John Dominic Crossan about the different perspectives on Jesus’s resurrection that he and his colleagues uncovered in ancient images throughout the Mediterranean world.
HOLY DAYS BEFORE EASTER—All this week, Christian families are preparing for Easter. For many it’s simply cooking, cleaning or packing to travel home for a big holiday dinner. Churches also host ancient celebrations of the “Paschal Triduum,” special days recalling the events in Jesus’ life. Stephanie Fenton explores those rich religious traditions.
OUR EASTER STORY—Stephanie Fenton reports on this holiday for 2 billion Western Christians around the world. (Eastern Christians celebrate April 8, this year.) Stephanie’s column also includes some terrific web links for Do It Yourself Easter eggs, including glittering, “chalk board” and glow-in-the-dark eggs for a night-time Easter egg hunt.
Want to see all the holidays? www.InterfaithHolidays.com
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Click the pope to read Susan’s column.
RIDING THE WAVES OF HOLIDAYS
FRONT EDGE PUBLISHING—In this week’s Front Edge Publishing column, marketing expert Susan Stitt writes about tapping into the excitement and fun of Holidays and Festivals to energize your audience on social media. She also recommends some great holiday resources online—including some fun websites that recommend hashtag-ready ideas for highlighting festivals. Want to learn more about publishing today? Please, share this home address with friends: www.FrontEdgePublishing.com
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A BIG FISH TALE OF FAMILY PERSEVERANCE
GOD SIGNS—This week, Suzy Farbman’s column is quite literally a big fish story, because fisherman and golfer Conrad Freeman enjoys those sports. But it’s more than a sports story. This is a story of how Conrad and his family support each other in the face of a debilitating condition. Enjoy Conrad’s story and share it with a friend who might need a little good news, this week.
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FAITH & FILM
Click this movie still to read Ed’s review of Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool.
ED McNULTY, for decades, has published reviews, magazine articles and books exploring connections between faith and film. Most of his work is freely published. Ed supports his work by selling the Visual Parables Journal, a monthly magazine packed with discussion guides to films. This resource is used coast-to-coast by individuals who love the movies and by educators, clergy and small-group leaders.
Among Ed’s free reviews and columns are:
- FILM STARS DON’T DIE IN LIVERPOOL—Ed says this “heart-felt romantic film,” based on the real life of actress Gloria Grahame, has an excellent cast of actors who make us care deeply about the fate of these star-crossed lovers. (4 out of 5 stars).
- I CAN ONLY IMAGINE—Ed writes, “This moving faith-based film is set up as a story behind Christian rocker Bart Millard’s hit song, but it can best be seen as a father-son tale embodying the theme of forgiveness and reconciliation.” (4 stars)
- THE PARTY—Ed writes, “British writer-director Sally Potter’s film is labeled a comedy, but the members of the motley crew who come to the party are not laughing. The only ones in the theater laughing are those in the audience, and unless they are hopeless cynics, their laughter will be uncomfortable.” (4 stars)
- PHANTOM THREAD—Most of the attention to this new movie has gone to Daniel Day Lewis, but the real revelation here is the performance of actress Vicky Krieps, writes Ed about the film. (4 out of 5 stars)
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Click the image to read about Black Panther.
BLACK PANTHER—The film is spectacular, says Ed.
- LIVING BIBLICALLY—Want to talk with friends about the new CBS series? Ed has this discussion guide for The Year of Living Biblically. Also, Ed offers this review of the series. Plus, Ed interviewed the series creator Patrick Walsh.
- MOLLY’S GAME—Ed writes, “As a story about trying to preserve one’s integrity amidst sordid circumstances, this is a film worthy of your time and money, especially because Aaron Sorkin deals with a female protagonist this time. There is also a heart-warming scene of reconciliation, making this a good addition to my list of father-daughter films.” (4 stars)
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