10/02/2026
Moadim L'Simcha and Chag Sameach!
Today marks Hoshana Rabbah, the culmination of Sukkot, as we head into Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah β days of reflection, celebration, and renewal.
Simchat Torah is often called the most joyful day on the Jewish calendar. We finish reading the final words of Deuteronomy, and roll the scroll back to the beginning to start Genesis. It is a celebration of endurance, renewal, and carrying our story forward.
Throughout American history, that sense of continuity has traveled with Jewish service members wherever duty has called. During World War II, Korea, Vietnam, and in desert hangars across the Middle East, military chaplains carried compact, field-issue Torah scrolls packed into olive-drab kit bags. Troops gathered in tents, on ship decks, or on airstrips to dance their hakafot β holding that small scroll close, far from home, but rooted in thousands of years of tradition.
They proved what every generation of Jewish veterans know: we carry our traditions wherever duty calls us.
As we conclude the festival of Sukkot and celebrate Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah, we honor that enduring tradition and the generations of Jewish Americans who have carried it forward. May our community find strength in our shared heritage and real joy in the cycle ahead.
Chag Sameach to all our veterans, active-duty personnel, and families from Jewish War Veterans of the U.S.A.
Have a photo or memory of marking the holidays in the field or on base? Share it with us below!
Photo Credit: Petty Officer 1st Class Gino Flores / Jeffrey Schultze