Tu B'Shevat 2026

TU B'SHEVAT, the "New Year for Trees," begins this evening at sundown. Best wishes to all those celebrating.

Last year's Tu B'Shevat post is here.

For biblical background, see here. The name "New Year for Trees" comes from Mishnah Rosh HaShanah 1.1. That passage gives two alternative dates for the celebration, one from Shammai and one from Hillel. Hillel's date (15 Shevat) is the one celebrated at present. The Hebrew phrase Tu B'Shevat means "the 15th of Shevat."

The first link above gives last year's date range for the holiday on the top right. Hopefully, this will be corrected by the time you see it.

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Strickler, Early Byzantine Apocalyptic Discourses (Brill)

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:

Early Byzantine Apocalyptic Discourses

Coping with Crises in the Sixth and Seventh Centuries

Series:
Brill's Series on the Early Middle Ages, Volume: 32

Author: Ryan W. Strickler

The Byzantine Empire faced many threats, but few were as great as the events of the sixth and seventh centuries, when paranoia, plagues, and wars threatened to tear the empire apart. Like today, prophets predicted horrors to come while preachers called on their congregations to repent. This book considers how the Byzantines understood the crises of the period and their role in divine history by reframing their troubles through an apocalyptic lens. While most scholars have interpreted these messages as a prediction of the end, this book argues for a different reading, understanding them instead as messages of hope.

Copyright Year: 2026

E-Book (PDF)
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-74588-9
Publication: 27 Oct 2025
EUR €110.00

Hardback
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-74585-8
Publication: 06 Nov 2025
EUR €110.00

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