Isn’t it confusing? Won’t it be confusing for your children? People constantly ask me these questions. They think being Dominican, American and Jewish sounds really complicated. Mostly, they’re trying to put a damper on my multicultural mojo. So here I am in Los Angeles for Pesach (Passover) stocking up on yucca and plantains so I… Continue reading Cultural Confusion
Hallelujah, shalom: Rabbi Funnye singing at Shabbat services. (Alec Soth/Magnum, for The New York Times) Conservative rabbi (and convert) Rabbi Capers Funnye is putting the black back in Judaism. (Okay, so it was already there.) And the New York Times noticed. They profiled him in a piece called “Barack Obama’s Rabbi”. The piece also gives… Continue reading Barack Obama’s Rabbi
I feel like these thing sneak up on me and punch me in the gut. So there we were sitting all unassuming like, before Pesach (Passover), in the Fish Grill, my favorite place to eat in Los Angeles. My husband and I were wedged into a corner table when some guys plopped down in the… Continue reading Punched in the gut
Confession: I’m not a big blog reader. I have a list of favorites that I’m always falling behind on. And yet, lately, I’ve found myself pretty faithful to one particular blog. “The Jewish Writing Project wants your stories. The blog celebrates Jewish life by giving Jews of all shapes and sizes the opportunity to tell… Continue reading Jewish Life in the Present (and Past) Tense
I remember the taste of freedom. After running away from home, after kidnapping and winning custody of my sister, I was free. I felt so free and happy, I started on a journey that began in church and led to my eventual conversion to Judaism. My first Pesach, I wanted to write my own Haggadah… Continue reading Let Freedom Ring
My sister is in New York missing out on the Passover festivities. When I told her we would be going away for Passover, she asked where she was supposed to go for her seders. And no, my sister’s not Jewish. She called me up to tell me she’s watching Season 2 of Buffy the Vampire… Continue reading Did you hear the one about…?
Oy. Now I have to practice my Spanish, learn Hebrew and Ladino. I’m going to need a good long life for this kind of venture. I’m actually doing much better in Ladino than Hebrew. Can you guess which Pesach song this is?
Jewlicious Responds to Newsweek‘s “Is Your Rabbi Hot or Not?” with signature snarkiness. Jewlicious asked me via Twitter to take a look. I didn’t expect to get riled up but then I noticed the line, “What kind of name for a rabbi is ‘Rolando’?” Jewlicious was poking fun at Rabbi J. Rolando Matalon who was… Continue reading Spanish People Revolt!
Read the article “8 Things NEVER to Say to a Mixed-Race Colleague” and then you’ll understand my 8 responses. 1. Do people actually ask this directly? Jesus! 2. I look foreign as compared to what? 3. See? I don’t make this stuff up. Apparently, mixed race people get told they’ll make beautiful babies all the… Continue reading Did you really just say that?
The Jerusalem Post story, “Spiritual odyssey turned nightmare” introduces us to Rachel, an Orthodox convert whose conversion in Rome was recognized by the Chief Rabbinate of Israel but not the Interior Ministry. Oh yeah and she’s married to a kashrut supervisor, she’s pregnant and living in Israel without any rights. But Rachel’s not as worried… Continue reading So this is Zionism?
Memoirs of a Jewminicana 