I recently finished “The Modern Jewish Girl’s Guide to Guilt.” I was interested in reading it for many reasons. I wanted to read about Judaism through the eyes of people who don’t live in the Orthodox world I live in. I wanted to understand Judaism through the eyes of secular Jews. I also wanted to… Continue reading Jewish Guilt is Heavy
The number one question you want to ask a convert is exactly the question you shouldn’t ask. Asking someone why they converted, just after meeting them, is a little like asking to see their underwear. Don’t you realize you’re asking us to get very naked about something deeply personal in a crowd full of strangers?… Continue reading What to say and what not to say to a convert…(Rough Draft)
It was painful to watch but I couldn’t look away. The rabbi was having everyone go around the Shabbat table introducing themselves. It started harmlessly enough. But when the rabbi got to the darkest face in the room, it got a little ugly. “Hello! My name is X and I’m from Israel,” the woman said… Continue reading Born Jewish?
There are two little rumors about Jews that I have been asked about pretty often. I’ve been asked if Jews have sex through a sheet and I’ve been asked why a rabbi blessing the food makes it kosher. Oh boy, luckily, “Jew in the City” is clearing things up for the world at large. So… Continue reading Mysterious Rumors
Yes, I have been writing a lot about race lately. This is much to the ire of one friend who keeps trying to convince me that race is meaningless. Check out the “Ashkenazi Privilege Checklist” another friend forwarded to me. Ashkenazi Privilege Checklist The checklist was created by Corrine Lightweaver, Sasha King, and the Jewish… Continue reading Ashkenazi Privilege Checklist
Life is often funny. While I’m trying to sell a story about how one of my conversion rabbis, Elie Weinstock, told me I couldn’t set foot in a church again and my acquiescence led to losing a friendship, my head conversion rabbi, Haskel Lookstein, headed to church himself. His reason? None other than Barack Obama,… Continue reading My Rabbi Goes to Church
I just finished writing rewriting this article for a Jewish writing class and I can’t bear that I don’t know when, if ever, it will see the light of day. So, I’m hoping some of you speed readers will give it a second chance and let me know what you think. Redefining Community: Ari Hart… Continue reading I ♥ Ari Hart
How Church Came Between My Friendship… When I was converting to Judaism, I asked a rabbi if I could walk into a church again. I wasn’t planning on returning for services but I had my sights on visiting the Sistine Chapel someday. It was also a question that bothered many of my Christian friends, particularly… Continue reading Between Church and Friendship
In “How to convert a crisis: Say ‘dayenu’”, Shammai Engelmayer does a pretty good job of summing up the current conversion crisis. At LimmudNY, Seth Farber, head of ITIM, did him one better. I sat in on one of Farber’s LimmudNY session, “Conversion Chaos.” This is how the session was billed: “Since 2004, conversion to… Continue reading Conversion Chaos
Cute photo from the website. Orthodox Conversion to Judaism is the new, official website of the Rabbinical Council of America Geirus (Conversion) Policies and Standards (GPS) Network. It’s clean, sleek and to the point. Hopefully, I’m not the last one to find out about it. I haven’t had a chance to view the site in… Continue reading It’s official!
Memoirs of a Jewminicana 