In the Talmud, the rabbis require that a potential convert be asked a pretty specific question: The rabbis taught: When someone nowadays presents himself for conversion, we say to him: “Why do you wish to convert? Are you not aware that nowadays Israelites are careworn, stressed, despised, harassed and persecuted?”If he responds, “I know, and […]

Several years ago, I wrote about my bentchophobia and how it strikes many of us when we enter the frum world. I can’t say I’ve improved much over the years. I still frequently avoid eating bread, solely because I’m still a slow Hebrew reader and bentcher. Sure, I have bentching memorized by now, but it

Gather round, friends. I want to talk to you about something near and dear to my heart: you do not need to “speak Yeshivish” to be frum. If you want to, that’s fine. But I don’t want you spending time beating yourself up over the idea that you “don’t talk like everyone else talks.” Elul

People tend to fall into two camps: those who don’t advocate for themselves and people who are always advocating for themselves.  As a society, we tend to deride that second group of people. But why? Is their behavior really that annoying or are we jealous? I can’t answer that categorically, but in at least some

Oh gee willikers, guys. There’s so much going on. And I can finally share it with you!  First, let’s talk about some personal stuff. I fell off the face of the earth recently, and now I can tell you why: I’m finally pregnant for the first time, and I’ve been sick as a dog. In

You’ve probably seen this phrase really often but may not even know it, especially if you don’t yet read Hebrew. Most notably, it has been written on (sewed onto) every challah cover I’ve ever seen. For example: So what’s it all about? Meaning & Usage It means “in honor of/for the honor of Shabbat and