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Back to School as a Jew? Here’s What No One Tells You | Jewish Back-to-School Part 1

August 6, 2025

Back to School, But Make It Jewish Whether it’s preschool or grad school, back-to-school prep isn’t just about new pencils and fresh planners. For Jewish families, students, and seekers, this time of year brings a whole new layer of questions: How do I fit Shabbat into a school schedule? What does Jewish rhythm look like […]

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What NOT to Do When Converting to Judaism

July 27, 2025

Converting to Judaism is already hard… don’t make it harder. I’ve spent over 15 years helping people navigate the Jewish conversion process—and I’ve made more than a few mistakes myself. Some of them were honest. Some were based in fear or confusion. And some… well, I didn’t know any better. But here’s the thing: there

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Is Your Dad Jewish But Not Mom? Do Patrilineal Jews Need to Convert?

July 23, 2025

Am I Jewish Enough? Let’s Talk About Patrilineal Descent and Conversion You grew up Jewish. You lit candles, you went to Hebrew school, maybe even had a bar or bat mitzvah. And then—someone told you you’re not really Jewish. Welcome to the heartbreakingly common experience of patrilineal Jews. In this video, I break down what

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Who’s On Your Team During Jewish Conversion?

July 1, 2025

Jewish conversion can feel like you’re scaling a mountain that no one else sees.You’re putting in the effort, doing the work, asking the questions—and still wondering if anyone notices. If anyone gets it. But you’re not as alone as you think. Today’s step is simple, but powerful:Name one supportive person you can lean on.A friend.

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Dealing with Holiday Season Grief

December 24, 2024

I made this video last year, but apparently I never posted it here! Building a new workflow for my material has been surprisingly hard. Too many moving parts! But better late than never, right? Struggling with your old holiday seasons as you become Jewish? Not at all unusual. Whether you loved them or hated them

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Berating Google

July 4, 2012

I’m a lawyer, and that means I try to be precise with my language. I don’t always succeed, but I try. So this means I do a lot of Google searches of “define X” to make sure I’m using a word correctly for the idea I’m conveying. I don’t remember why, but I wanted to

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Why I’m Not Going by My Hebrew Name

February 27, 2012

It’s been almost two months since my conversion. I have been shocked that the most common question I am asked is, “So what do I call you now?” Of all the things to ask about a conversion, that’s the first thing that comes to mind?? Maybe it’s the most polite (and practical) thing to ask,

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Should You Make Up a “Jew-y” Name for Yourself?

February 15, 2012

Disclaimer: All names in this post are completely made up (and often from random name generators). If I happened to accidentally choose your name, I apologize. Well, except for the famous names. I just felt like using those. It’s very common for converts to take on a Hebrew name as their “everyday” name, even if

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Judge Favorably, But Don’t Ignore Red Flags

February 3, 2012

I have a big rallying point that I try to drive home in the born-Jewish community: Conversion candidates are the canaries in the mine of Judaism. If you don’t know the analogy, here’s what Wikipedia has to say: “Canaries were once regularly used in coal mining as an early warning system. Toxic gases such as carbon monoxide, methane

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Why Being an Orthodox Jew Is Expensive

January 23, 2012

There is a lot that can be said on this topic, but we’re going to touch on the major causes superficially. This is basically a warning to make sure you realize what you’re getting into. After the steep cost of the initial set-up, living Jewishly doesn’t seem that much more expensive to the average single

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