Sometimes conversion candidates can get so frustrated by Jews who are “bad Jews” in their mind. You have to go through hell and back and basically get a seminary/yeshiva education, but people who just happened to be born Jewish can and will drive to synagogue on Shabbat. Women can and will dress tznius in synagogue […]
Revisiting the Double Standard Read Post »
While researching yesterday’s post for conversion gift ideas, I came across one of the strangest bits of Judaica I’ve ever seen: The Mitzvah Measure. It is “[a] tape measure that contains measurements in accordance with Jewish Law such as tefachim, amot, minimum sizes for lulavim, etc.” I thought these measurements were hotly contested by the rabbonim;
Jewish Resources Are Getting Weirder and Weirder Read Post »
You know someone who is about to complete or has recently completed a conversion. Very graciously, you want to give that person a gift. I don’t think Miss Manners writes about which gifts are appropriate for this occasion, so we need to figure that out for ourselves. I will present my suggestions, but please feel free
Gift Ideas for a Conversion Read Post »
You’ve been invited to a Shabbat meal. That’s great! But oh no, they’ve asked you to contribute something towards the meal! As a halachic non-Jew, this can raise a lot of kashrut issues. So what are your options? Bring nothing and simply enjoy the hospitality of your host. Being an overly polite Southerner, I don’t
As a female who still has plenty to learn, I understand that my male readers get somewhat shortchanged because I don’t have experience with some things that concern them. Thanks to a generous offer for a guest post, today you get to read some practical information about tzitzit and tallitot! Women, keep in mind that
Guest Post: The Practical Guide to Tzitzit and Talleisim Read Post »
For an introduction to hechshers, read What Are Hechshers and Why Do I Care? Now let’s go more in-depth to hechshers. Conversion candidates and others new to kashrut get hechsher-dependent and get anxious about eating anything without a hechsher because we don’t trust our own knowledge (or may still lack that knowledge). What kinds of products
Things That Don’t Need a Hechsher Read Post »
Since I became observant of the kosher laws while living in a largely non-Jewish area, I got a lot of practice in explaining kashrut in a quick-and-dirty way. This is what I came up with, and maybe it will be useful to you! Eating kosher is essentially three levels of paying attention to what you
Explaining Kashrut to the Clueless Read Post »
It seems that many conversion candidates discover Judaism while in school, whether high school, college, grad school, professional school, whatever. When you already feel overwhelmed (hopefully) by your studies, how on earth could you become shomer Shabbat? In my case, I fell victim to that kind of thought process in college. Just like I thought I couldn’t
UPDATED: Schoolwork v. Shabbat Read Post »
Every single conversion syllabus and potential beit din question list asks about Rambam’s 13 Principles of Faith. Rambam’s list attempts to distill the key ideas of Judaism. If you can not accept these principles, you cannot convert orthodox. I don’t know how the other movements stand on these principles, but I was required to know
Rambam’s 13 Principles of Faith Read Post »
The existence of synagogue membership fees always seems to be a major shock to the new conversion candidate. Coming from mainstream American society, voluntary donations during a religious service are the expected way for the average person to donate money to a religious organization (whether the candidate was involved in Christianity or not). Now, as
Convert Questions: What’s Up with Synagogue Membership Fees?? Read Post »