The Talmudic story of the four who entered Pardes sticks with me. It’s definitely in my Jewish Story Top 10. I couldn’t tell you why. Maybe it shows I’ve got a 1/4 chance of making it out of this conversion alive and mentally/emotionally/religiously intact. Four men entered pardes: Ben Azzai, Ben Zoma, Acher [“the other […]
Interpretation of the Torah, Pardes, and Kabbalah Read Post »
I don’t know how it happens, but the phrase “beged ish” pops up in the most random of contexts. Perhaps that says something about the people saying it, but I’ll leave that to you. Beged ish is Hebrew for “a man’s garment.” In short, men and women aren’t supposed to wear the clothing of the
Phrase of the Day: Beged Ish Read Post »
When you’re new to converting, it can be hardest to figure out why everyone freaks out when you get a little too close to the wine bottle. What’s that about? (And later on, you get freaked out by how many people don’t know these laws and try to hand you the wine bottle!) Let’s discuss.
Non-Mevushal Wine Survival Tips Read Post »
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 »
This is something that perplexes me. When I first began learning the brachot (blessings), I could not understand why water doesn’t have its own blessing. I even contacted a rabbi to ask what blessing we say on water because I believed that I simply missed it. I still don’t understand, so I thought I would
Why Does Water Not Have Its Own Bracha? Read Post »
As many Jews throughout the ages have unfortunately discovered, most mitzvot can be violated for the sake of saving a human life. In fact, it then becomes a mitzvah to disregard that mitzvah. (In other words, saving a life “outranks” the other mitzvah, so that the other one no longer applies.) But not all mitzvot
Exceptions to Pikuach Nefesh (Saving a Life) Read Post »
This is my first post on Torah, but I just can’t resist this parsha. The story of the spies is one of my favorites, and last year, it was even the parsha when I visited Eretz Yisrael for the first time! Appropriate, right? The spies became a kind of analogy for my Birthright group, which
Parsha Shlach: The Spies, the Ayin Tov, and Converts Read Post »
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 »