orthodox - Building a Jewish Life

Orthodox Pop Culture: Internet Earworms

Over the last couple of years, several really awesome Jewish earworms have made their way onto YouTube. (Earworms are songs you can’t get out of your head!) Just in case you missed them, here are some of my favorites! I get the feeling a lot more will appear in the Comments, which could make for […]

The Monster that Orthodox Conversion Has Become

You’ve already heard that conversion is like falling in love. But you may not know that getting an orthodox conversion can sometimes be like an abusive relationship. In a cosmic sign that I can’t escape this topic this week, Frum Satire posted yesterday “Stop Screwing with the Converts Already!“ The world Jewish community and Jewish […]

Shabbat Shalom: Orthodox Judaism Is a Full-Time Job

I have a shiur (lecture) by Rabbi Yom Tov Glasner that I really enjoy. It’s from Aish Audio and is called Practical Spirituality: How to Make the Right Choices. The title actually has very little to do with the shiur (at least to your average listener). It’s very much about the nature of reality, kabalistic […]

Halacha in a Nutshell: Tznius

Halacha in a Nutshell is a new series that does not aim to actually teach you halacha. The goal is to acquaint you with the general ideas of a halachic issue so that you can follow conversations without looking like a total n00b. Tznius is most often translated as “modesty,” and people usually use it […]

Orthodox Women Being Patronized by Feminists? Oh, Linguistic Irony!

I discovered a blog post today titled Frum, Fashion, and Feminism on the Jewish Women’s Archive’s Jewesses with Attitude blog. It started so well: talking about fashion becoming more open to modest designs and the orthodox women who are working towards that end (including the fabulous bloggers Chavi and Hadassah). Then I ran into the […]

A Response to a Very Good Question: Why Not Fake It ‘Til You Make It?

I saw a great question about conversions. I decided to post the question and my answer to that question here because I think that’s a struggle the overwhelming majority of orthodox converts face at some point in their process. How would you respond? THE QUESTION: Not to risk offending anybody, but I’d be curious as […]

The Lingering Effects of Chanukah

I wrote before that I didn’t “get” Chanukah (Shabbat Shalom! The Chanukah Edition). Well, I didn’t expect to be proven wrong so quickly! Somehow, I internalized Chanukah without even realizing it. How did I figure this out? I saw a LOT of TV on New Year’s and the week leading up to it. My family […]

Orthodoxy and Eating Disorders: Kosher Discipline to the Extreme

As someone new to full Jewish observance, I can tell you that the #1 practical lesson you learn from observance is discipline. This is also probably the hardest for people to learn, especially for us spoiled Americans! We take pride in not being “tied down” by rules, people, whatever. (Leaving aside the argument that we […]

Convert Issues: The Community Requirement

As I’ve mentioned several times here, a potential convert may have to move in order to complete his or her conversion. It may be an easy move or a very difficult one, depending on the convert and the community. Some may have to move across town, and some may have to move to a different […]

Taking a Shyne to Judaism! [Cue rimshot]

Since this blog is, in theory, about conversion, let’s talk about some converts! On a practical level, this is very useful knowledge because it’s inevitably going to come into a conversation: “Oh, you’re a convert?? Did you read the New York Times piece about Shyne??” Rap star Shyne has taken the Jewish and non-Jewish media […]