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Other Bloggers’ Take on the Current Orthodox Conversion Hullabaloo and Kochava’s Proposed Solution

Frequent commenter Elle at On Becoming Devoted has written a post called The Reality of Conversion. I suggest that you all read it for another convert’s perspective on today’s orthodox conversion process! However, she focuses more on the after-conversion concerns, which can be just as painful (if not more so) than the initial conversion. I […]

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 […]

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 […]