In 2013, a Hasidic filmmaker took the world by storm with her critically acclaimed feature length film, Fill the Void. It was distributed by Sony Pictures and premiered at the Venice Film Festival. Its writer-director, Rama Burstein, is a hasidic baalas teshuva, whose newest effort, The Wedding Plan, comes out this weekend (it opens May 12 in […]
The Jews Who Saved Monticello Thomas Jefferson is buried at Monticello, his estate in Charlottesville, Virginia, along with Rachel Phillips Levy, a traditional Jew. How did a Jewish grave end up in Monticello? The answer lies in the history of a family whose own story is every bit as American as that of Jefferson himself. […]
On mikvah night, my husband leaves me a present. Not every month, not all the time, lest I expect it and no longer appreciate it. He started over twenty years ago when we had just gotten married. I don’t know how he first thought to do it, but it’s so incredibly sweet and wonderful […]
People might often think of Orthodox Jewish women as “barefoot and pregnant,” but probably don’t think of them as “pregnant and running marathons!” Beatie Deutsch, an American-born mother (of now five!) grew up athletic but stopped formal sports activities for many years when she started a family. Then, on a whim a couple years ago, […]
Dear Jew in the City- In the new movie Guardians of the Galaxy, aliens from all over the universe team up to save the day. What does Judaism say about life on other planets? Sincerely, Spaced Out Dear Space- It may not surprise you that people think a lot about the afterlife. Is […]
For the last four years, chefs from all over the world have tried to “Beat Bobby Flay” on the Food Network show of the same name. They have gone head to head with this culinary legend, cooking red prawn, scallops, fish squid, and pork chops. But last week, Top Chef alum, Alex Reznik, of LA […]
