Noemie Lopian’s father wrote a book called, The Long Night, that sat on a shelf by itself in their house. It was a constant, living in the background of her childhood. When Noemie read its contents, she was 36 years old. What she found out changed the course of her life. It was her father’s […]
The Talmud tells us to do something strange on Purim: drink until you don’t know the difference between “blessed is Mordechai” and “cursed is Haman” (“ad d’lo yada”). This is a surprising statement. Judaism generally doesn’t promote getting drunk. And why would we want to be confused about not knowing the difference between blessing Mordechai (the […]
When it comes to Jewish holidays, some often joke that the celebrations revolve around a similar pattern: “They [our enemies] tried to kill us, they couldn’t kill us, so let’s eat!” Chanukah originates in the middle of a literal war on our Jewish way of life. Surviving forced assimilation by threat of death is a […]
Dear Jew in the City, Is it a problem to give and get gifts on Chanukah? Why do we do it? Sincerely, Cindy Dear Cindy, Thanks very much for your question. I have complicated feelings regarding the practice of exchanging gifts on Chanukah. On the one hand, I really like to give gifts; it’s kind […]
Having three teenage daughters, body image is a huge topic in my house. I hear my girls and their friends obsess over how they look, and it’s hard to hear. I desperately want to raise them with a healthy sense of body confidence. I want them to be comfortable in their skin — to feel […]
Rosh Hashana is also known as the day of judgment. We enter a proverbial courtroom and face G-d’s judgement from the past year. The day seems solemn and can invoke terror within, but if you look at the way we celebrate the holiday, it doesn’t fit in at all. We get dressed up in beautiful […]
