If my husband and I had tried to meet through an online dating site, it never would have worked. He would have said he’s looking for a woman who enjoys an active, outdoorsy lifestyle. I would have said I like to sit on couches. Indoors. I also like to sit on beaches (but only if indoors […]

In the past year, dozens of high profile comments worldwide have been called “anti-Semitic.” While labeling them this way may discourage the speaker from using similar rhetoric in the future, that isn’t always the case. Additionally, not every act of violence, teasing or, hate against Jews is the same in intent or outcome. In the […]

All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost. – J.R.R. Tolkien The journey to and from Orthodox Judaism can leave people bruised. If you’re coming in, your family may reject your choices and your new adopted community may waste no […]

Exactly six months to the day after congregants at Tree of Life, a Conservative Synagogue, were gunned down by a White Supremacist, another of his ilk, on the other end of the country, showed up at a Chabad House, an Orthodox Shul, with the same intent: to kill as many Jews as possible. As the […]

No longer confined to yoga and meditation enthusiasts, modern society is attuned to the benefits of mindfulness. Yet what does it have to offer the Jewish spiritual seeker? Jon Kabat-Zinn, a mindfulness-practice teacher, and developer of the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) technique, defines mindfulness as an “awareness that arises through paying attention, on purpose, in […]