Dear Jew in the City, Does a couple have to get divorced if they don’t produce children? Sincerely, Karen Dear Karen, Thanks for your question. Once again, I’m going to reiterate the distinction between halacha and halacha l’maaseh, i.e., between Jewish law and its practical application. Not everything you may see in the law codes […]

Dear Jew in the City, In My Unorthodox Life, Julia says in Judaism a man can divorce his wife if she burns his food, but she can’t divorce him even if he beats her. Is this really true? Thanks, Hana Dear Hana, First of all, don’t believe everything you see on TV. The burnt food […]

Now that the public has seen some (or all) of Netflix’s new series, My Unorthodox Life, the people who know Julia Haart (Talia Hendler) are forward to clarify that this show is almost more fiction than it is true. This family, while in the blackhat world, was on the left wing side of it. Many of […]

Dear Jew in the City- Do we have the concept of soulmates in Judaism? Can you have more than one? Thank you, Annie Dear Annie- Thanks for your question. We do indeed have such a concept in Judaism; most people refer to it using the Yiddish word “bashert” (meaning one’s “destined” mate). And it shouldn’t […]

The solution to end the agunah crisis has been found, despite most people not realizing it. All we need now is universal buy in from the entire Jewish community. The Organization for the Resolution of Agunot (ORA) has been on the frontlines for the past decade, courageously combatting the issues of a get refusal and […]

It was during a recent Friday night dinner with my family that the topic of Jewish divorce came up. I can’t remember why we were speaking about it or what led my husband and me to explain to my son how divorce is handled in the Torah – Biblically, the husband can divorce his wife, […]