For years, marriage was the farthest thing on my mind. I spent my twenties getting to know myself, the world and what life even was! When I hit my 30th, marriage started peeking its head through the window. I gave it some attention, thought about it and continued living my life with an occasional glimpse […]

This Friday night begins the joyful minor holiday of Tu b’Av, the fifteenth of the month of Av. The Talmud says besides Yom Kippur, there was no other holy day as happy for the Jews as Tu b’Av. In the times of the Temple, unmarried Jewish women would dress in white and dance in the vineyards, […]

Last week we married off our daughter, our eldest, to a wonderful young man, in the hills of Jerusalem. The groom, like our daughter, chose to leave the place he was born and return to our ancestral homeland. He chose to bravely serve his land. Even though it is only days after the wedding, he […]

  Dear Jew in the City, Why does a Jewish couple get married under a chuppah? Sincerely, Ben   Dear Ben, Thanks for your question. For the answer, let us turn to the Talmudic tractate of Kiddushin, which deals with the subject of marriage. The very first Mishnah tells us that marriage is effected through […]

“Do you love me?” Thus sings Tevye to his wife of 25 years in the classic movie “Fiddler on the Roof.” Her response? “For twenty-five years I’ve washed your clothes, cooked your meals, cleaned your house, given you children, milked your cow…” This does not sound like romance at its best. Orthodox Jews tend not […]

Growing up as a secular American girl in the 80s, I dreamed of a handsome prince/Patrick Dempsey lookalike who would sweep me off my feet to live happily ever after, like all the books and movies I had been raised on. Unfortunately, my dating experiences in high school, college, and then as a young professional […]