by Webmaster | Mar 3, 2017 | Identity
I am an oddity: I am both African-American and Jewish. This dual identity has shaped my life and worldview. Even though the African-American community and the Jewish community have had some historical collaborations, such as those during the civil rights movement,...
by Webmaster | Feb 23, 2017 | Holidays, Identity, Recipes
Purim is all about the hiding. Esther hid her identity from King Ahashverosh. Haman hid his evil side from the King. And as our tradition teaches, the name of God does not appear in the written account of Purim, because even God is hidden in the Purim story. When is...
by Webmaster | Feb 15, 2017 | Identity, Jewish Ritual
They were older than me, by at least five years, and I was afraid. Though my Satmar Hasidic neighbors were my friends, their cousins usually approached me with disdain whenever I’d go over for a playdate. On one occasion, they bullied me and lifted my shirt up. He...
by Webmaster | Feb 7, 2017 | Identity
Though they did not start off life as Jews, Puah Millsaps and her multiracial family have never felt more welcome than they do in the Jewish world. Be’chol Lashon caught up with this busy mom between homeschooling lessons to hear more about her family’s unusual...
by Webmaster | Jan 25, 2017 | Identity
The final process of converting to Judaism is to meet with the beit din (a rabbinic “court” of three learned Jews, usually clergy, who meet with a candidate for conversion). During the beit din, the council asks questions of the person converting to assess his or...
by Webmaster | Jan 19, 2017 | Identity
For some people, fitting into the status quo is soothing, comforting, peaceful. Not for me. For me, seeking a life of truth, has brought me peace. Knowing truth exists is comforting, and experiencing virtues of truth has been soothing to my soul. Today I am a yeshiva...
