by Webmaster | Feb 7, 2018 | Identity, Jewish Ritual
This year, Black History Month resonates particularly strongly for me as a Jew. For this February, Jews around the world are reading the Torah portions that focus on the Israelites, Moses and the journey out of Egypt and towards freedom. Black history and the...
by Webmaster | Jan 10, 2018 | Holidays, Identity, Jewish Ritual
Ahava means love. My love of Judaism and my cultural identity as a Black Jew are at the core of who I am. Shabbat is the highlight of my week. It is a sacred time for me to consciously reflect and heal. It is a time when I take a meditation walk and think about my...
by Webmaster | Mar 29, 2017 | Holidays, Identity, Jewish Ritual
Mitzrayim, the Hebrew word for Egypt, is also interpreted to mean “narrow places.” At Passover, we celebrate being released from the restrictions that limit us and make our lives smaller. We are not fully free as long as we are kept down by attitudes and conditions...
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 Intern | Dec 14, 2016 | Holidays, Identity, Jewish Ritual
For many years, I worked in the most special place I could imagine. A radical Beit Midrash (house of study) in Jerusalem- Memizrach Shemesh, the Social Action Beit Midrash, inspired by the traditions of Jews from Arab lands. At Memizrach Shemesh, we used Jewish texts,...
by Webmaster | Dec 1, 2016 | Identity, Jewish Ritual
It is interesting to grow up in an old world family with new world ideas. My childhood dinners were created by eyes looking back at recipes thousands of years old, but also forward toward the wonders the future might bring. I was told from a very young age that I was...
