Tag: Conversion
Setting the Table with My Self: Food, Choice, and Identity
It was Erev Rosh HaShanah, the evening beginning the Jewish New Year. Guests were starting to arrive after services, and my apartment was filling up with the sounds of their laughter and the scent of... Read More
St. Mary’s Shabbat
Having been raised in an observant Italian Catholic household, I understand the importance of family, food, holidays, and motherly guilt. This week marks the 10th anniversary of my conversion to Judai... Read More
When I Entered A Holy Covenant: A Dvar Torah on Parshat Shmini (Lev. 9:1-11:47)
Four years ago this week–at least by reckoning of the Hebrew calendar–my friend proudly displayed to me a cake she had made for a party I was hosting. “Today, you are a man,” it declar... Read More
On Loving the Stranger — Parashat Kedoshim
This week, we are returning once more to Parashat Kedoshim, filled with its many interpersonal mitzvot. In the opening verse of the 19th chapter of Leviticus, God enjoins us to be holy, for God, Godse... Read More
Saving Conservative Judaism: A Response to the Religious Landscape Survey
This essay was inspired by the following article: “Conservative Judaism turns 100 and Works to Reverse its Decline.” Back in 2009, when my fiancé and I were searching for a synagogue to a... Read More
Project Conversion: Rebuilding the Shattered Mirror
A few months ago when the request came on the State of Formation email group for reviewers for a book called ‘Project Conversion’, my literary greed took the better of me as I rushed to get hold o... Read More
Reviewing Project Conversion by Andrew Bowen
I have always held a singular fascination for the spiritual life—perhaps it is due to my generally introverted nature and love of study as a spiritual practice—but the path of the seeker, and the ... Read More
Compulsory religion: You can lead a kid to the altar…
Different religions mark coming of age in different ways. Jewish youth have bar or bat mitvahs; Islamic youth are expected to begin engaging in all the compulsory acts of their faith; Christians raise... Read More