I had the extreme pleasure of being hosted this past weekend by an older couple—a good friend’s grandparents—who found me confusing and, I hope, fairly enjoyable. I think they were a little perturbed when they found us lighting Shabbat candles in the kitchen, but were both surprised and pleased to learn that I’ve studied Yiddish.… Read more »
Last week I wrote about the way that the ideals of religion and feminism have the potential to come together to create a new breed of woman – the religious feminist – who plays by her own rules, not seeking approval from either secular feminists or right-wing religionists. This week I present a real-life example… Read more »
The secret to the feminist revolution is in a vegan cupcake. Brooklyn born, Isa Moskowitz, is the founder and co-host of the Post Punk Kitchen, a public access cooking show that features recipes like sushi, coconut cream pie, and matzoh ball soup, all sans meat, dairy, eggs, honey, and other animal products. Despite its niche… Read more »
I had the opportunity to interview Leora Kahn, the editor of Darfur: Twenty Years of War and Genocide.” This recently published book covers the last two decades of conflict in Darfur through harrowing photographs and personal testimonies. SG: What is the source of your interest in the genocide in Darfur? LK: I have worked on… Read more »
I was asked to explain two things this weekend, and the more I think about them, the more I wonder how related they might be, and how useful it may or may not be to treat them as comparable. Those two things were the term “post-denominational” and what I think about voters who don’t affiliate… Read more »
The current issue of Lilith magazine includes a conversation between our own Melanie Weiss and London-based author Sally Berkovic, titled “Orthodox and Feminist: The Dreaded ‘F’ Word,” about this year’s Jewish Orthodox Feminist Alliance conference. This brought to mind two other recent articles in other publications: Noah Feldman’s by-now infamous NYT Magazine piece “Orthodox Paradox”… Read more »
I have a confession. I am addicted to food blogs. Every other day or so I start to itch, craving the updates from my blogger friends at Orangette, Chocolate and Zucchini, Obsession with Food, Gluten Free Girl, Smitten Kitchen, Baking and Books, etc… Without fail, I check these sites to find out what amazing dishes… Read more »
The Torah mandates that every Jew give a portion of her harvest to the poor as a form of tzedaka (Leviticus 19:9-10). Whereas our ancestors reaped their annual harvest, many people today reap the dividends from their annual investments. If the Torah were written in 2007 when people learned how to invest in stocks, I… Read more »
I’m all about free video clips on YouTube, but the recent Democratic debates constitute a category of their own. CNN and YouTube teamed up to bring questions to the candidates straight from you, webcammed America. It may have been tacky, it may have been a ploy that let the candidates continue to mouth their stale… Read more »
A Woman’s Place…Is in the Workplace An article in last week’s Contra Costa Times discusses what some consider to be the “stained-glass ceiling” for female clergy in many religious denominations: “More women are graduating from seminaries, but in most faiths few are senior or solo clergy.” This phenomenon is particularly true in Reform Judaism, which,… Read more »
