I am not about to give give you a crash course in the Jewish New Year, I am about to share my learning experience in temple this past Tuesday.

Happy New Year

Let me start with a little history. For as long as I can remember, I have been ringing in the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, with lots of food and long services at temple. I can count on one hand the amount of times I’ve been excused from this ritual in my 34 years. And trust me, it isn’t from lack of trying. Let’s see…chicken pox, twice while away at college, and doctor ordered bed rest with my first pregnancy. Aside from the excused absence from school, I grew up dreading the Jewish holidays. Particularly the High Holy days. Getting dressed up, spending time with extended family and sitting in temple listening to a mixture of Hebrew and English, both…

In honor of my Grandma this Mother’s Day, I am going to share a family tradition with you. The tradition of naming children after loved ones who have passed. As far as I know, this is a Jewish custom but I’m always careful to only speak for myself and not all Jews collectively. Rabbi Shook points out the many denominations within Judaism and the vast differences among them. That being said, I’m going to stick to what I know.

When a child is born they are given two names. The name they will go by on a daily basis, in my case Kim. (Actually, my parents hate the name Kim. My given name is Kimberly and for some reason my parents thought that would stick for life. I think I officially became Kim in third grade when we had to learn to write our names in cursive.) And the Hebrew name which…

I really liked Pamela’s last post. Not only do I love to hear a story like that about tolerance and commitment, but what great parenting! At 33, with 2 young children, a lot of my thoughts about religion, or life in general, have to do with being a good mother.

And I have an opinion on how to breed tolerance or better yet, acceptance.

When my nephew was 3, my niece was born. My sister-in-law had our Rabbi come out to their house for a baby naming. While he was there, he also hung a mezuzah for them. Later that night, while my sister-in-law was putting my nephew to bed he says, “Mommy, God was here today.” Well then. So of course she asks him what he is referring to and he replies, “You know, God? The guy who put the mezuzah up”.

Cute story, right? That’s been told a few dozen times – always…