A holiday season email from a non-Jewish guy came to my Mixed and Matched column: I love Christmas but my Jewish girlfriend won’t participate with me, and this is our first holiday season together. I’ve told her that Christmas isn’t really religious for me. The tree and Yule log are pagan originally; they have…
Read More »
Hanukkah and Christmas – the “December dilemma”. I never liked that term “dilemma”. Not that there isn’t an element of difficulty for an interfaith household, but the word made it seem so dire. I think I would prefer, December Questions, because it all boils down to a lot of questions. The core one being, how…
Read More »I offer workshops specifically for patrilineal Jews who want to solidify their confidence in their own Jewish identity. I ask those who are confident to share ideas and strategies that helped them reach this secure place. Jeffrey, a gentleman in his 60’s had this wisdom to offered. Very briefly, as a patrilineal Jew, what I…
Read More »
Rabbi Milder of Beth Emek in Pleasanton sent out this delightful message to his congregants. I simply HAD to share it with you. There are so many great things in it. 1. There’s a lovely blessing to say at your Thanksgiving table. (Below in italics) 2. There’s the delightful learning about the meaning of a…
Read More »It is not unusual for a Jew of color to be asked, “How did you get to be Jewish?” Quite simply the question stems from their appearance, “You don’t look Jewish.” There are a number of ways that an adult from a biracial Jewish or interfaith family can arm themselves for these micro-aggressions. Join Kim…
Read More »
When terrible things happen we want our spiritual leaders to find meaning in what seems meaningless. Rabbi Steve Chester recently sent this message to his congregation of Temple Israel. He leans more on actions than on faith. Maybe you feel that way also. The last few months have been very difficult ones for many of…
Read More »Our weekly email goes out to hundreds of interfaith couples & families in the Bay Area. Topics cover the many questions and mysteries that interfaith couples want answered.