Interfaith Couples Raising Children: Identity for Your Child & Your Home Three Workshops, come to one or come to all of them Choosing a religious identity for your child is often feels like the hardest decision an interfaith couple faces. If both of you are attached to your religious/cultural heritage you may have gotten stuck…
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Children and Bedtime Prayers
A prayer before bedtime A Christian mom on this list told me that she was raised saying a prayer before bedtime. In thinking over the prayer she realized that there was nothing about Jesus, nothing anti-Jewish in it and began saying it with her own children. She loves having something from her own childhood that…
Read More »Can We Raise ‘spiritual’ children with Dual Identities?
Another question from my Mixed and Matched column in the J-Weekly. My husband is not Jewish; I am. Neither of us is very religious, but we are spiritual. Our kids are 3 and 5, and we can’t figure out what to do about religion. We want them to understand both of us and our…
Read More »A Non-Jewish Man Reflects on Raising Jewish Children
In my January 2014 column, Mixed and Matched, I shared a letter from a Jewish Dad who felt his wife was not doing enough to raise his children as Jews. After reading the article a gentleman who is the non-Jewish husband in a couple who has participated in my programs wrote a very astute article…
Read More »Preparing for Passover
Getting ready for the Seder What are ways to make your guests feel that they are a part of the evening even if they are not Jewishly knowledgeable? Invite guests to bring something. This will give them a feeling of ownership and contribution. Anyone can buy matzah or kosher wine. They can make a fruit…
Read More »What Will Your Family’s Narrative Be?
Couples often tell me that they want their children to have a religion that will teach the children good values. That’s a great start but it is certainly not a sufficient reason to choose to have a religion practiced in the home. First, you don’t need religion to be a person of principle and decency….
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