Shalom at Home

“Purple” by Alexis Rotella

“In first grade / Mrs. Lohr said / my purple teepee / wasn’t realistic enough / that purple was no color for a tent… that my drawing / wasn’t good enough to hang / with the others.”

February is Jewish Disability Awareness Inclusion Month (JDAIM), which aims unite Jewish communities around the country in support for individuals with disabilities and their right to be respected, valued and included in all aspects of Jewish community living.

When my daughter got engaged to a man who was raised Catholic, I sought counsel from a rabbi I knew.

A few months ago, I had a conference call with two very impressive people. Kind, professional and eminently learned, Adam Pollack and Rabbi Miriam Wajnberg represented 18Doors, an organization with a vital and thoroughly modern mission: to empower people in interfaith relationships to engage in Jewish life, make Jewish choices and encourage Jewish communities to welcome them.

There is a story in Judaism that I think about a lot. The story of Abraham, who, as the tale goes, sees three strangers walking in the desert. Rather than turning away from what could realistically have been a dangerous situation, Abraham runs to these men.

Hanukkah is the festival of lights.

Each night of Hanukkah we light an extra candle to create more light and enhance miracles in the darkness of winter.

A balabusta – a homemaker - I am not. I like to pretend a few times a year by making a brisket or perhaps a challah, but my influence over the domestic is superficial at best.

While attending the Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy, one of my elementary school Jewish Studies teachers tasked us with memorizing a very significant pasuk (line from the Torah) from the Torah portion, Parshat Lech Lecha.

It’s going to be a momentous day! It will be a day that calls to our deepest sense of responsibility! A day that sets us apart from the masses!

In just a few weeks, we will fill the pews to hear Parshat Vayeira, the Torah portion in which Abraham, aged and childless, sits in the entrance of his tent when he sees — what’s that? Three strangers?