Anonymous asked:

If an interfaith couple gets married (one Jewish, one whatever else), would their male guests be obligated to wear kippahs? Even if they aren't themselves Jewish?

progressivejudaism answered:

Hi there,

That’s a great question - one that depends on a variety of factors. (Please note, as this is a Progressive space I have swapped your original usage of the biological sex “male” to the gender as to be more inclusive of this imaginary couple’s wedding guests.

Factor #1: Is this a Jewish Wedding? Are there only Jewish officiant(s)? Will any other faith traditions be included- making this a wedding that is really not a Jewish wedding? If this isn’t a Jewish wedding (and yes, a Jew and a non-Jew can be married in a Jewish wedding), but an interfaith ceremony in which other faith traditions are included - why would you enforce people to wear Jewish ritual items? (Unless.. see factor 3)

Factor #2: If this is a Jewish Wedding, what is the theology of the officiating clergy? Would the rabbi(s) and/or cantor(s) normally police, men to wear kippot at their services? Would they police or encourage all genders to wear kippot at services?

Factor #3: Assuming that the clergy is comfortable with the couple making their own choices, what does the couple want? Would the couple feel more comfortable in this holy moment for their guests to wear kippot? Does it make a difference to them? If you grew up as a Conservative or Orthodox Jew (movements which discourage Jewish and non-Jewish marriage), would you feel more comfortable carrying the tradition that you (and/or your partner) grew up with having people wear kippot?

Factor #4: Think about the Jewish person’s Jewish family, how do they feel about this whole issue? Although you aren’t throwing a wedding for your family, there are certain traditions that’s absence might make them feel uncomfortable. Do you think Grandpa Alfred or Savta Sid, mom or dad, of Great Uncle Joe would feel uncomfortable if this custom wasn’t encouraged at your simcha (celebration)? How can you make this day both special for you and your partner, while also making sure that it is as easy as possible?

Bonus Factor: A beautiful American tradition for both Bnai Mitzvah and Jewish Weddings is the inclusion of customized kippot. Beyond personalizing the design to fit you and your partner’s style and your wedding theme, a little inscription from your event is written on inside of the design. Imagine the memories that these mementos will bring for your guests ten, fifteen, or even thirty years in the future when lighting their Hanukkah candles, or when grabbing a kippa on their way out to shul. On a personal note, my family’s collection of Bnai Mitzvah and wedding kippot is extremely holy to all of us!

I hope that this helps!

Shabbat Shalom!

PJ

#reform tag #parents tag #jewish #jewish positivity #jewish references #writing #writing references #jewish resources #resources #jewish characters #jewish weddings #jewish cultural wear #kippah #interfaith relationships #interfaith dialogue #interfaith families #interfaith weddings #interfaith relationships positivity #orthodox judaism #orthodox issues #sensitivity reading #goyim DO NOT DERAIL #judaism IS NOT XTIANITY #judaism IS NOT JUDEO XTIAN #interfaith households #reform judaism is not the same as orthodox judaism #please for the love of gd dont make me have to do endless breakdowns of this for you {if youre *kind* mutual ill maybe try to find things}#({For the Record: Grandmas Fam was mainly REFORM thus my OWN parents had a wedding in line with REFORM VIEWS})#({i.e. Mom did wear a more 'modest' dress *that Grandma specifically helped PICKED OUT}+PAID FOR Mom* but ive seen pics it was GORGEOUS)#(Mom could have EASILY turned down that decision but ENJOYED IT+Im pretty sure we still HAVE the dress somewhere in storage...)

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koushirouizumi

schraubd

A Holiday Greetings Flowchart

How do I handle holiday greetings as a Jew? Here’s the order of operations:

If you say “happy holidays” to me and I don’t know you or what you celebrate, then I say “happy holidays” to you and return.
If I know you’re Jewish, I say “happy Chanukah.”
If you wish me “Merry Christmas” and you don’t know I’m Jewish, then I say “happy holidays.”
If you wish me “Merry Christmas” and you do know I’m Jewish, or if you say “merry Christmas” in any way that suggests that doing so is your way of striking back against PC liberal elites, then I say “happy Chanukah.”
Finally, if I know you celebrate Christmas but you nonetheless wish me “happy Chanukah” because you know that’s what I celebrate, then I will wish you a “merry Christmas” in return as that’s what you celebrate.

Feel free to use this in your own interactions.

And from me to you: happy holidays to all, happy Chanukah for those for whom it applies, and merry Christmas to those who’ve earned it!

via The Debate Link https://ift.tt/Z9TlBkx

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koushirouizumi

pargolettasworld

Home | A Mitzvah to Eat

A Mitzvah to Eat is a pluralistic social network and online resource hub for Jews who need accommodations for Jewish ritual practices due to

A Mitzvah to Eat

From a cantor friend of mine. Fasting on Yom Kippur is not required, and in many cases actively forbidden, if it will damage your physical or mental health. This is a list of resources for people who cannot fast, and who are looking for other ways to connect with this holiday.

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koushirouizumi

hebrewbyinbal

In Hebrew, we often wish for a good year – Shanah Tovah, but this year, the words feel a bit different. After all we've been through, and what still lies ahead, it feels fitting to add a little hope for something more – for a better year.

In Hebrew, שתהיה זו שנה טובה יותר "May this be a better year."

As we stand on the cusp of this new Jewish year, my wish for you and your loved ones is a year that brings more light, peace, and healing. A year filled with love, growth, safety, and joy. May it be a time of renewal and strength, and may we all find the beauty, wisdom, and blessings that lie ahead.

Let’s walk forward with open hearts and a hope for better days 🍯🍎

aph-japan reblogged

koushirouizumi

jewish-education

Teshuvah, or Repentance | My Jewish Learning

Jewish View of Repentance. Themes and Theology of Yom Kippur. Jewish Day of Attonement. Jewish Holidays.

www.myjewishlearning.com

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koushirouizumi

unbidden-yidden-deactivated20240

Every year Rosh Hashana reminds me that I don't hate red and green together, I just can't stand the relentless omnipresence of it during the four months of Xmas.

Anyway you heard it here first: green and red are Rosh Hashana colors now 🍏🍎🍏🍎🍏

unbidden-yidden-deactivated20240

Rosh Hashana colors moodboard:

[X][X][X][X][X][X][X][X][X]

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koushirouizumi

hindahoney

Here is a spreadsheet with a list of 400+ modest clothing brands, including price points and whether they carry plus sizes.

This post is NOT advocating for a tradwife lifestyle. This is a simple introduction to tzniut for anyone who is unfamilar with it, or for people who would like to observe tzniut and don't know how/where to start. Finding clothes can be really difficult, so hopefully the spreadsheet and this intro helps!

unbidden-yidden-deactivated20240

It's also worth noting that it doesn't have to be 100% or linear. I personally know lots of people who keep a modified version of tzniut that works better for them and their needs but still meets a lot of the same goals.

A common variant I've seen is making sure that your sleeves are at least t-shirt length, but not worrying about covering the elbows, or a similar sort of principle with the collarbones and/or knees.

Another common variant I've seen is wearing short length dresses or tunics over pants. Neither on their own would be tzniut, but together are more modest while still retaining the functionality of both.

#jewish #jewish resources #resources #reference #jewish references #jewish dress culture #tzniut #modesty #modest #modest clothing #presentation #gender presentation #preferences #jewish women #women #queer jews #nonbinary jews #fashion brands #infographic #orthodox jews #jewish infographic #jewish observance #orthodox judaism is not the same as conservative christianity #*Goyim DO NOT FUCKING DERAIL OR MAKE ABOUT CURRENT EVENTS OR I WILL HARDBLOCK #*Goyim can Reblog ONLY IF RESPECTFUL #(Its about time I saved this reference over here because Man I needed that list of brands+types described as starter reference for people)#cardigans my beloved #(It helps that I already had starting Jfashion wardrobe&a very strong preference for using cardigans when out because it gets Hot AF Here)#(AKA Just Tropical Area Things {I use cardigans when inside} yeah like regardless of what I decide to wear IF I want to present femme--)#(Definitely prefer longer lengths over shorter as it is anyway {and thats just MY SPECIFIC PREFERENCE it DOES NOT HAVE To be Yours})

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hondakiku

swaxe

we all have that one mutual with Information

#swaxe #me #tumblr jokes #text posts #resources #references #reference #jewish resources #jewish references #autism resources #autism references #neurodivergency #use the tags #yup #seriously #im the mutual #probably

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koushirouizumi

cantotallyeven

This isn't even an exaggeration

jewishpangolin

#me #jewish tag #jewish #jewish debate #jewish references #reference #jewish positivity #positivity #torah #the torah #books #we have way more books than the goyim #goyim do not derail #*Reblogging for Archival #ANYWAYYYY #yes i love details

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koushirouizumi

maimonidesnutz

The poem is called the hadran alach and it's breathtaking. It's traditionally recited when you finish a tractate of Talmud, but some people say it for other books too.

it goes:

We will return to you, Tractate _ [fill in the name of the tractate], and you will return to us; our mind is on you, Tractate , and your mind is on us; we will not forget you, Tractate ___, and you will not forget us – not in this world and not in the next world. May it be Your will, our G-d, and the G-d of our fathers, that we should be loyal to Your Torah in this world, and it should be with us in the next world.

[alt text: tweet from maimonides nutz that that reads "The beautiful Jewish thing I learned today is that when we celebrate finishing a book we promise it that we will return to read it again."]

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adiradirim

From right to left: Beya Melamed; Bulgaria, 1890 - Jewish bride after the wedding; Turkey, early 20th century - Torah ark curtain made from a woman’s dress; Izmir, Turkey, 1929 - Wedding dress belonging to a Jewish family from Edirne, Turkey; early 20th century, gifted to museum exhibition in memory of Colombe Papo

Worn in the 19th and 20th century for weddings and other occasions by women across the Balkans and Anatolia, bindallı dresses were typically made of velvet in deep jewel tones. They were decorated with extensive gold embroidery of floral designs, which give this group of dresses their name, meaning thousand branches. This Ottoman-derived yet European-influenced style marked a transitional period between uses of traditional and modern western fashions.

The dresses - adopted from the surrounding culture as a fashionable item without any Jewish specificity - took on unique Jewish meaning through their use in the synagogue, where they became ark curtains, Torah mantles and binders, bimah covers, and the like, frequently with added dedicatory inscription. The donation of dresses and trousseau items by women to the synagogues created a personal bond between the women and the synagogue. The habit of donating these textiles to the synagogue endured long after the original embroidered bedclothes and dresses had gone out of fashion, and the transitional bindallı fashion thus remained alive in Sephardi synagogues long after the passing of the brides who wore the dresses.

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yidquotes

Judaism and conversion has a long, painful history, and it is difficult if not impossible to proselytize a Jew without touching upon some very sore points. This, combined with near-daily news of anti-Semitic hate crimes and casual anti-Semitic remarks heard from people you consider friends only adds to the feelings of alienation, disconnection, loneliness, unwantedness, and invalidation that many Diaspora Jews constantly experience… In general, you will not successfully convert anyone who isn’t open to it or hasn’t already considered it. Along with the fact that we already have our own belief system, Jews are a proud people; much of our narrative is based on resisting attempts to wipe us out. Historically speaking, forced conversion has been used on Jews as a genocide tool frequently and extensively.

Maya Lyubomirsky

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darkhei-noam

Anonymous asked:

hey, jw - do you know anything about traditional ways north african and especially moroccan jews used to do their hair?

darkhei-noam answered:

Yeah! This is a big topic and the answer is basically “it depends where and when…” Traditional hairstyles and head-coverings differed greatly between single and married women (I assume you’re talking about women), between rural and urban areas, and between the pre-colonial and (post-)colonial periods.

In general, young women kept their hair covered with a simple scarf, and/or sometimes braided (as in this photo from Ksar-es-Suq / Er-Rachidia, 1946). In rural areas, married women wore various types of headdresses, some quite elaborate, which differed from region to region. Some examples (with great explanatory posts from my friend Maya):

the mehdor, a kind of wide headband of silver wire and fabric, worn in central Morocco
the grun (”horns”), a coiled horizontal headdress covered with cloth, worn in the southern Atlas Mountains
the sarma, a tall conical headdress of cut metal, worn in coastal Algeria (there’s a similar type of headdress, more pointed, worn in Tunisia)

Above: Two married Jewish girls, Erfoud, ca. 1935 (photo by Jean Besancenot) — the girl on the left is wearing the grun headdress.

One great source for you is Jean Besancenot’s 1940 book Costumes du Maroc (it was reprinted in 1988 and can be found or requested in most libraries)… He spent several years in the late 1930s documenting clothing and jewelry styles with photographs and drawings, and had a strong focus on Jewish communities. You can actually see some of his original negatives of Moroccan Jews here (just scroll over for the flipped positive version).

Above: A young Jewish woman from Tinghir (Todgha valley, Atlas), wearing a headdress of woven hair covered with a coin-diadem known as a sfifa. Photo by Besancenot, ca. 1934-9.

Another wonderful book about Moroccan hairstyles, again with many historical photos from both Jewish and non-Jewish communities, is Mireille Morin-Barde’s book Coiffures féminines du Maroc: au sud du Haut Atlas.

In rural areas, these complex traditional headdresses lasted well into the 20th century. In more urban areas, the influence of French and other European fashions meant that by the 19th century, Jewish women had adopted simple colourful scarves, as seen in many of the Orientalist paintings of Jewish women by Delacroix and others.

Above: Jewish Woman in Tangiers, 1886, painted by Emile Vernet-Lecomte.

By the 20th century, many of the Jews in the large urban centres of Fes, Casablanca, Rabat, etc. had adopted European fashion to the extent that women usually wore their hair in French styles without any covering at all, as you can see in this photo from the 50s or 60s — the bride is wearing a traditional headdress as part of the keswa el-kbira, but the other women have short uncovered hair in a European style.

Hope this helps point you in good directions — good luck researching!

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koushirouizumi

jewishconvertthings

This made me feel so happy.

From Great Religions of Modern Man: Judaism, edited by Arther Hertzberg.

[Submitted by @honeymoon-swoons]

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koushirouizumi

writingwithcolor

dont-offend-the-bees asked:

Hey there! I'm writing a very self indulgent AU right now based on a movie, and one of the characters I'm transplanting into it is Jewish. The movie plays with the popular sci-fi trope of characters being trapped in an infinite time loop of living the same day over and over (a la Groundhog Day), and I started to wonder if there's readings of that through a Jewish lens I haven't thought of; how might a Jewish character approach/conceptualise becoming stuck in that situation, waking up to the same day over and over, resetting when they fall asleep or die, everyone around them (bar one) resetting too and not remembering the past loops? I have one or two friends I'm thinking of asking too but I'd love to hear as many perspectives as possible! (note: I'm afraid I'm not sure of the character's exact denomination bc I don't think the source text specified and my knowledge is limited, but he's very proud of and happy with his religion and fairly observant as far as I'm aware!) No worries if you can't/don't want to answer this, I'm not even sure I'll ever finish or post this fic and I don't think I NEED to change the narrative as such, but I've been thinking a lot about how it'd be a good/worthwhile thing to consider for the character and I'm not sure where to start, it seems like a question a bit philosophical for a quick Google! Thank you in advance, you guys do great work here ^^

writingwithcolor answered:

Jewish Character Stuck in Time Loop

Ooh this sounds like fun 😊

One thing to consider is the observance of time-dependent mitzvot. You should be able to find some relevant discussions by googling ‘when is Shabbat in the north pole?’ or ‘when is shacharit in space?’ for example, since so many of our commandments depend on certain assumptions about how time can be measured using the sun. If you live the same Thursday over and over, is the third one Shabbat? Or the seventh one? Or is it always just Thursday? Similarly, is the character marking off the days until the important Jewish holidays in their own reference frame, or observing the Jewish calendar as per the reference frame of the local community?

Oh, and if he has a menstrual cycle and is married, if he still gets his cycle while in the time loop that would tie him up in knots that I can’t even start to untangle right now but look up taharat mishpachah for details. (And if he’s married to someone with a menstrual cycle, probably still look this up because there would be an emotional impact of losing the rhythm of touching and not touching, even without all the practical implications.)

In real life, to keep these commandments properly would definitely need rabbinic input. In the absence of a rabbi to provide realistic dialogue for this (or just to keep the story moving), I’d recommend slipping in a reason why that conversation can’t happen. Maybe the rabbi keeps saying, “What an interesting question, I’ll look it up and get back to you tomorrow.” D’oh!

Despite playing havoc with the time-bound mitzvot, a time loop would be beneficial for the interpersonal commandments. That conversation where you accidentally spoke loshan hara? Go back tomorrow and do better. The process of teshuva (usually translated as ‘repentance’ but literally means ‘returning’, i.e. getting back to your connection to God or to your best self) is very important in Judaism. The process is only complete when you’re in the same situation again and don’t make the same mistake. Your character has a unique advantage of being able to get back to the literal same situation, in a highly predictable way that won’t catch him off guard and knock him back into old habits. It would be nice to see him improving in the interpersonal mitzvot each day.

Finally, it’s not a disaster if you can’t work this in, but I wonder if your character is someone who likes to study and do research? It’s one of those things that is a stereotype if overdone, but is culturally accurate if well executed as part of a fully rounded character. If they have some free time as a result of being in a loop (e.g. you don’t have to spend too long on work if you know everything that’s going to happen), it would be cool if they spent some of it learning about the science and philosophy of time and how a time loop could be possible. I think that’s what a lot of real Jewish people would do. It also occurred to me that their learning is one of the few achievements they can hold on to, that won’t be lost when time resets, therefore exalting knowledge as being beyond any material prize. That seemed like a very Jewish idea to me.

- Shoshi

November 2021

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koushirouizumi

met-european-sculpture

Hanukkah lamp, late 17th century, Metropolitan Museum of Art: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Rogers Fund, 1913 Size: Overall: 13 ½ × 10 ½ in. (34.3 × 26.7 cm) Medium: Silver, embossed and engraved

https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/192064

homoqueerjewhobbit

How come whenever I see Judaica on these met bots, it’s stupidly mislabeled? Wtf The Met? It’s called a Hanukiyah, or more generically (and easier for Americans to pronounce) Menorah.

Protip, all hanukiyot are menorot, but not all menorot are hanukiyot. If there are 9 candles, arranged as 8 and 1, then it’s a Hanukiyah. Otherwise, it’s a menorah (usually 7 candles).

#jewish #jewish positivity #judaism #judaism positivity #judaica #17th century #chanukiyah #hanukiyah #menorah #jewish references #*Reblogging for Archival #(This also confused me for a while)#('Hanukkah lamp' seems to be the way theyre commonly referred to by Gentiles but YeahTM)#(They Have A Name)#(And these are Also Menorahs)