Another post in the series of exploring the less logical sides (at least as viewed by an outsider) of my Jewish practice ( Read more... )

Yes, BZ was right. At least about me. With this post, I am announcing my decision to become a "1-day yom tov (1DYT) Jew", rather than the "2-day yom tov (2DYT) Jew" I've been (with some exceptions) up until now. This is effective immediately and indefinitely. This is a decision I am not taking lightly at all, and I'd like to write a bit about ( Read more... )

Most anyone who has met a Jew knows that Yom Kippur is a Jewish fast day. Less known is that there are 5 other fast days: Tisha b'Av, and 4 "minor" fast days. On Yom Kippur and Tisha b'av, one who is fasting refrains from all food and drink for 25 hours, from sunset one day to nightfall the next. On the minor fast days, you only refrain from ( Read more... )

So since yeshiva started, I've been praying every (non-Shabbat) morning with tefillin.


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I meant to write this post last year, or maybe even two years ago, but never got to it. It's basically my personal response to biqoret's 3-part rant on Jewish mimetic tradition, and especially part 2. (1, 2, 3. This is one of my favorite blogs on the internet, even though it has barely a dozen posts and nothing in over two years, solely on the ( Read more... )

Continuing an occasional series in this journal...

"The Three Weeks" refers to an annual period of mourning in the Jewish ritual calendar. It begins with the minor fast of the 17th of the month of Tammuz, heightens during a period called "the Nine Days" starting with the first of the month of Av, and culminates in the fast of Tisha B'Av ( ( Read more... )

The Center City eruv is up! Which gives me a great opportunity to describe another fun bizarre Jewish legality to y'all.

OK. So one of the things that many observant Jews don't do on Shabbat is "transfer between domains". It's one of the 39 traditional things you're forbidden to do. (Many of the modern prohibitions are interpretations or ( Read more... )

How convenient! My synagogue just happens to have a siyyum tomorrow, just like last year! That's very lucky.

Speaking of religion and holidays, I wanted to share a bit of my religious reasoning with y'all. I don't drive on Shabbat (generally), but I do drive on the other Jewish holidays whose restrictions are 90% similar to those of Shabbat. ( Read more... )

I think this is one of the charming things about my religion. Others may disagree.

All first-born sons, in addition to being sold off, have to fast every year on a certain day right before Passover; in this case, tomorrow. Like most minor fast days, you can't eat or drink anything from sunrise to sunset ( Read more... )

In Judaism, all first-born sons of their mothers (subject to certain restrictions) are promised to the priesthood. But the son's father can, and in fact is obligated to, buy the kid back at an age of at least one month, at the price of five silver coins or an equivalent amount of silver. This ritual is known as pidyon haBenI didn't know until ( Read more... )