Birth

Facts from the Field

Some big issues for orthodox feminism have come up in the news lately. Did you see that women will soon ...

To Snip Or Not To Snip? Why I Say “Yes” To Circumcision!

To snip or not to snip? That, apparently, is becoming a major question for some 21st-century American Jews.I have to ...

Ignore the Surveys: American Jews are Building Collaborative Communities

There has been a tremendous amount of ink spilled and keys pressed discussing the finer details of the Pew Research ...

Interfaith families bringing new realities to Jewish communal life

I’m a big fan of Julie Weiner’s blog at The Jewish Week.  It’s one of those blogs that I read ...

Circumcision: Whose Initiation?

You may know the contemporary arguments for and against a brit milah, ritual circumcision of infant Jewish boys.For: It’s traditional. It affirms a family’s connection ...

Circumspect Conversations about Circumcision

This week we heard news from Germany that a regional court ruled that circumcision amounts to bodily harm, even if ...

Primordial Slush

Several years ago at a writing conference, I was listening to a panel of agents and editors talk about how ...

Three Biblical Signs of Covenant

Shabbat, the rainbow after the flood, and brit milah are three covenantal "signs" which God provides.

Battling Stereotypes of the Jewish Mother

What it means to be a contemporary mother and to be a Jewish mother today

Brit Milah: Rabbinic Interpretations

Covenant, conversion, custom, and circumcision.

Brit Milah: Why Boys Are Circumcised

How Jewish thinkers over the ages have explained the importance of ritual circumcision.

Development of Brit Bat

The past three decades have seen the development of this ceremony with ancient roots and contemporary wings.