Related Blog Posts on COVID-19, Death and Mourning, Lifecycle Rituals, and Spirituality

star of david starry lights
Death and Mourning

For Some of Us the Holidays Are Just…Hard

Jaimie Green
As we head into the holiday season, I am acutely aware of how much different this year is going to be than previous ones. I will be celebrating without my mom for the first time. My mother died in January 2021, and I'm still dealing with the unexpected waves of grief that wash over me, sometimes out of nowhere. As I head into this first winter holiday season without her, I'm not quite sure I know what to expect, other than everything is going to be very different.
Ilene goldman's wedding, bride and groom standing under the chuppah
Lifecycle Rituals

My Father’s Tallit

Ilene S. Goldman
As a child snoop, I was well acquainted with the contents of my parents’ dresser drawers. This came in handy often, like the night before a trip when my mom panicked because she couldn’t find her passport.
Photo of two wedding rings sitting on top of a Ketubah
Jewish Rituals and Symbols

Making a Jewish Ritual for my Divorce

Rabbi Lisa S. Greene
In the weeks leading up to my civil divorce, I delved into Jewish tradition to see how I could mark it Jewishly. I'd been married under a chuppah with the exquisite blessings of our tradition; simply marking my divorce in the Cook County courthouse was not going to suffice.
am image of a b’rit milah
Birth Rituals

Reform Mohalim Discuss Circumcision

Kate Bigam Kaput
North American Reform mohalim are trained and certified by the Brit Milah Board of Reform Judaism and supported by the National Organization of American Mohalim, (NOAM), which works to make the practice of b'rit milahan available, meaningful, and relevant Jewish lifecycle ritual for families.
a graphic image of the book cover "The Porridge-Pot Goblin"
Children's Books

Measuring Demons in the Wake of the Pandemic

Jacqueline Jules
I spent months hiding inside my home after Covid-19 was declared a global health emergency. During that time, the Talmudic description of evil spirits resonated with me. It was certainly how I felt, surrounded by invisible threats just outside my door. Since I am a children's author, I channeled these fears into a picture book featuring a supernatural spirit.
a man and woman wearing tallit holding prayer book
COVID-19

An Invitation to Return

Rabbi Josh Brown
Rabbi Danny Burkeman
As we look out from the pulpit, we know there are good reasons that some faces that were familiar before March 2020 are now missing. We have embraced technology at every opportunity. The quality of our livestreaming worship, even in smaller synagogues, is excellent. Many congregants have grown accustomed to praying from the comfort of their couch.
Tishah B'Av

This Tishah B'Av, Act as if There is No God

Shayna Han
Tishah B'Av is a day of mourning, commemorating the destruction of the First and Second Temples. In recent years, it's also a day to mourn other tragedies that have darkened Jewish history - the Romans putting down the Bar Kochba revolt, mass murders of Jewish communities during the Crusades, expulsions from England, France, and Spain in the Middle Ages, and the Holocaust.