While Carey Purcell’s recent personal op-ed about her failed attempts at interfaith dating had poor timing, there is nothing in her statement that I have not heard, witnessed or experienced after nearly 45 years as a Reform rabbi. The shock, rage and concern that the piece was anti-Semitic was, in my view, misplaced. The woman…
The writer of a widely-criticized Washington Post op-ed about her bad experiences dating Jewish men issued an apology on Tuesday. “I am truly sorry I offended so many,” freelance writer Carey Purcell wrote on her personal website. “It was never my intention to disrespect the Jewish faith or anyone who engages in Jewish customs, traditions…
I read Carey Purcell’s personal essay, I am tired of being a Jewish man’s rebellion, and felt complete and utter sympathy for the pain Purcell suffered because of her two failed relationships. But even though I’ve been in a very similar situation before, that’s where my sympathy for her thesis ends. Like Purcell, I am…
By now, you’ve probably all read that explosive Washington Post essay entitled “I am tired of being a Jewish man’s rebellion” by Carey Purcell about the terrible struggles of being a female WASP dating Jewish guys who end up breaking your heart and settling down with a good Jewish girl. It’s tough to be a…
Here we go again. The Conservative rabbis disagree with each other about just how bad intermarriage is — is a Conservative rabbi allowed to stand in the back of an interfaith wedding as long as they don’t enjoy it? Or are interfaith marriages so bad that you shouldn’t even attend the chuppah? I am a…
When Rabbi Steven Wernick interviewed to be chief executive of the Conservative movement’s umbrella organization in 2009, he came prepared and had “done his homework,” according to a former board officer who was present. He was then head rabbi of a synagogue in Philadelphia’s wealthy Main Line suburb. Board members were particularly impressed by how…
Most non-profits try to avoid contested elections and just push through a nominating committee report. But sometimes there’s an issue that can’t be shoved aside, a philosophical dispute with the potential to clarify the institution’s mission and meaning. That seems to be the case this year at my professional association, the Rabbinical Assembly — the…
Passover is one of my favorite times of the year, and not just because of the rich tradition that celebrates our ancestors’ freedom from Egyptian slavery. My family has always used this time to introduce our non-Jewish friends to the culture and heritage that fills us with pride. With over 20 years in the event…
דער באַגריף, ייִדישע אױטאָנאָמיע אין גלות — הײַנט פּאָפּולער בײַ קריטיקער פֿון ציוניזם — איז היסטאָריש ניט געװען קײן דערפֿאָלג.
