by Cantor Rachel Stock Spilker Even though my family emigrated from Eastern Europe in the early 20th century, my father always said he felt that his soul was part Sephardic. The music, the food, and the customs that evolved in the many countries Sephardim lived in were alluring to me, too. I was so captivated that […]
Continue Readingby Sarah Fendrick, Event Coordinator Spring awakens my senses — shades of green and pastel pinks emerge from the trees, a multitude of birds call, sweet smells of hyacinth and lilac beckon— spring makes me glad to be alive. The longer days are ripe with moments of reflection; the world around me awakens to possibilities […]
Continue Readingby Sheryl Mendlinger In a recent blog post, What’s with the Water, Carrie Bornstein asks us to reflect on how water has been an agent of change in our lives. There are several of those moments in my lifetime when water has given me those ‘moments of awe.’ I have always felt that water is my […]
Continue Readingby Kelly Banker, Intern I have always been captivated by water. It holds a certain mystical quality, a kind of knowing. Growing up, my family spent our summers living in a cottage on a lake in New Hampshire, so water has been a staple of my life from an early age. Lakes, streams, rivers, waterfalls and […]
Continue Readingby Yasmine Moideen My earliest memory is of being carried on my aunt’s back in a small stream in southern India. I was 4 years old. My 3 aunts, wading in, with their colorful saris floating in the water, laughing, taking turns with me on their backs, making sure I was safe. My parents, brother, […]
Continue ReadingToday, we offer you a gem from the archives: one woman’s experience of monthly immersion. This post was originally published on May 6th 2013. The author of this post prefers to remain anonymous. I never imagined that I would observe regular mikveh practice. I didn’t grow up Orthodox, nor do I identify as such now. I didn’t have […]
Continue ReadingThis month, our blog’s theme is mikva’ot from around the world. Mikveh is a ritual that spans centuries and continents; earlier this month we shared about a mikveh in Cuba, Uganda, and today we learn about the latest in mikveh news in Israel from Rabbi Dr. Haviva Ner-David. If you have a mikveh story from another corner […]
Continue ReadingThis month, our blog’s theme is mikva’ot from around the world. Mikveh is a ritual that spans centuries and continents; earlier this month we shared Cantor Rachel Stock Spilker’s encounter with a mikveh in Cuba, and today we’re sharing Samantha Lakin’s trip to a mikveh in Uganda. Stay tuned for next week, when we share about a unique mikveh in Israel. If you […]
Continue Readingby Cantor Lori Salzman About ten years ago I was approached by a friend who was soon to be married. She told me she really didn’t want a traditional bridal shower and asked if there was some sort of simple Jewish celebration she could do. I was a little surprised, since she is one of […]
Continue ReadingBy Cantor Rachel Stock Spilker I recently led a congregational mission to Cuba where, among many things, we visited an Orthodox synagogue in Havana. One of the lay leaders, Ya’akov, spoke to our group about the synagogue’s history, its members, their services, and their practices. In the chapel, tarnished Torah crowns adorned the bimah, and […]
Continue Readingby Sabrina Zionts A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of visiting Mayyim Hayyim for the first time with Wellesley College Hillel. At the beginning of the education program, Leeza asked what we hoped to learn from the session. I shared that I was most interested in learning whether the ritual of mikveh immersion is, or […]
Continue Readingby Lisa Berman, Mikveh & Education Director Picture a small, sunlit-filled atrium filled with 22 wiggly eleven-year-old boys and girls. They’ve just been darting in and out of mikveh preparation rooms, opening closets, peeking in cabinets and behind shower curtains, flinging themselves on the tiled floor to dip their fingers in the warm mikveh water. […]
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