Kiruv & Orthodox Judaism

I have alluded to this before in other scathing posts, but it's becoming more and more clear to me, to the point that I almost see it as synonymous. People generally become religious because they have a fucked up past, and the more religious they become, the more their...

Around two years ago, one of my siblings was struck in a hit and run accident. They spent a day in the hospital before any of us family members even found out about it. When we did, there were a few panicked hours as we tried to figure out...

When he was something like 10 years old, his school’s idea of an educational experience was bringing in a sheep to be ritually slaughtered and dissected.  Nothing could prepare him for the moment when the sheep went from alive, albeit bound, to an explosion of red blood that burst forward...

In the hyperbolic style of Mishpacha Magazine. Inspired by bullshit like this. Mild mannered and unassuming, most people looking at Gedalya Halevi Fleagenkrautz would not realize the man is truly one of the biggest leaders of the generation, a gadol who has brought thousands closer to Yiddishkeit. In the corner, a...

The bible, so full of contradictory statements, is a perfect setting for Rorschach tests. It’s all just spilled ink on the page. You see what you want to see. You want airy fairy hippy shit? You got it. “Sons you are, to the lord your God.” You want dogmatic, oppressive, hardline world views? You’ll...

A recent memory came back to me. At the age of around 14, I remember bursting into tears in front of both my parents. I didn't understand, I told them, what the point of all the Torah study I was doing that I engaged in for about 12 hours...

It took me a long time to realize this, but the kiruv system pulls some really sophisticated mindfucks while trying to convince people about the “truth” of religion. They will basically play both sides of an idea – contradicting themselves but making some convincing arguments in the process. Until you...

My partner and I recently attended a retreat organized by Footsteps, the organization that supports (mostly) Orthodox Jews leaving religion, especially in the New York area. The retreat was wonderful, and I am grateful to the organization for creating such an enjoyable experience, with a lot of generosity, abundance,...

Are you in the process of getting brainwashed by an Institute for Jewish Wisdom? Is all that mumbo jumbo getting you down as you try to don a black hat a week after being a regular college kid in California? This handy dandy glossary will provide an explanation for...

You’re the daughter of a King! A king! How awesome is that? Not as awesome as being a son, apparently. I’ve heard, ad nausem, all the apologetic explanations about how women are not less, they’re just DIFFERENT. How the true home is built around the Jewish woman (Look! Jewishness passes...