One sunny day, 13 years ago, when I was in yeshiva in Jerusalem, I decided to do some grocery shopping. How vividly I remember it, all these years later! One of my friends met me by the door, as I was leaving the yeshiva. He asked if I would pick up some groceries for...
In 1896, Rabbi Yosef Pallache received an unusual shayle (religious question). “Do not be surprised by this question,” the shayle cautions, “since all things are possible, and there is nothing new under the sun.” The question concerns a married woman who spontaneously...
In 2014, Facebook added over 50 gender options for users who aren’t “men” or “women.” These include a variety of non-binary terms such as “bigender,” “agender,” and “gender fluid.” One could easily ask: Why so many genders? In a future article, we will take a look at...
We begin each week on Saturday night by marveling at God’s ability to distinguish binaries: “Hamavdil bein kodesh lechol, bein or lechoshech, bein yisrael la’amim, bein yom hashevi’i lesheshet yemei hama’aseh” (“the one who distinguishes between holy and secular,...
(Please note: This article contains graphic descriptions of both male and female genitals.) I’m not a man in a dress! But so many people think I am, and honestly? How can I blame them? From earliest childhood, both science and Judaism have taught us there are only two...
Rabbi Avdimi bar Chama bar Chasa taught in a baraita: “The Holy One, blessed be He, turned Mount Sinai over the heads of the Israelites and said to them, ‘If you accept the Torah, great! But if not, then this is your grave.’” And the Israelites answered: “Na’aseh...
All I wanted was to be a nice Jewish boy. I grew a massive beard. I went to an all-male yeshiva. I prayed every day with tallis and tefillin. I got married, had a child, and did everything I thought nice Jewish boys do. And then my world shattered when I realized, in...