RJ Blog

If there is one thing I do right in terms of Jewish education for my kids, it’s our weekly Shabbat dinner. It is usually just the four of us—my husband, our two boys (ages 8 and 3), and me—and our celebration tends not to last terribly long because of the boys’ ages, but this weekly ritual is regular, fairly simple, and truly special. Together, we say three blessings, wear kippot, eat challah and “Shabbat potatoes,” and connect with each other face-to-face in ways that we don’t during the rest of the week. It doesn’t feel like anything is missing, but [...]

“Not living our Judaism while expecting our children to develop an attachment to it is like being an art lover who expects her children also to love art even though she doesn’t bring them to museums or teach them art history or create artwork with them.  Like dedication to art or anything else, Judaism is not genetically coded for replication…being Jewish involves education, experience, and commitment.”  (Yosef Ambramowitz) Parents spend a lot of time thinking about, planning, and implementing parenting strategies.  To say that the plethora of enrichment opportunities for kids and the mountains of advice on how to help [...]