Polytheism from a slightly Jewish bent

Saraya has a spiritual blog now, yeeeeeah boyyyyy. Here there be Jewwy things, personal religious things, shared not-personal religious things, and of course the mild obsession with turtles, tortoises, and terrapins. Personal blog available on request (maybe).

[littlepawz]

Natural phenomenon of diffraction of light transforms black hummingbird’s wings into tiny rainbows

~photo credit: Christian Spencer~

[thoodleoo]

finally, an area where latinists, hellenists, and egyptologists can all get along

[thatlittleegyptologist]

As an Egyptologist I wholeheartedly support this venture

[sdzoo]

Hippo Tony Tuesday! Keepers estimate Mr. T weighs around 575 lbs. Like most of us, Tony never skips a meal. He’s still nursing but also munching on solids. His favorite is beet pulp, like his mom Funani.

[thebeakerblog]

WHAT! IT’S ONLY TUESDAY?! 

[npr]

Start your day with hippo gifs! -Emily

[progressivejudaism]

First Generation of Transgender Rabbis Claims Place at Bimah

When it comes to transgender Jews, the community is in a moment of transition. Some are pushing the envelope by becoming the first transgender rabbis.

[mamoru]

why does wikipedia call the torah the “hebrew bible”?

no…we call it the torah. we named it. we named the torah, and called it the torah. it is. the torah

[mamoru]

power move. hot take. this is a power take

[systlin]

Do you know much of a god named Bragi? My family has been cleaning out the house of my grand-aunt how recently died of lung cancer and previously believed to be a very devoted Catholic. We found basically a shrine to a god named Bragi with poems and sheet music she appears to have written herself dedicated to him. We found the hidden shrine when we smelled something rotting--it turned out to be apples left on the shrine. Is he associated with apples? Family is a bit freaked, sorry to bother you.

Bragi? He’s a son of Odin, and the god of music and poetry. 

And I’m laughing my absolute ass off that your aunt kept that a secret until she died, and feel like an ass for laughing. I’m sorry for your loss, but yeah, your grand-aunt was a heathen, and I may have to light a candle for her, because damn. 

[systlin]

Oh. As for the apples…his wife is Idunna, who tends the golden apples that grant the gods ageless immortality. 

Your grand-aunt was hella pagan. 

[systlin]

I still cannot get over this. This woman fooled her entire family AND the people at her church into thinking that she was devoutly Catholic for who knows how many years, all while writing poetry to the ancient Norse god of skalds and his wife who she worshiped in the privacy of her own home.  

Meanwhile, I almost out myself as heathen approximately every 10 seconds if I have to sit through even one (1) Christian service for a wedding or a funeral or whatever.

What a fucking legend. 

[sha-beasts-and-jackals]

In a way this makes me sad knowing she could never come out about her religion but man is Systlin right, she is a legend.

[bogganbeliefs]

And now she has become a story, a poem unto herself, and that just seems all the more befitting of a devotee of Bragi.

[valencing]

so exodus says that aaron stretched out his hand over the waters and the frog came up and covered the land of egypt and while english translators usually render “frog” as “frogs,” today at shul the rabbi challenged us to consider whether it could in fact have been one giant frog so we spent literally forty-five minutes arguing about whether there were swarms of frogs from the beginning or rather a single monstrous godzilla frog that split into multiple frogs once people started trying to destroy it and the congregation got so worked up that even after we’d sung aleinu and were heading out of the sanctuary people were still excitedly debating the moral implications of one frog versus many so what i’m trying to say is @judaism never change

[twodotsknowwhy]

Why do I always remember it as one gigantic frog who came out of the water and then opened up his mouth and all the other frogs were vomited out?

[mishpacha]

I remember this too! I’m not sure where it came from though

[agitatedtortoise]

I had this weird ass dream last night that I went to Egypt last minute and it was my usual brand of tomfoolery but Taweret was in it and I still feel blessed.

[tikkunolamorgtfo]

Since Chanukah is coming up, just a safety PSA from my days at Brandeis, if you live in a dorm or another type of space without a suitable common area, the best way to safely light a menorah is to get one of those disposable foil baking tins from the supermarket, fill it with about a quarter inch of water, and then put your menorah in the middle of said tin. Keep away from flammable objects and enjoy.

[agitatedtortoise]

Dear all Jews for Jesus/Christians trying to learn about Jesus and teach Jesus to Jews for our benefit: kindly go fuck yourselves with razor wire and lye and stop following this blog, nothing here is for you.

[stimman3000]

View this post on Instagram

https://instagram.com/p/BY0omYHFMOl/

[useless-jewishfacts]

Kettubahs (Jewish prenuptial contracts) of Italy 

From right to left: 

1. A Decorated Ketubbah from Senigallia, Italy: 1823

2. A Singular Decorated Ketubbah from Forli, Italy: 1826

3. A Decorated Ketubbah from Ancona, Italy: 1816

4. A Fine Neoclassical Ketubbah from Pesaro, 1797

[mishpacha]

If you’re Jewish and unable to attend High Holiday services, you can livestream services from:

92nd Street Y (Nondenominational/Reform) 

Central Synagogue (Reform)

Temple Beth El (Reconstructionist)

Temple Aliyah (Conservative)

Park Avenue Synagogue (Conservative)

Unfortunately I could not find any Orthodox, Sephardi, or other denominations doing streaming so if you know of any, please add them.

[istodayajewishholiday]

It’s the 1st of Tishrei, 5778!

Shanah Tovah—Happy New Year!

[middleeasternsarecool]

Selichot in Isfahan, Iran

Selichot are Jewish penitential poems and prayers recited in the period leading up to the High Holidays. Sephardic and Mizrahi Jews traditionally recite the selichot at dawn on weekdays throughout the month of Elul which precedes Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish new year), whereas Ashkenazim begin at midnight on the Saturday night before Rosh Hashanah.

[istodayajewishholiday]

September 20th, 2017 - 29th of Elul, 5777

Today is Erev Rosh Hashanah—Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown tonight!

[gaywrites]

Jewish transgender man gives birth and embraces life as a single ‘abba’

(JTA) — When Rafi Daugherty went to the hospital for the birth of his first child, he posted a sign on the delivery room door.

Here’s your Sunday #goodread to wrap up the weekend: 

Meet Rafi Daugherty, a Jewish trans man who recently gave birth to a new baby, Ettie Rose. This profile is the lovely story of Rafi navigating coming out to a religious community, giving birth, (single) parenthood, and keeping his Jewish faith as a trans man. Here’s how the article starts:

When Rafi Daugherty went to the hospital for the birth of his first child, he posted a sign on the delivery room door.

“I am a single transgender man having my first baby,” it read. “I use he/him/his pronouns and will be called ‘Abba’ (Hebrew for father) by the baby. Papa, Dad, Daddy, Father … are also ok.”

“I didn’t want them to assume that I identified as female because I was having a baby,” he said.

After eight hours of labor, Rafi was holding his 7-pound, 10-ounce daughter: Ettie Rose, named, in the Jewish tradition, for Rafi’s maternal grandmother and great-grandmother.

Rafi, 33, wanted hospital staff to be prepared for what they were about to see: a man laboring in bed.

The story is gorgeous and gives a small snippet of Rafi’s incredible journey. Amazing, truly. Congratulations to this beautiful family.