an LGBTQIA+ inclusive space dedicated to Jewish quotes, poetry, and inspiration. | Suggestion box is open. | Mizrahi, Sephardi, Ashkenazi, Jews of Color, Jews by Choice, and Jews from all movements are welcome here.
This blog is run by a trans Jewish adult. It is not affiliated with any other jumblr blogs.
Please let me know if any of my posts have errors, misattributions or are offensive in some way that I am oblivious to. (Never underestimate my ability to be clueless.)Ā
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Non-Jewish people are welcome to follow and share, but please do not tag the content with "christianity."
This is a Jewish blog sharing Jewish content for the enrichment of Jewish people. When you tag the content with "christianity", you erase the myriad ways in which Judaism is a completely different religion,Ā one which has been oppressed and appropriated by various Christian groups for centuries.
You may not intend to erase us, but that is the impact your actions have.
Please be respectful of this space and the people who occupy it.
To be clear: this is me setting a boundary. I will not debate it. But I will enforce it.
TherapyGolems Giveaway for Minneapolis/St.Paul Residents
Y'all have had a bad week and there's not much I can do about it from a thousand miles away. But one thing I can do is get some golems into the hands of people who could use them.
If you (or someone you love) are a Minneapolis/St. Paul resident, here's what to do:
Pick out ANY golem from the TherapyGolems Ko-Fi shop
Use discount code FUCKICE for 100% off
Check out (unfortunately I couldn't figure out how to swing free shipping - message me on Ko-Fi if that's an issue)
Here are the rules:
Limit ONE (1) golem per person/order
Shipping address MUST be located in Minneapolis / St. Paul / the surrounding environs.
Orders that use the discount code and don't comply with rules 1 and 2 will be cancelled (and I'll be really grumpy about it).
And as a reminder for all, the digital download of the Golem Coloring Book is FREE and almost 30 pages of golems. Art therapy helps.
TherapyGolems Giveaway for Minneapolis/St.Paul Residents
Y'all have had a bad week and there's not much I can do about it from a thousand miles away. But one thing I can do is get some golems into the hands of people who could use them.
If you (or someone you love) are a Minneapolis/St. Paul resident, here's what to do:
Pick out ANY golem from the TherapyGolems Ko-Fi shop
Use discount code FUCKICE for 100% off
Check out (unfortunately I couldn't figure out how to swing free shipping - message me on Ko-Fi if that's an issue)
Here are the rules:
Limit ONE (1) golem per person/order
Shipping address MUST be located in Minneapolis / St. Paul / the surrounding environs.
Orders that use the discount code and don't comply with rules 1 and 2 will be cancelled (and I'll be really grumpy about it).
And as a reminder for all, the digital download of the Golem Coloring Book is FREE and almost 30 pages of golems. Art therapy helps.
I have made soooo many golems and the world is bonkers right now but PRIDE MONTH is upon us SO if you would like a Golem from my shop you can use the coupon code KESHET from now to the end of June to get 18% off everything.
Please also remember if you would like something custom made, I have a commissions page (or you can message me) and I am happy to make things for you.
AND if you want to make your own golem there is the original golem pattern available to download for a buck OR I can send you a build-your-own-Golem kit with everything you need to make one yourself.
ALSO ALSO because oh my goodness the world is Stressful, the 29-page golem coloring book is now a FREE DOWNLOAD, because art therapy is good but GOLEM ART THERAPY is even better.
Just as it is a mitzvah, a commandment, to reprove someone who will heed the reproof, so too is it a mitzvah not to say what will not be heeded (Talmud, Yevamot 65b)
Every evening we recite: "He creates light and makes the dark." Twice a day we say: "He is One." What is the meaning of such repetition? A scientific theory, once it is announced and accepted, does not have to be repeated twice a day. The insights of wonder must be constantly kept alive. Since there is a need for daily wonder, there is a need for daily worship."
āA little lightā, said the Jewish mystics, ādrives away much darkness.ā And when light is joined to light, mine to yours and yours to others, the dance of flames, each so small, yet together so intricately beautiful, begins to show that hope is not an illusionā¦ All I can say is what I feel: that the people I have met who have lit candles in other peopleās lives have given me the strength
to carry on.
Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks zt"l, To Heal a Fractured World p. 271
The Orlando attack fell during Shavuot, a joyous Jewish holiday.
When our synagogue heard about the horrific tragedy that took place at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, it was at the same time that we were celebrating our festival of Shavuot, which celebrates Godās giving of the Torah.
As Orthodox Jews, we donāt travel or use the Internet on the Sabbath or on holidays, such as Shavuot. But on Sunday night, as we heard the news, I announced from the pulpit that as soon as the holiday ended at 9:17 p.m. Monday, we would travel from our synagogue in Northwest Washington to a gay bar as an act of solidarity.
We just wanted to share the message that we were all in tremendous pain and that our lives were not going on as normal. Even though the holiday is a joyous occasion, I felt tears in my eyes as I recited our sacred prayers.
I had not been to a bar in more than 20 years. And I had never been to a gay bar. Someone in the congregation told me about a bar called the Fireplace, so I announced that as our destination. Afterward, I found out it was predominantly frequented by gay African Americans.
Approximately a dozen of us, wearing our kippot, or yarmulkes, went down as soon as the holiday ended. Some of the members of our group are gay, but most are not. We did not know what to expect. As we gathered outside, we saw one large, drunk man talking loudly and wildly. I wondered whether we were in the right place. Then my mother, who was with me, went up to a man who was standing on the side of the building. She told him why we were there. He broke down in tears and told us his cousin was killed at Pulse. He embraced us and invited us into the Fireplace.
We didnāt know what to expect, but it turned out that we had so much in common. We met everyone in the bar. One of the patrons told me that his stepchildren were actually bar-mitzvahed in our congregation. Another one asked for my card so that his church could come and visit. The bartender shut off all of the music in the room, and the crowd became silent as we offered words of prayer and healing. My co-clergy Maharat Ruth Friedman shared a blessing related to the holiday of Shavuot, and she lit memorial candles on the bar ledge. Then everyone in the bar put their hands around each otherās shoulders, and we sang soulful tunes. After that, one of our congregants bought a round of beer for the whole bar.
Everyone in the bar embraced each other. It was powerful and moving and real and raw.
After that we moved to the outdoor makeshift memorial service at Dupont Circle. There, too, we did not know what to expect. But as we gathered around the circle, people kept coming up to us and embracing us. One man we met there told us that his daughter sometimes prays with us. Others were visiting from Los Angeles but joined in full voice, clearly knowing the Hebrew words to the song we were singing.
As we were singing, I looked over at some gay members of our congregation and saw tears flowing down their faces. I felt the reality that we are living in a time of enormous pain. But I also felt that the night was a tremendous learning experience for me. I learned that when a rabbi and members of an Orthodox synagogue walk into a gay African American bar, it is not the opening line of a joke but an opportunity to connect; it is an opportunity to break down barriers and come together as one; it is an opportunity to learn that if we are going to survive, we all need each other.
I donāt think this article got very much traction last year, but I wanted to share it again.
āIn Jewish thought, a sin is not an offense against God, an act of disobedience. A sin is a missed opportunity to act humanly. The verb to sin in Hebrew is also used in the sense of āmissing the target.ā When God created us free to choose between good and bad, He also gave us the capacity to know when we had chosen wronglyā
ā Harold Kushner, To Life!: A Celebration of Jewish Being and Thinking
