Social Issues, Theology

What is (and isn’t) antisemitism?

With so many people talking about Israel and Gaza, perhaps it's worth visiting what antisemitism actually is. That is, if we can all agree on how that is defined. In the same way that racism can be more complex than burning crosses and white hoods, antisemitism is more than Nazis and concentration camps. I would… Continue reading What is (and isn’t) antisemitism?

Miscellaneous

A Jew-“ish” Christian goes to Poland

Last month my family went on a trip to Poland to celebrate my mom’s birthday. Why Poland, you ask? My mother’s side of the family is from there. This trip was a deep dive into our Jewish ancestry, as well as a quest to find the best pierogies in every city we stayed in.  It’s… Continue reading A Jew-“ish” Christian goes to Poland

Social Issues

What the banning of “Maus” says about us

I knew after reading the introduction to Dara Horn’s People Love Dead Jews that I would end up blogging about it. Actually, I knew it after just reading the description on the book jacket: Often asked by major publications to write on subjects related to Jewish culture—and increasingly in response to a recent wave of… Continue reading What the banning of “Maus” says about us

Theology

The way we talk about Pharisees, and why it matters

With the Lenten season coming up, it's time to discuss something that's been on my mind for a while: Pharisees. Odd, I know -- that's not something that normal people think about, except perhaps how not to be one of them: those hostile, unbending, legalistic Jews of the 1st century. The ones who scolded Jesus… Continue reading The way we talk about Pharisees, and why it matters