Women of the Wall

It turns out that our second Shabbat in Jerusalem is Rosh Chodesh Tammuz -- which is the first anniversary of Keithen's bar mitzvah!  Even more exciting for me (Laurelle) personally, is that I may be able to attend a Women of the Wall Rosh Chodesh service on Sunday, July 3rd.  G-d willing, I will attend with a friend of mine who will be in Jerusalem when we are. 

As some of you may know, the issue of women wearing tallitot while davening at the Wall is a divisive issue for many, with heckling, assaults, and sometimes arrests imposed on the women exercising their right to pray to G-d in the manner of their choosing in peace and dignity.  I am both excited and feeling some trepidation at the notion of being able to add my voice to those that day and those that have gone before.

There is a link at the bottom of the page to the Women of the Wall website -- if you look at the scrolling links on the left side of the page, there is a moving piece written by an Orthodox rabbi on the issue which was posted in March of this year.  I will, of course, blog about the experience if it in fact does come to pass (though by blogging about it I have certainly decreased my chances of sleeping in that day)!

Technology is fantastic!

We want to welcome everyone to our blog.  Rabbi Larry and I will be posting here before, during and after our trip to Israel.  We'll be letting folks know what we are doing, how our experiences are impacting on our personal expressions of Judaism and Jewish life, and hopefully hearing from our friends and family along the way!

Please check back after June 1st.  We look forward to beautiful conversation!