Welcome to the Jewish Muse Blog

Shalom. Chances are, you came to this blog because you too are trying to figure out how faith can fit into your life.

Born Jewish, I was raised in a non-religious household. My faith meant little to me until strangers threw my religion in my face when my family moved from western New York State to rural Ohio. At the time, I was 9, and was one of only three Jews in the school system; the other two were my older brothers. Peers often interrogated me when they found out I was Jewish.

“A Jew? What’s that? Do you believe in Jesus? Won’t you go to Hell if you don’t believe in Jesus?” I struggled to respond. I knew the basics about Judaism, but by age 12, I was a Sunday school dropout.

During the worst time of my life, faith offered no solace. My brother Kevin died at age 23 in a car accident in 1986; I was 21 and ignorant about the role faith could play in grief. Not until my 30s did I start to connect more to Judaism. In May 2006, I celebrated my bat mitzvah – at age 41.

A writer, wife, and mother, I am still on a journey of faith. I am new to both marriage and motherhood. In the fall of 2006, Pavlik Mintz and I were wed in a Jewish ceremony under a chuppah draped with our prayer shawls. In 2008, we had a baby boy. Simon. My hope is that Simon will grow up understanding and embracing Judaism more readily and easily than his parents did. As a family, we often go to services at our temple, Temple Isaiah in Lexington, MA. Pavlik and I sing in the chorus, and Simon is known as the “chorus baby.” He went to – or rather, slept through – many rehearsals as an infant.

I know I am not alone in this exploration of faith, and that motivates me to create this blog. I will write about faith and the long reach of its tentacles into our lives. This incredible journey teaches me something almost every day.


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