I answer your questions about Judaism and living as a Orthodox Jew!

Well first of all thank you to everyone who sent questions! You all are awesome and I am happy to answer these great questions. Second these answers are my answers they are not anybody else's and do not represent every Jew. Last, names and places have been changed to protect the curious;)

Ingrid from Irvine asked: "Why do you dress so conservatively and cover your hair when modesty standards and dress codes have changed since Bible Times?"

Answer:
Great question and one I think a lot of people wonder but don't ask. Dressing in not only a feminine way but a modest way is important for me because what you wear says a lot about you and what you value. I value myself and I would't feel right or comfortable showing a lot skin. I feel like showing a lot of skin can be distracting. I find people make eye contact with me and look me in the face which is great of course. I also consider myself to be a daughter of the King (G-d) and if you look at what royal women wear they always dress modestly and in a feminine way. As for covering my hair after I married. It leaves something that is only for my husband and that is special. As far as "Bible Times" obviously a lot has changed in the last few thousand years. This can make living by "Biblical" values and rules today very challenging. Knowing how to apply the values and laws from then in our modern lives can be overwhelming so thankfully we have very wise and knowledgeable Rabbis who help sort it all out and give us guidelines for things like how we dress. 


Sarah from Spokane asked: 
"The Pentateuch is very specific in regard to living practices. As a practicing Jew, are you to follow all of these rules? Or how do you decide which you don't have to anymore? What about sacrifices since you are still awaiting Messiah?"

Answer:

Two good questions! Yes the Pentateuch or as we call it the Torah which are the first five books of the Bible contain many rules regarding all aspects of life and even death. As an Orthodox Jew I believe in still living by the laws of the Torah. We do not pick a choose what we follow we do our best to follow all the laws that pertain to us. There are some that are only for men or only for women some that are for the Temple or regard things like salvery that no longer apply. I obviously follow laws regarding women and ones that are for everyone like dietary laws. We no longer have sacrifices since we no longer have a Temple. It is also important to note that we believe that the laws of Torah are for Jews and it's not necessary for non-Jews to follow them. I also respect and love every one of my fellow Jews and just because I have chosen to live as an observant Jew I and believe that living by Torah though tough is wonderful I respect those who chose not to.

Betty from Brooklyn asked:
"How do you reconcile liberal social views that are contrary to the law with what you believe?"

Answer:

First I'd like to say that I am not a Rabbi or a leaned scholar so I am not going to say who is and who isn't living in a way contrary to the law.

I am sure many of you have heard the phrase as for me and my house. This dictates our choices for our family. I am so thankful that I live in a free country where I can live with my family how we choose I want this for others too. Just because I don't or would't live a certain way does not for me mean others can't. Betty didn't specify for me which of my liberal social views she means so I am going two tackel two that I think people wonder about. Marrige equality and Abortion. Marriage equality I believe is a matter of what our United States law says and guarantees and my following Biblical law in my own life does not factor in at all to this. I am thankful I married the person I love and my heart breaks for those who can't. As far as safe abortions I think it's far more dangerous for abortion to be illegal. In countries where abortions are done by untrained people women die at an alarming rate. I also know there are horrible things that women endure and I would never judge someone else though I would not choose abortion personally. Although in Jewish law abortions are allowed when the mother's life is in danger.

Shannon from Shanghai asked:
"What was the hardest thing for you to give up? Do you feel like being Orthodox limits you professionally?"

Answer:

Another two for one:) There are many things I gave up that I do miss. I frankly don't believe people that say they miss nothing when they convert or become observant. I miss most spending time with my family on Christmas and Easter. These days are always hard for me and I think they always will be. It's okay though because I am happy with my choice and we have many other special times together like Thanksgiving and birthdays.

As for limiting me professionally the short answer yes it does. There have been times when I worked as a Nanny that I did not get hired because I could not work Friday nights or Saturday. However I always ended up working for wonderful families who respected me and my beliefs. I thankfully have never been without work. I believe whole heartedly that our families choice to keep Shabbat a holy day not like the other days of the week is a wonderful blessing for us on many levels including in ways we don't even see.


I so enjoyed answering these questions. If you have one just comment on this blog or contact me via Facebook. I am always happy to answer any question! 

Me with my favorite scarf on!