Have you ever had an experience where you felt like you weren’t “Jewish enough” or felt inadequate in some Jewish situation? Same, and I want to talk about it. There is a…
Opinion
We are currently in the period of time known as the Omer, a 49-day stretch bridging the holidays of Passover and Shavuot. During this time, our ancestors wandered in the desert after…
Please be advised: this story contains difficult and sensitive content and may be triggering for some readers. It’s hard to admit, but I used to believe those who experienced domestic violence (DV)…
Since its inception in 1999 the Jewish Heritage Centre of Western Canada (JHCWC) has played a seminal role in documenting, preserving and disseminating information and knowledge on the culture and history of…
In 1917, Polish-Portuguese mining engineer Samuel Schwarz “discovered” a community of hidden Jews living in the isolated village of Belmonte, Portugal. According to oral histories, these hidden or “crypto-Jews” believed they were…
When was the last time you focused on yourself? If you cannot remember, you might be a caregiver. For many, COVID-19 makes for an uncertain future. For caregivers, the pandemic has heightened…
One afternoon, a few years ago, a large, overstuffed mailing envelope arrived in my office. The return address indicated it had come from an elementary school where I had recently spoken. In…
I grew up going to a conservative egalitarian synagogue in Toronto on the High Holidays and occasionally on Shabbat. Women have equal participation to men in the services and I was able…
Although International Women’s Day took place last week on March 8, it shouldn’t be the only time we address notable women who are fighting for women's rights. The National Council of Jewish…
When I was little, I didn’t often think about my mixed Sephardic and Ashkenazi Jewish family. I loved partaking in my father’s Moroccan Sephardic traditions and my mother’s German and Hungarian Ashkenazi…