The Special Times of the Jewish Year Can Be a Framework for Your Life as a Couple
"Through the holiday cycle we have seen that life is a complex weave of light and darkness, bitter and sweet, striving and surrendering. The twisted candle reminds us that as a couple our two lives have become intertwined as one. Two souls enter a partnership, interwoven yet always distinct, joined by a third strand, the Divine Presence. As we perform the ritual of Havdalah, we hold our hands up to the flame and catch the reflection of the last light on our fingertips. We pray that the light will continue to shine through our words and deeds, in our homes and in the world."
―from Chapter 9
More than just calendar commitments, the Jewish holidays carry with them a view of what is important in life, a set of assumptions that can challenge and deepen the way we think about relationships.
This inspiring and practical guidebook helps you to understand your life as a couple in the context of the themes of Jewish holidays (Yom Kippur, Purim, Pesah, Sukkot, Shabbat):
- Forgiving and Growing
- Playing, Laughing and Taking Risks
- Coming Home, Finding Freedom
- Blessing Bounty, Facing Impermanence
- Pausing to Bless What Is
- … and more
Drawing from ancient and contemporary texts, Jewish tradition and personal stories, Rabbi Nancy Fuchs-Kreimer and Rabbi Nancy H. Wiener provide creative exercises, rituals and guided discussions that help you make connections to tradition, community and each other. By experiencing the Jewish holidays as times to focus on your relationship, you'll find renewed meaning in these holy celebrations and new opportunities for spiritual growth all year long.
Rabbi Nancy Wiener, DMin, is clinical director of the Jacob and Hilda Blaustein Center for Pastoral Counseling and Dr. Paul and Trudy Steinberg Distinguished Professor of Human Relations at Hebrew Union College–Jewish Institute of Religion in New York, New York.
Rabbi Nancy Fuchs-Kreimer, mother of two, has helped many new and not-so-new parents of many faiths and backgrounds discover how to be better parents, and how to spiritually enrich their parenting experience. She and her partner, Seth Kreimer, have been together for thirty years. She is a featured speaker for many synagogues, churches and academic organizations. Fuchs-Kreimer holds a PhD in religion and is associate professor of religious studies at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in Philadelphia.
Rabbi Elliott N. Dorff, PhD, is the author of many important books, including The Way Into Tikkun Olam (Repairing the World), a finalist for the National Jewish Book Award, and The Jewish Approach to Repairing the World (Tikkun Olam): A Brief Introduction for Christians. An active voice in contemporary interfaith dialogue, he is Rector and Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at the American Jewish University (formerly the University of Judaism), and chair of the Academy of Judaic, Christian and Muslim Studies.
Rabbi Elliot N. Dorff, PhD, is available to speak on the following topics:
- Jewish Medical Ethics
- Conservative Judaism
- Jewish and American Law
- Finding God in Prayer
- A Jewish Approach to Poverty
Click here to contact the author.
