Jewish Musings Sunday April 23

[hollygail]

What’s on your mind — how to make kugel? This week’s Torah reading? Life goals? Prayer? We are all engaged in weight loss/weight maintenance journeys and we are all Jewish or at least interested in Judaism. We like to eat, we like to discuss. It is our goal here to provide each other support on our journeys, to share experiences, to call on our rich cultural heritage and texts, and to help each other grow spiritually.

Some of us take weekly turns starting the thread:

Angelika
Holly
Lee
Louise
Lynne
Peachy

And for those of you that stop by to read this thread without posting — you are welcome to do that but you are also welcome to chime in (and I'm curious about why people click on the title of this thread and then leave without posting anything...).

[hollygail]

Rosh Chodesh Iyar (sometimes transliterated Iyyar) begins on Wednesday and Thursday this week. Have you ever been part of a women's Rosh Chodesh group? They've been meeting during the last approximately 25, 30 years. I've been a member of several, mostly lay-led, sometimes with a guest speaker who happens to be ordained, although more often a guest speaker is another member of the group or of the local Jewish community.

This week, I have the opportunity to go to a Rosh Chodesh gathering Tuesday night at the Conservative shul where I teach AND also on Thursday night at the Conservative shul where I daven weekdays. If I can swing it, I'll go to both.

There are midrashim about women and Rosh Chodesh along the lines that when Aaron asked for everyone's gold to make the Golden Calf, the women refused, and so were rewarded with our own holiday on Rosh Chodesh, the "head" (or first day) of the month every month. And in some communities, the men would "wait on" the women on Rosh Chodesh. To the best of my knowledge, this practice pretty much died out (except among some Orthodox communities). And I believe my generation reclaimed Rosh Chodesh later than the 1960s, probably starting in the 1970s during the Women's Liberation Movement.

So does anyone have any experience with Rosh Chodesh?

[lee058]

Good morning everybody. Hope you are all well today. I had a crisis with ants in the kitchen on Friday, but had the pest control guy come over and he took care of it. I saw only one live ant today, and it was heading towards the poison gel, so hopefully that was the last one. I really, really, really hate bugs in the house.

I have never been to a Rosh Chodesh gathering, but have read about them and they sound interesting.

I'll check back later. Have a peaceful day, Lee

[peachymom1]

I've never been to a Rosh Chodesh gathering. There must be some around here that I could visit. Holly, would you share with us what the gatherings are like that you attend / have attended, and tell us what you enjoy about them? I'm curious.

[happysavta]

I've never been to a Rosh Chodesh meeting either.

[savtele]

Boker Tov & Shavuah Tov All! I'm part of the Never been there, never done that group -and also interested!