We need each other. We need support and connection with each other. We don’t need our pain minimized with ridiculous platitudes.

According to U.S. Census data from 2021, about 13% of the American population is disabled. Among those 42.5 million Americans are those who wish to be active participants in their faith. A major problem, however, is that many religious spaces make that difficult or even impossible.

What exactly is Rosh Hashanah and how is it celebrated or observed?

Would I be welcomed if I visited a local synagogue? The quick answer is, “Generally, yes, you’ll be very welcome.” That being said, a little preparation will make all the difference.

I believe I’m seeing far more evil in the world than ever before in my lifetime. There’s a constant barrage of antisemitism, gun violence, racism and homophobia. And not only is there a lack of empathy, but there’s a gleeful viciousness about it from perpetrators. However, for this piece, I’m going to focus specifically on the evil I’m seeing in response to COVID.

This is the third and final installment in my crowd-sourced series where Jewish people share things we wish non-Jews understood. In the previous two articles in the series, we covered things like Chanukah, horns, antisemitism and the wide variety of belief within Judaism. In this article, we’ll get songs stuck in your head, make you are of the Jewish disdain for the phrase, “Judeo-Christian” and point out that Judaism is its own whole set of beliefs independent of other religions.