July 28, 2022 — New York Times bestselling novelist Gary Shteyngart (Our Country Friends, 2021) and Bruchim’s Max Buckler appear together as guests on Evolve, the podcast of Judaism’s Reconstructionist Movement. Shteyngart and Buckler’s friendship began on social media after Shteyngart published a New Yorkeressay describing his own botched bris. Buckler, a circumcision critic and founding…
Thurs. July 7, 2022 @ 7:30 PM EDT Please join us for this Bruchim presentation which is open-to-all and being offered free of charge! Email info@bruchim.online to get the Zoom link or use the following meeting ID and passcode to enter. Thanks and we hope to see you there! Meeting ID: 825 9836 5896 Passcode: 417195…
March 21, 2022 — In this exploration of Torah text and Maimonides’ book Guide for the Perplexed, Bruchim’s president and co-founder Lisa Braver Moss discusses the practice of brit milah and the Torah’s many mentions of the commandment to love the stranger. What possible connection could there be between the stranger, the newborn baby, and…
February 20, 2022 — The association of Jews with the practice of circumcision is one that pervades the popular imagination, and it is undeniably well-earned. Circumcision has been an important Jewish practice for the better part of two millennia, and over its long history, it has accrued many varied meanings and valences. The dominant narrative…
April 7 @ 5:15 p.m. Pacific Time RSVP to info@bruchim.online Please join Bruchim as we honor our friend and colleague Mark D. Reiss, M.D. for his many years of advocating for Jewish families who wish to have brit shalom ceremonies. Bruchim will present Mark with a Life Award. We’ll also launch & dedicate Bruchim’s comprehensive directory of…
February 1, 2022, BY Max Buckler — As a founding member of Bruchim, the new Jewish nonprofit advocating for Jews who hold critical views of brit milah, I seek to build bridges between those who continue to practice the traditional ritual and the growing number of Jews who have come to believe, as I do,…
January 30, 2022, BY Rabbi Barbara Thiede — No, circumcision does not make a Jew. No, what ancient peoples called circumcision wouldn’t count as one for us. And, no, we do not have proof that circumcision was unquestioned or even highly valued by our ancestors. History and mythology have a complicated relationship. The latter is not…
Please join Bruchim for a special live event — open to all — with Bruchim’s own Biblical Scholar In Residence, Rabbi Tzemah Yoreh, Ph.D. Your RSVP to info@bruchim.online is appreciated but not necessary. Follow this link on Thursday February 3rd at 8:15 p.m. EST to join the program, which will take place on Zoom and…
January 31, 2022 — This piece is the FIRST EVER Judaism Unbound “Gemara” (commentary). It is a reflection, written by Eli Hurwitz, on a Judaism Unbound podcast episode (Episode 303: “Bris” Means “Covenant,” Not Circumcision). It explores the idea of kavanah (spiritual intent), as applied to difficult Jewish conversations. By Eli Hurwitz, New Voices/Judaism Unbound…