Rivka Hellendall

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Jan 4, 2024, 2:02 PM

Parshat Shemot: Making a Choice

Daniel Amit’s portrait of Rachel Edri, Tel Aviv. Image credit: LEON NEAL/GETTY IMAGE

The Book of Shemot begins with the reunion of all of Yaakov’s sons before they pass away on foreign soil. However, the second generation of B’nei Yisrael continues to multiply and spread out across the land of Egypt. Pharaoh...

Oct 27, 2021, 12:17 AM

My 21st-century Aliyah story

My last blog post here was over a year ago. In the meantime, I made Aliyah to Israel during Corona, at the beginning of 2021. It won’t be long before my first aliyahniversary now. I came during a Covid-19 lockdown...

Mar 26, 2020, 8:44 PM

I found my first gray hair today

I found my first gray hair today. I was doing my make-up and standing in super-close proximity to the mirror. There it was, growing out of my side parting. At first, I thought it was bleached from the sun, although...

Mar 13, 2020, 12:29 AM

What Corona teaches us about social responsibility

Irene Rabinowitz draws an interesting parallel between the Coronavirus, or COVID-19, and the AIDS crisis of the 1980s in her latest blog. Central to Rabinowitz’ argument is how destructive it is to dismiss the danger of certain diseases simply...

Feb 24, 2020, 9:15 PM

Belgian anti-Semitism is a one-trick pony (af)fair

Last year, the Belgian town of Aalst shocked the world with their open display of anti-Semitism at the local Carnival parade. The parade featured larger-than-life statues that clearly mock Jews by going for both stereotypical Jewish/Hasidic garb, i.e. the...

Jan 9, 2020, 12:45 AM

We European Jews never passed as white

In the last two decades, American Ashkenazi Jews have returned to the question of their Otherness, or, put more crudely, to the question of whether Ashkenazi Jews are White, “white-passing”, or something else entirely. A quick Google search entry...

Jan 1, 2020, 2:53 PM

Why Orthodox women deserve the title ‘Rabbi’

I spent six months in a Modern Orthodox seminary in Israel after finishing my undergrad degree at 21. As someone who was mostly self-taught in all things Jewish Studies (at least since the end of my pre-bat mitzvah education),...

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About Me

Rivka Hellendall made Aliyah during one of Israel's many Corona lockdowns because it seemed like the right thing to do nonetheless. Rivka can be found managing content for a Jerusalem start-up by day and enjoying Holy City living by night. Her Dutch heritage allows her to relish a dairy dessert only one hour after a meat meal.