Sunday, November 21, 2004

Orthodox Jewish singles issues

KOL - A Project of the Orthodox Caucus

This is a must read magazine supplement entirely devoted to the subject of orthodox Jewish singles, and containing many fascinating facts, opinions and insights.

Orthodox Jewish society is very marriage/family oriented - and rightly so. This 16-page collection deals with how this fact impacts on those who by chance or by choice are not members of the marrieds club. Are older singles really made as welcome in our homes and at our tables as they need to be?
One single writer describes the pain of going home for yomtov, when everyone else her age is discussing birth and diapers. She suggests: "Personally, having another single around for the holidays would make me feel less alone..." Now that doesn't sound too difficult to organise.

As regards the benefits of appropriate mixed socialising (OTTs beware) we are informed that "No less a Torah scholar than Rav Aharon Soloveichik met his future spouse at a wedding with mixed seating."
You can read the articles one by one online, but if you have a fast connection and Adobe Reader, the best thing is to download the whole PDF (click on the Download KOL in full link), print it out, and read it over Shabbos.

No comments: