Life Cycle Rituals

Weddings

Your wedding is unique. Because it’s about celebrating you. The venue, your guests, the flowers, the food, the music – they all come together on your day to celebrate you. And at the heart of all of that is the wedding ceremony itself. The ceremony should be a reflection of who you are as a couple. 

I take the time to get to know the couples who I work with. I want to hear your story, and understand who you are as individuals and as a couple. I listen, learn about your vision for your perfect and most meaningful ceremony, answer your questions, and create a ceremony that reflects your love story and values. 

From the secular to the spiritual to Jewish weddings, I’m here for you! Want to know more? Let’s talk!

B. Mitzvah

The Bar and Bat Mitzvah is a beautiful Jewish coming-of-age ceremony. It marks that time in a child’s life when they begin their transition towards adulthood. Leading a service, being called to say the blessings and read from the Torah, teaching from the Torah portion – these are all a powerful way to mark this important time in someone’s life. 

You don’t have to belong to a synagogue to have a deeply meaningful and authentic Bar and Bat Mitzvah, and the service can take place in any venue. I work with families to create and customize a service that meets your teen’s needs and your family’s vision. As an ordained rabbi, I have officiated at hundreds of B. Mitzvah services, guiding young teens and their families through all the in’s and out’s of service preparation, culminating in extraordinarily meaningful B. Mitzvah experiences that resonate with Jewish tradition and feel deeply personal.

I offer one-on-one B. Mitzvah tutoring in addition to creating and leading the service itself. Tutoring can be done in person (if you are in the Greater Philadelphia area) or virtually (via Zoom or FaceTime). My tutoring style is warm and supportive, and, in addition to the basics needed for the service itself, can extend to gaining a deeper understanding of Jewish culture, history, holidays, and ideas. 

Family and Home

One thing I love about life-cycle rituals is that they give us a moment to acknowledge the blessings we have in life with those closest to us. When do we ever give ourselves that opportunity otherwise? When you create a specific event or ritual to celebrate and offer gratitude for the bounty of life, it allows us to bring to the surface the feelings that we sometimes don’t give ourselves the time or space to feel. 

These family rituals can take place wherever you’d like – I will help you create the ritual that works for you. 

If you are looking for Jewish rituals, I can help lead a brit milah (along with the mohel of your choosing – I don’t snip!) or a baby naming ceremony, as well as a chanukat habayit (house dedication) ceremony, plus any number of other custom-made rituals with traditional or not-so-traditional Jewish blessings. 

  • Expecting a Child

  • Baby Naming

  • Simchat Bat/Brit Milah

  • Baby/Child Welcoming

  • Adoption

  • Coming of Age

  • House Dedication/House Warming

  • Renewal of Vows

Transitions

One of the few guarantees in life is that it will have many ups and downs. Life is filled with transitions and changes, some painful, some joyous. Often as we journey through a transition, the journeying itself can be confusing or emotionally laden. Anthropologists call this “liminal space,” the space betwixt and between, where definitions are blurred and often the feeling is disorienting. This is exactly what rituals were meant to address! Rituals can help to give closure to something you’re leaving behind, or give strength for what’s to come.

Looking to convert to Judaism? Let’s talk about a plan of study that’s perfect for you.

Most of the following categories have no set ritual or ceremony connected to them. This is something that I can help to create with you, and together we can make a ceremony that acknowledges and honors you and what you are going through! 

  • Conversion to Judaism

  • Gender Affirming and Transition Ceremonies

  • Healing: Illness or Recovery

  • Separation or Divorce

  • Career Change/Change of Life

  • Graduation

  • Empty Nest

  • Retirement

  • Job Loss

  • Home Loss

  • Other Difficult Life Events/Transitions

End of Life and Loss

Funerals, memorial services, or other end-of-life ceremonies hold an important place in every culture across the world. Coming together to remember someone, to say goodbye, and to not feel alone in our grief serves a very important and healing function. If you have lost someone or are facing an imminent loss, please be in touch and I will listen, learn about your loved one, and help create a memorial that comforts and captures their spirit. 

  • Funerals

  • Memorials

  • End of Life Celebrations

  • Unveilings

  • Grieving