Hi, I'm Adina. :)

[Adina Shafner]

Hey Everetts,

I'm Adina and I'm super late with this bio.  :)

I've lived on the Upper West Side of Manhattan since just before September 11.  Before that, I lived and studied in Jerusalem during the unfolding of the second Intifada.  I haven't moved cities since; hopefully the world is safer for it.

I grew up in a liminal space between modern orthodoxy and right wing ("yeshivish") orthodoxy.  My family lived in a bit of a socio-religious bubble: unable to eat at local events (kashrut differences), part of a tiny minority commuting in the opposite direction to another state, school, and more right-wing community.  We attended the local synagogues, volunteered in local institutions, but there was a strange feeling of being caught between two communities and not fully a part of either one.

I began college extremely isolated from the religious community.  I was at the height of my religiosity and didn't socialize with men, which made participation in the co-ed Hillel community virtually impossible.  Eventually, for a variety of reasons, I began reevaluating this path and ultimately moved into a co-ed Jewish coop at Columbia.  Here -- ironically, considering its Jewishly heterogenous makeup --I finally felt part of a cohesive community.  I served on the board as the religious coordinator, facilitating Jewish life in the house and striving to create an environment welcoming, supportive, and embracing of different expressions of Judaism.

These days, I no longer identify as observant and find myself theologically somewhere near the agnostic/atheist lines.  Having grown up with such a literal, historical, straight-forward, legalistic approach to Judaism, I struggle to find an alternative and authentic-feeling Jewish life.  I'm hoping to learn from the diverse community here and find some inspiration and models among their philosophies, theologies, ritual, and culture.

I bring an open mind and heart, 15 years of Jewish education, and a tendency to sometimes debate a little too intensely (I'll try to keep that in check).

I'm looking forward to meeting each of you and learning from you.

Sincerely,

Adina Shafner