Girls to the front

Bringing Judaism into the twenty-­first century

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  • Published 20241105
  • ISBN: 978-1-923213-01-2
  • Extent: 196 pp
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I DON’T KNOW when I learnt I was Jewish. As far as I’m concerned, I’ve always known. I went to a Jewish school from the age of three, where – alongside maths, science, English, art and French – I took a full program of Jewish studies, including Hebrew, chumash (Bible studies), navi (study of the prophets), yahadut (general Jewish knowledge) and parsha (the weekly Torah portion read in synagogue).

Most kids at school hated Jewish studies – the texts are dense and ancient, and the teachers in Australia are often underpaid and overworked. Plus, Year 12 exams don’t include chumash or navi, so why put in the effort? Yet I wasn’t like that. I loved Jewish studies so much that as a teenager I studied for the International Bible Contest, in which the best and brightest Jewish kids from each country memorise hundreds of Bible facts to win a free ticket to compete against each other in Israel. Sure, I was looking for creative ways to go overseas – growing up, money was tight and we didn’t go on family holidays – but I also genuinely loved learning about my faith.

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About the author

Nomi Kaltmann

Nomi Kaltmann is a Melbourne-­based lawyer and writer. She is the Australian correspondent for Tablet Magazine, and in 2023 became one of the world’s...

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