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Interfaith Families and Balance

post #1 of 2
Thread Starter 
My partner is an agnostic, mostly non-observant Jew who would really like his children to identify as Jewish. I'm a fairly observant Pagan who is also a stay-at-home mother. Between my religion being more a regular part of my life and being the primary caregiver of the children, my six year old identifies with my religion but not my partner's. This hurts my husband, and he has started teasing me about my religion. I've encouraged him to live his religion more to better expose the kids to it: I remind (okay, maybe nag) him about approaching holidays, get books for the children about Judaism regularly, and often do most of the grunt work to prepare for them if he gives me a plan of what he wants to do...but, I kind of resent it, especially since he makes fun of my religious beliefs. At the same time, when we fail to observe the holidays (especially when he talks about them but fails to follow-through), my six year old sometimes expresses disappointment, so I find it hard to wash my hands of it. Everyone seems really unhappy with how we treat religion in this house, but I don't know what I can do to change the dynamic. (I have a whole lot of suggestions for him, of course, but I suspect if he wanted to implement it, he would have done so by now.) Any advice?
post #2 of 2

I'm not in your shoes. only my $.02


Here is the way I see parenting with faith. Walk your path show the way you live life. Explain your actions to your children...they are the ones that will find the path they will walk.


Your husband is the one that is not living his faith. You can explain that tonight is passover and the story or not. If he wants to celebrate leave that to him. right?? That would be the balance for me. We can not live a faith we don't follow.  For me to celebrate a pagan hoilday would only look like a shadow of what you would do.


Trying to explain things like this are hard. You and I are spiritulity minded. We live our faith and want to have a life that show what we believe. That can not be taught....it can grow with love and care. If your husband wants to grow jewish children he needs to put in the work.


I hope that you find the balance that you are looking for. I do.

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