News - Infertility - Pregnancy Loss



		Welcome About Tefilat Chana I created Tefilat Chana in July of 2002 after watching a dear friend experience infertility and then a pregnancy loss. There are many forums for discussion of these issues available online and offline, but I felt it might be nice to have such a forum for Jewish women. Some people are comfortable talking about infertility and pregnancy loss in public. Others prefer to keep these matters private. Either way, there are many questions and emotions that grow out of these experience and I hope this site serves as one means of expression for you. I have been married for five years and was blessed with a son in 2001. It was only after watching this friend go through so much trouble that I truly understood the miracle of pregnancy. More recently, I suffered an early miscarriage. I look forward to growing my family with God's help. Please note, this site was created by an individual and is not associated with any organization. I am observant (keep kosher, shomer shabbat, niddah etc.) but know that one need not be orthodox for religion to impact the desire to have a family. The site hopes to serve any woman who feels the challenges of infertility and or pregnancy loss are touched by her Judaism. The resources offered below are not limited to any particular religious level - they are intended to inform or interest rather than to influence. Please do not hesitate to email me at with additional questions. Best wishes to all and may your prayers be answered in time Community Leader Lee W. We are pleased to introduce Tefilat Chana Interactive Articles. On the Message Board section of the site, this new category will include articles, essays, speeches, poems and discussions of interst. Please feel free to react and respond by posting below each peice. You can find more information about contributing writers below. We are grateful to Rabbi Ari Kahn for contributing the Rosh Hashana shiur for Tefilat Chana. Contributing Writers Rabbi Ari Kahn Director of Foreign Student Programs, Bar-Ilan University Aish HaTorah For many years, and in many forums, Rabbi Ari Kahn of Bar-Ilan University has been teaching the words of the Torah. His weekly email essays on the parasha, received weekly by 7,000 readers worldwide. Rabbi Ari Kahn is Director of Foreign Student Programs at Bar-Ilan University in Israel, where he also lectures in Jewish studies, and he is a senior educator at the Aish HaTorah College for Jewish Studies. He received his rabbinic ordination from Yeshiva University's Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary where he studied with Rabbi Yosef Dov Soloveitchik. Rabbi Kahn recently published a new book, Explorations. Drawing upon the vast reservoir of rabbinic literature -- from Talmud to Midrash, from Zohar to the chassidic masters -- Rabbi Kahn combines the mystical explorations of kabbala and chassidism with a highly-intellectual and broad-minded approach to Torah study. He applies psychology, literature and Jewish history to the understanding of esoteric midrashim and the Zohar. Explorations is published by Targum Press. Rabbi Dr. Zalman Levine Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility Fertility Institute of New Jersey and New York Fertility Institute of NJ/NY Rabbi Dr. Zalman Levine is a trained subspecialist in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility with an expertise in infertility, advanced assisted reproductive techniques, and reproductive surgery. Dr. Levine earned his Bachelor's degree in English literature at Yeshiva University in New York and his medical doctorate from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. He completed postgraduate residency training in obstetrics and gynecology also at Albert Einstein, and spent three fellowship years studying reproductive medicine and surgery in Boston at the Brigham and Women's Hospital and the Harvard Medical School. Prior to beginning his medical career, Dr. Levine spent four years studying at the Yeshiva University Theological Seminary, and is an ordained rabbi. He believes his rabbinical training has prepared him well to care for his patients beyond their medical needs. He maintains a strong interest in the interface of assisted reproduction and Jewish law, and he lectures on these issues. He has served to facilitate communication among physicians, patients, and their rabbis. Dr. Levine is a member of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, the American Fertility Society, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the American Medical Association, and he has served on the Ethics Committee of the Massachusetts Medical Society. Links/Recommended Reading Here are some links to sites/articles we found interesting. If you see others, please email so that we can share them. RESOLVE - 617 623-0744 Resolve: The National Infertility Association, with its nationwide network of Chapters, was established in 1974. We are a dynamic organization dedicated to providing education, advocacy and support for men and women facing the crisis of infertility. RESOLVE A.T.I.M.E A Torah Infertility Medium of Exchange, is a non-profit organization devoted to the support and education of infertile couples and to the education of the community so that they can best help their loved ones who are experiencing infertility. 1310 48th Street, Brooklyn NY Helpline - A.T.I.M.E Yahoo Group The purpose for this group is learn various halachos regarding pregnancy and life after pregnancy. The source will mainly be from a book by Rabbi Yisrel Dov Webster entitled, "The Halachos of Pregnancy and Childbirth" and a few other sources including Kitzur Shulchan Aruch. yahoo group - pregnancy halachos Stars of David: A Jewish Adoption Network Stars of David is a non-profit organization providing a compassionate network of support, adoption information, and education to prospective parents, adoptive families, adult adoptees, birth families, and the Jewish community. Stars of David International, Inc. 3175 Commercial Avenue, Suite 100Stars of David Tel Shilo Thousands of women come to Shiloh yearly, from Israel and from all over the world, to pray where Chanah prayed. In addition, Shiloh and the Tel host seminars on Chanah's tefila for women, where more understanding of tefila (prayer) is the overriding goal. This summer on Rosh Chodesh Elul over 100 women came to study and to learn and to participate in a day dedicated to Chana's prayer. Throughout the day, there were events in Hebrew and in English. Tel Shilo Reading The Use of Cryopreserved Sperm and Pre-embryos In Contemporary Jewish Law and Ethics Richard V. Grazi, MD Joel B. Wolowelsky, PhD Cryopreserved Sperm and Pre-embryos in Jewish Law The Pain of Infertility Rabbi Chaim Wasserman Editor, The Rabbi’s Letter The Pain of Infertility Resources on Judaism and Infertility - Arthur L. Greil Article by A.L. Greil Religious Perspectives PDF File When the world was a kid Rabbi Feshbach is originally from Silver Spring, Maryland. He is married to Julie Novick. After struggling with infertility themselves, they now have three children, Benjamin, born in October of 1996, Daniel, born in November of 1997, and Talia, born in July of 2001. Rabbi Feshbach Women in Judaism: A Multidisciplinary Journal (2002) ISSN: 1209 9392 Book Review: Tears of Sorrow, Seeds of Hope:A Jewish Spiritual Companion for Infertility and Pregnancy Loss Women in Judaism How Long the Night A Triumph of Healing and Self-Discovery She was a lovely young bride, a popular teacher, an articulate achiever. Then suddenly everything went wrong. Infertility and the specter of childlessness. Repeated miscariages. The indignities of medical tests and treatments. Premature birth. Chronic illness. Night had descended upon Mindy Gross. Now, she would embark on a frightening and ultimately triumphant journey from darkness to brilliant light. How Long the Night?, a chronicle of Mindy Gross's struggle with interfility and illness, offers fascinating insights into the worlds of conventional and alternative medicine. More, it brings into stunningly clear focus the traditional Jewish view towards life's trials and difficulties. How Long the Night? is not a cry of pain, but a story of triumph over suffering. It is an affirmation of courage and faith, told with warmth, honesty, and unflagging humor. It is not a handbook for the chronically ill or the childless, it is a compelling story that will ofer inspiration and guidance to all of us, no matter what challenges and disappointments we face in our lives. Its lesson, and its message, is universal. by Mindy Gross About Tefilat Chana This is a new site and a work in progress. In the near future we hope to hold chats hosted by experts, religious figures, community members, etc. Tefilat Chana was created by an individul and is not associated with any organization. The site hopes to serve any woman who feels the challenges of infertility and or pregnancy loss are touched by her Judaism. The resources offered above are not limited to any particular religous level - they are intended to inform or interest rather than to influence.