In memory of Helen Nash, z”l

For six years, Helen Nash z”l and I learned the weekly Torah portion together. Every week, we opened the text, asked questions, laughed, and sometimes found ourselves puzzled. When Helen encountered a particularly mysterious passage, she would pause and say, with unmistakable charm, “That is very peculiar.” She died last December, and I miss her dearly.

Helen was a celebrated cookbook author and a culinary artist. She understood that food is never only food. How we prepare it, present it, and share it can express beauty, discipline, memory, generosity, and love. Her Jewish commitments reached far beyond the kitchen, through her devotion to family, community, and sacred acts of philanthropy. It feels especially fitting, therefore, to reflect on kashrut in her memory.

Deuteronomy 14 introduces its dietary laws with a declaration: “You are a people consecrated to the Lord your God.” Israel is........

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