Jewniverse

‘Arranged’ Marriages for Muslims and Jews

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Two young teachers at a New York public school compare notes on their dating lives. They don’t exactly kiss and tell, however–Rochel is an Orthodox Jew, and Nasira is a traditional Muslim from Syria. And both are going on dates arranged by their parents.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxbpMG6oplw

Neither Rochel’s nor Nasira’s path to marriage is particularly smooth. While sorting though potential husbands and dealing with their own demanding families, both women discover that following the rules isn’t always as easy as it seems.Arranged (2007) is a fictional film about two ostensibly clashing cultures that manifest in the lives of two young women in strikingly similar ways. “Don’t you know there was a women’s movement?” their principal, a non-religious woman, lectures them both. And, unlike most portrayals of religious Jews in modern films, this film has been praised by Orthodox groups for its authenticity.

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