One Couple Two Faiths: Stories of Love and Religion by Marion L. Usher PhD
What happens when things get serious between a couple when one partner is Jewish and one is not? This book is for them—for interfaith couples who are dating, engaged, newly married, already established and for their families. It will enable them to navigate the complexities of an interfaith relationship and create a bond rich in respect, understanding and a life grounded in Jewish identity. Dr. Marion Usher, creator of “Love and Religion: An Interfaith Workshop for Jews and Their Partners,” draws on her experience working with 700 interfaith couples over 25 years. Her book follows the struggle and success of couples who have made the journey.
Dr. Marion Usher is the creator of “Love and Religion: An Interfaith Workshop for Jews and Their Partners.” With her cohort of over 700 couples, she explores the issues interfaith couples need to address as they co-create the religious life of their new family. Her workshop is now being conducted in ten cities across the United States and Canada. Her DVD and manual illustrating her workshop model premiered at the Washington DCJCC Film Festival in 2009. Her interfaith workshop was a semi-finalist for the Lippman-Kanfer Prize for Applied Jewish Wisdom in 2016.
Dr. Usher consults with interfaith couples and families, synagogues, JCCs, and other Jewish organizations, helping them to develop creative programming for interfaith couples and families and on her website, www.JewishInterfaithCouples.com, where she blogs on issues related to interfaith marriage. Her articles have appeared in The Jewish Week (Washington and New York), InterfaithFamily.com, Sh’ma, eJewish Philanthropy, The Washington Post, The Washingtonian, On Faith, and Jewish Food Experience.
She partners with other Jewish communal groups in Washington, DC, to create new outreach programs for interfaith families, which can be replicated in other cities. Some are “Make Room for the Matzo,” “Make Room for the Latkes,” and “City Jews: Pop Up Shabbat.” Each program has a Jewish activity for the children and a discussion component for the parents.
Dr. Usher is a Clinical Professor in the Department of Psychiatry, at George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, where she supervised residents in psychiatry and helped design the Family Therapy curriculum.