vegan columbus: vegan living in central ohio

Yom Kippur has officially begun here in Ohio and for us veg*ans, the repentance of sins related to what we have eaten and drunk carries special meaning. For the first time since my bat mitzvah I used a tallis and kippah from the loaner basket because my personal set that were given to me eleven years ago were 100% wool. After last yom kippur, I gave them to my mother, who is not a vegan and has never had her own tallis or kippah. 

So that left me wondering what to do about a tallis and kippah. I have found instructions for making your own, although no one seems to agree on what is and is not really required. As far as I can tell, you're safe both halakically and veganly if you stick with 100% pure linen for everything. There's a wealth of information on the details of how to tie the knots, etc. available from the honored Rav. Google so I won't repeat it all here.

More difficult is the question of tefillin boxes. Those must be leather to be kosher. Some potential solutions:

• Tefillin made from non-slaughtered animals: This seems singularly distasteful to me and probably to most vegans, since there is still the problem of the fact that the cows are domesticated, enslaved animals and the tefillin are still very much made of leather. However, I do realize that when it comes to compromise between halakah and veganism, that balance is going to fall in different places for different people. I do not endorse this particular option but I do understand why it exists and feel that it's better than the standard tefillin-producing method. This is the only even remotely humane option available to the strict halakic Jew.
• "Women's tefillin": These are kind of frou-frou looking, but the idea behind them is one that can also be used by vegan Jewish men. Basically, they're non-kosher, interpretive tefillin made from fabric. New-agey gender-specificity optional. Seems the obvious solution for the Reform, Reconstructionist, Reformodox, Metrodoxiform*, or Zen Jew.

So, l'shanah tovah, for us and for the animals.

* Metrodoxiform: HC(H2CO-Matzoh)3, gas at STP, NFPA Rating: (estimated) Health: 2; Flammability: 0; Instability: 0