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Shterny Bernstein is 24 years old and ultra-Orthodox. She lives her life according to the do’s and don’ts of Judaism.
The stories of people who have left orthodox Judaism have often been shown – in books, media reports, films and series.
This is also the case in the most successful Swiss cinema film “Wolkenbruch” based on the novel by Thomas Meyer. Or in the film adaptation of Deborah Feldman’s autobiographical story, “Unorthodox”, which is about a dropout from the ultra-orthodox community.
However, the stories of those who consciously choose to lead an ultra-Orthodox life often remain untold. Shterny Bernstein, a 24-year-old woman, wants to change this and opens her doors to the “SRF Impact” team.
Shterny Bernstein is young, Jewish and ultra-Orthodox. She wears a wig, dresses religiously, lives kosher and works in the Chabad Jewish community. When she goes on vacation, she takes meals with her – restaurants are taboo. It’s a bit annoying at times, she says.
“Have you shaved off the hair under the wig?”
When asked if her hair was shaved off under the wig, she laughs: “No, I have long hair.” It is a pity that only those with shaved hair are shown on Netflix and YouTube. She has worn the wig since the wedding as a sign that she wants to reserve this part of her body for her relationship.
Shterny Bernstein lives her religion her way and is not representative of the entire ultra-Orthodox community. The same applies when it comes to her clothes: “I think it’s nonsense to only wear gray and black,” says Bernstein. “A woman should look good,” but she should still be covered, she says as she stands in front of her wardrobe.
This form of Ultra-Orthodox Judaism is related to the Chabad community into which Shterny was born.
The international Chabad movement is based in Brooklyn, New York and sends rabbi couples to 70 countries around the world. The community operates a kind of internal mission with the goal of bringing less religious Jews to Chabad.
Shterny Bernstein has been married to a rabbi for four years. The marriage was arranged. With the help of a matchmaker, she was introduced to her current husband, Nochum. Part of this pairing was also intensive research by the parents.
Background investigations were carried out to find out whether it met their expectations. After the clarifications, they were allowed to meet for the first time. Shterny and Nochum got engaged after a month, Shterny says with a smile.
After the two met in New York, they moved to Zurich to further establish the Chabad community.
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As crazy and complex as it is, we want to understand the world and look. We do reports and show what really happens. Our hosts Amila Redzic, Livio Carlin and Michelle Feer will take you with them. Give yourself deep dive, doubts and bright spots.
All episodes of “SRF Impact” are on Play SRF.
SRF 1, Great Moment Religion, 6.11. 2022, 10:00 a.m