A stranger walking into the auditorium of Bais Abraham Congregation on a Tuesday evening might be surprised to see some two dozen women of all ages sitting together deeply engaged with a text of Gemara. Most of these women have encountered the actual daf (page) of the Talmud for the first time in this program.
Despite the fact that Talmud is among the foundational texts of Judaism, women to this day encounter controversy when seeking to learn Gemara. However, the Shalhevet Women’s Kollel of St. Louis, hosted at Bais Abraham Congregation, aims to make the Talmud accessible to all women, no matter what their background.
The focus of Shalhevet is on intensive, text-centered learning. One need not come with years of Talmud study, competency in Aramaic, or even exposure to Hebrew to be able to engage fully with these texts. With all the resources available today—including dictionaries, resource guides, and the new Koren Talmud Bavli—the gatekeepers have been removed and the doors of the beit midrash have been thrown open, allowing all students permission to enter.
Pedagogic Approach
Rather than beginning with basic skills or handpicked sugiyot (segments), Shalhevet takes a pedagogical approach of beginning at the start of a masekhet (tractate) and struggling with the text as it unfolds. This means studying the simpler pieces together with the more complex, the popular sections together with the lesser known. Throughout it all, students find themselves learning more about the evolution of halakhah, the intricacies of rabbinic thinking, and the underlying basis of modern-day Judaism.
Shalhevet, funded in part by Targum Shlishi (the Aryeh and Raquel Rubin Foundation), meets every other week for an hour and a half. Each session is divided into havruta (partnership) study followed by a shiur (formal class) led by Bais Abraham’s maharat, Rori Picker Neiss. The initial 45 minutes of study in small groups allows each woman to grapple with the text and develop a personal relationship with the rabbis, the discourse, and the tradition. The class that follows allows everyone the opportunity to share their insights, questions, and thoughts to enable all to learn from one another and to add their voices to the discussion. The results have been astounding. Even those who had little experience with Jewish learning in any context fi nd themselves fully absorbed in the rabbinic discourse, joining the conversation with those who lived centuries before.
Talmud learning by women is the new reality within Judaism—not only for our daughters, but for our mothers, our sisters, and ourselves. Even though the logic and rigor of Talmud learning may not appeal to all sensibilities— some might prefer the poetry of Kohelet or the history of Tanakh—it is imperative that all observant Jews today have the freedom of choice to become acquainted with the seminal texts of rabbinic Judaism. Being an Orthodox Jew demands a level of Jewish literacy, of which familiarity with Talmud is an important element.
Shalhevet invites all women to join us in our learning, to join us in the rabbinic discourse and in removing the gatekeepers who previously stood guard at the doors of the yeshiva—join us in forming the Shalhevet Women’s Kollel Network.
Meaning of the Name and the Logo
Shalhevet means “flame,” representing the light of the Torah, which illuminates all that surrounds it. Like a flame, Torah learning is never diminished when shared with others; new flames are created which then cast yet more light into the world. Women’s learning can never decrease or denigrate Torah; it can only enhance the wisdom of Torah already in the world.
The logo, designed by Dr. Tessa Gardner, features, in addition to a flame, the rare four-pronged shin, the twenty-third letter of the Hebrew alphabet. This four-pronged shin is found only on the left side of the tefilin shel rosh (phylacteries worn on the head). The simplest explanation for the two different shins is that the traditional three-pronged shin represents the three patriarchs and the four-pronged shin represents the four matriarchs, making it an apt symbol for a women’s learning space. Additionally, there are deeper associations. The four-pronged shin is created by the white space around a three-pronged shin. The three-pronged shin represents the written, revealed Torah, but the four-pronged shin symbolizes the as yet unrevealed Torah, to be developed through the ages.
As Rav Kook wrote, “The white parchment around the letters is an integral part of the Torah; without it, the Torah scroll is disqualified.” Thus, the four-pronged shin beautifully symbolizes the learning process at Shalhevet. Women study the black space—the sacred words printed in the Torah—and at the same time explore the white space that exists between the words—the stories, discussions, debates, and rulings that comprise the Oral Tradition, as recorded in the Mishna and Talmud.
For more information, and for permission to use the Shalhevet logo, contact Maharat Rori Picker Neiss at maharat@baisabe.com.