The Tanakh seems to draw our attention to clothing in many stories. It is highlighted in the stories of Adam and Eve’s banishment from Gan Eden, of Joseph and his ketonet passim (coat of many colors), and of Esther who donned queenly robes, to name a few. How did the parshanim (biblical interpreters) reconcile this […]
You are What You Wear: Clothing in Biblical Interpretation Read More »
It is commonplace that dress is a cultural artifact. Our assumptions about men and women, what roles they play in society, indeed our very notions of masculinity and femininity are products of the cultures in which we live and are often encoded in our dress. This is not only a modern notion, but appears early
Dress, Gender and Jewish Law Read More »
People ask me why I decided to make a siyyum on Seder Nezikin for my Bat Mitzvah this past June. It all started one Monday in March when my mother took my brothers, my sister, and me to the Israel Book Shop. I looked around, found that they did indeed have the Artscroll-translated Mishnahs (Mishnayos
Emerging Voices: Learning on One’s Own Read More »
It hit me when I was standing in front of the congrega – tion at Shira Hadasha in Jerusalem, ready to leyn. For the past year, I had been going through all the motions of getting ready for a Bat Mitzvah. I had learned to leyn with Tammy Jacobowitz, studied berakhot throughout Tanakh with Judy
Emerging Voices: Mi’dor l’dor: Being Connected to the Past and Future Read More »
It was with great excitement and anticipation that my husband and I began planning for our daughter’s Bat Mitzvah celebration. Although specific aspects of the event were not yet determined, we were certain of a few things. First, our daughter’s reaching the age of mitzvot would not be marked by a party alone, but would
Mothers & Daughters Learning Together: Drisha’s Bat Mitzvah Program Read More »
I currently find myself uniquely poised to comment on the school’s role in the Bat Mitzvah experience. On the one hand, I am a principal with dozens of Bat Mitzvah girls in my charge; on the other, I am a frequent carpool driver for my own middle school daughter who is living through the years
Parents and Schools: Partnering to Create Meaningful Semahot Read More »
will always be indebted to my parents for the Bat Mitzvah they gave me. I do not mean the party (although it was a wonderful celebration) or the presents. I mean the skill they provided me. For my Bat Mitzvah, my father taught me how to leyn Megillat Esther from a klaf— a handwritten parchment
Leyning Megillat Esther: The Ultimate Bat Mitzvah Gift Read More »
Soon after my eleventh birthday, I began learning to chant the extremely long Parashat Naso. I marked my Bat Mitzvah by leyning the parashah at the egalitarian shul my family joined after we became frustrated by the limited opportunities for women’s participation at the traditional minyan where I had grown up. Ten years later, I
Celebrating the Opportunities, Lamenting the Limits Read More »
Introduction Recognizing the need for a meaningful Bat Mitzvah ritual, some members of modern Orthodox communities have typically chosen one of two kinds of celebrations. In the first type, the Bat Mitzvah gives a d’var Torah in the synagogue after the service or at the reception hall. This d’var Torah, presented on a subject that
New Models for Bat Mitzvah Celebrations in the Synagogue and in the Community Read More »
Twenty-five years ago the idea of celebrating a Bat Mitzvah was such a revolutionary idea that my parents refused to attend their granddaughter’s day of celebration. Today most Orthodox circles celebrate a Bat Mitzvah in accordance with the religious outlook of the community to which they belong. For many, however, finding a meaningful and appropriate
Reflections on Bat Mitzvah as an Educational Endeavor Read More »
