Women’s Voices

A Woman’s Voice Sweet Changes

Last fall, my daughter, Elana, L turned three and had her first ☑experience as a budding Orthodox feminist agent of social change. Growing up with three older sisters and a Jewishly active mother, Elana has always been able to enjoy all aspects of Jewish life. As her third birthday approached, Elana was excited that her

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Pirkei Imahot The Jewish Women’s Reclamation Project

Geffen Feldman

In the Torah, women are major players whose actions often chart the paths of Jewish destiny. Beginning with Eve and then Lot’s daughters, followed by Sarah, Hagar, Rebecca, Rachel, Leah, Tamar, Yocheved, Miriam, Zipporah, and many others, each can be said to have affected the course of our history. But when we leave the biblical

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Women in Leadership Positions

Geffen Feldman

At a time in history when women lead multi-billion dollar companies, adjudicate on the Supreme Court, and have held the highest political office in many countries, it is perhaps surprising that more Orthodox women are not taking leadership roles in Jewish organizations. Could this be a function of the psychological mindset of Orthodox women or

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At Whose Expense?

Geffen Feldman

The shift in the Orthodox Jewish world toward greater stringency in halakhic interpretation and observance is obvious. The effect of this shift on Orthodox Jewish women is not obvious, and merits attention. Increasingly, stringency in religious observance has been equated with stringency regarding women. Increasingly, Orthodox communities have chosen to measure their religiosity by how

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A Marriage of Equals: In Her Voice

Geffen Feldman

The traditions of the Jewish wedding ceremony are infused with halakhic and symbolic meaning. As my husband, Barry, and I were planning our wedding, we wanted to preserve this meaning, but we were concerned that our personal voices not get lost in the halakhic requirements. Because our wedding would be the first moments of our

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ויהי החצי הלילה • It Was in the Middle of the Night Additional Stanzas Concerning Women

Geffen Feldman

Introduction The piyyut (liturgical hymn) Va-Yehi ba-Hazi ha-Lailah (It Was in the Middle of the Night), sung at the seder on the first night, was composed by the classic liturgical poet Yannai, whom scholars date to the 6th to 7th centuries. The piyyut refers to events that occurred at various times in Jewish history on

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Yocheved and Serah bat Asher

Geffen Feldman

Two women bridge the stories of Genesis with that of the Exodus. Both women are involved in the birth of the nation and its redemption. They are Yocheved and Serah bat Asher. Both are granddaughters of Jacob; both are identified in different sources as the seventieth member of the family of Jacob to go down

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Conscientious Consciousness

Geffen Feldman

The invitation to write “From the Other Side of the Mechitzah” is an opportunity to observe and yet remain apart, to be involved in a discussion and yet not be a full participant. Paradoxically, the view from the “other side” is sometimes simultaneously clearer and yet more clouded. And this is true no matter from

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Women's Voices

A Woman’s Voice Sweet Changes

Pirkei Imahot The Jewish Women’s Reclamation Project

Women in Leadership Positions

At Whose Expense?

A Marriage of Equals: In Her Voice

ויהי החצי הלילה • It Was in the Middle of the Night Additional Stanzas Concerning Women

Yocheved and Serah bat Asher

Conscientious Consciousness

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