Syllabus: Gender in Judaism

Oxford Bibliographies in Jewish Studies, 2021

This article addresses developments and interventions in critical gender analysis in relation to modern Jewish thought, tracking these contributions in secondary literature to increase their visibility, with an eye to expanding the scope and inclusiveness of the canon in the future.

Melilah: Manchester Journal of Jewish Studies, 2019

This is a short introduction to the special issue on gender of Melilah: Manchester Journal of Jewish Studies (Open Access). The issue contains the papers and discussion points from the Sherman Conversations 2017 held at the Centre for Jewish Studies, University of Manchester, and additional papers surveying some of the contributions of gender-sensitive approaches in Jewish Studies. The journal can be accessed for download at http://www.melilahjournal.org

Melilah: Manchester Journal of Jewish Studies (1759-1953)

Jewish feminists have been criticizing and reformulating their tradition's theological language, concepts and ethics since the 1970s. With principal reference to the work of Judith Plaskow, Rachel Adler, Tamar Ross, and Melissa Raphael, this article outlines some key aspects of the Jewish feminist theological project. The article goes on to suggest that while Orthodox Jewish feminism might attend more closely to a revision of the gendered theology that informs its halakhic observance, the prophetic momentum of liberal Jewish feminist theology might be greater were it to profess a more personalist, realist account of the exercise of the divine redemptive will in history.

Women in Judaism a Multidisciplinary Journal, 2006

In her introductory essay to this assorted collection of essays on the theme of gender in Jewish Studies, historian Pamela Nadell argues that gender as a category of analysis, as well as the feminist critique of Jewish Studies, have radically revised our understanding of Jewish history and Jewish Studies in critical ways that are still ongoing.[1] Eight essays in this slim yet dense volume give a sample of the range of work that such approaches have brought to topics such as blood, conversion, marriage and divorce, Zionism, professionalism, biblical interpretation, translation and self-government. Three are works of history, one is a work of feminist theory, another is an essay on biblical studies. There are also articles on literary theory and criticism, feminist translation theory, and cultural studies to complete the assortment. Together they build on more than two decades or so of work utilizing feminist critique and gender studies as a tool through which to review, rework, revise and reinvent our understandings of Jewish studies and Jewish history. I will analyze four essays to give readers a view of what "gendering the Jewish past" looks like from these varied perspectives. For a challenging yet rewarding read, I encourage readers to delve into this book for these and the other essays.

2014

The following syllabus was used for an advanced course on Gender and Body in Jewish Literature, taught jointly with my spouse. We wanted to combine our interests in Jewish literature throughout the ages, as well as to question the definition of “Jewish texts.” For that purpose, we included Second Temple Jewish authors whose work was not canonized as part of the Jewish tradition, such as the writings of Philo, or the apocryphal Book of Judith. The most notable example in this context is probably the inclusion of selections from the epistles of Paul of Tarsus. Despite the inclusion of his epistles in the New Testament, he remains a Jew who lived before the destruction of the Second Temple. Similarly, our study of Jewish mysticism was not confined to the semi-canonized texts of the Zohar and related literature, but also the more esoteric Shiur Komah, part of the Hekhalot literature. Secular modern Hebrew literature and literature written by or dealing with Jews have long been recognized as Jewish literature, broadening the definition from the religious tradition to the ethnic group. In relation to that we also chose to include the film A Serious Man by the Coen Brothers and a song by Paul Simon, to further broaden the definition of “text.” The course was intentionally designed to avoid a chronological order or any bias of “canonic” vs. “non-canonic” or “religious” vs. “ethnic” definitions of Judaism. A chronological order might have given the wrong impression of an essentialized development, as well as become a repetition of the Introduction to Judaism course, designed by an historical paradigm. Instead, we organized the course according to three themes: Body, Gender, and Sexuality. While these topics overlapped throughout the entirety of the course, there is an appropriate sense of progression. We began with the ungendered body, dealing more abstractly with the tension between matter and spirit, then proceeded to various aspects of gender constructions, Jewish patriarchy, misogyny, and the thwarted masculinity of the Jewish body. We concluded with several issues pertaining to sex, some of which mirrored topics from the earlier selections, as in the issue of the relationship between sex and worship that evoked once more questions raised in the second class on God’s body. In addition to the syllabus, I attach here the timeline and three bibliographies we gave to the students. The timeline is intended to provide the historical framework that the course’s plan refuses to follow. The List of Sources for the syllabus provides full details of all materials used, for those who wish to seek them. Finally, the two bibliographies on the topic, provide further reading, as well as remind us all that the course barely scratched the surface of this fascinating issue.

Description of the Assignment: Discuss the question of what we can say about women and their roles in early Judaism. Compare the role of women in Jewish communities with that in Christian and emerging Muslim communities. Base your discussion on the course readings, both the literature given in the syllabus and the literature for the fixed exam. Bio‐anatomy vs The Individual…and The Twist From a methodological point of view, the topic at hand is hugely difficult because it touches on every skein of human relations. The question arises immediately, therefore, as to which characteristics are common to all the threads of all the skeins that touch on the topic. I chose the title " Bio‐anatomy vs. The Individual… and The Twist " because I see those three concepts as the protagonists every time I struggle to comprehend the source of the problematics that has plagued relations between men and women seemingly since day one. Let us make use of a bit of dialectics and horistics, then. I would like to define Individual as it is used in this paper: Individual is the sum of mental, moral, and cultural characteristics that make up the personality. Since men and women are surely more similar than different, perhaps it is best to start looking at the differences first.

Religious Inquiries, 2014

This paper briefly examines two approaches to the position of women in Judaism. One is from an orthodox perspective, represented by Chana Weisberg, and the other is a non-orthodox and feminist approach, represented by Judith Plaskow. By examining these two approaches, we expect to contribute to a better understanding of the diverse views of women in contemporary Judaism. Plaskow criticizes the different positions for men and women in Judaism and views them as signs of a woman's otherness that has resulted from a patriarchal approach on the part of those who authored the scriptures. For Plaskow, the different positions of men and women can only mean a woman's inferiority. Weisberg on the other hand, acknowledges the different positions of men and women, but argues that these differences are indicators of a woman's superiority. Nevertheless, it is fair to state that their preoccupation with either the absolute rejection or acceptance of different positions for men and women has deterred them from addressing the fundamental and undeniable issue of the existence of gender differences. In addition, they have not addressed the possibility of these gender differences as a part of the philosophy behind the different positions of men and women in Judaism.

Women in Judaism: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 2006

In her introductory essay to this assorted collection of essays on the theme of gender in Jewish Studies, historian Pamela Nadell argues that gender as a category of analysis, as well as the feminist critique of Jewish Studies, have radically revised our understanding of Jewish history and Jewish Studies in critical ways that are still ongoing.[1] Eight essays in this slim yet dense volume give a sample of the range of work that such approaches have brought to topics such as blood, conversion, marriage and divorce, Zionism, professionalism, biblical interpretation, translation and self-government. Three are works of history, one is a work of feminist theory, another is an essay on biblical studies. There are also articles on literary theory and criticism, feminist translation theory, and cultural studies to complete the assortment. Together they build on more than two decades or so of work utilizing feminist critique and gender studies as a tool through which to review, rework, revise and reinvent our understandings of Jewish studies and Jewish history. I will analyze four essays to give readers a view of what "gendering the Jewish past" looks like from these varied perspectives. For a challenging yet rewarding read, I encourage readers to delve into this book for these and the other essays.