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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 09 September 2014
This article attempts a brief sketch of the modern Jewish views of women. To explain modernity, however, it must first survey the major biblical and talmudic themes. Although both the Bible and talmudic materials are densely layered, one quickly sees that the dominant, official texts gave modern Jewish women an ambitious heritage. Only with the Breslav Conference of Reform Judaism in 1846 did a clear call for Jewish women's equality with men in institutional religion sound forth. Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati became an American rallying point among the Reformed, but the Conservative and Orthodox hung back. In recent times sympathetic religious lawyers have attempted halakahic reforms, but Jewish feminists feel that much remains to be done in such realms as divorce, religious ritual, and Israeli civil law.
1 Space does not permit full consideration of the problems raised by the androcentrism of most of the textual traditions. Suffice it to say that I do not contend that all, or even most, Jewish women accepted the “official,” textual views. None, however, could escape being strongly affected by such views. On feminist methodology and androcentrism, see Fiorenza, Elisabeth Schüssler, In Memory of Her (New York: Crossroad, 1983), especially pp. 106ff.Google Scholar
2 See, e.g., Poupko, Chana K. and Wohlgelernter, Devora L., “Women's Liberation: An Orthodox Response,” Tradition 15 (1976), 48–49.Google Scholar
3 Bird, Phyllis, “Images of Women in the Old Testament” in Ruether, Rosemary, ed., Religion and Sexism (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1974), p. 56.Google Scholar
4 Swidler, Leonard, Women in Judaism (Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1976), p. 56.Google Scholar
5 Neusner, Jacob, Method and Meaning in Ancient Judaism (Missoula, MT: Scholars Press, 1979), p. 85.Google Scholar
6 Ibid., p. 94.
7 Ibid., p. 96.
8 Wiesel, Elie, Four Hasidic Masters (Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 1978), p. 34.Google Scholar
9 Umansky, Ellen M., “Women in Judaism: From the Reform Movement to Contemporary Jewish Religious Feminism” in Ruether, Rosemary and McLaughlin, Eleanor, eds., Women of Spirit (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1979), p. 340.Google Scholar
10 Heilman, Samuel C., Synagogue Life (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1976), p. 69.Google Scholar
11 Ibid., p. 70.
12 Ibid., p. 71.
13 See Berkovits, Eliezer, “The Status of Women Within Judaism” in Kellner, Menachem Marc, ed., Contemporary Jewish Ethics (New York: Sanhedrin Press, 1978), pp. 355–74;Google ScholarNeuberger, Julia, “Women in Judaism: The Fact and the Fiction” in Holden, Pat, ed., Women's Religious Experience (Totowa, NJ: Barnes & Noble, 1983), pp. 132–42.Google Scholar
14 See Koltun, Elizabeth, ed., The Jewish Woman (New York: Schocken, 1976).Google Scholar
15 Lahav, Pnina, “Raising the Status of Women Through Law,” Signs 3 (1977), 193–209.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
16 Swidler, Leonard, Bibiical Affirmations of Women (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1979), pp. 49–54.Google Scholar
17 Goldenberg, Naomi, Changing of the Gods (Boston: Beacon, 1979), pp. 1–25.Google Scholar
18 Plaskow, Judith, “The Feminist Transformation of Theology” in Gross, Rita, ed., Beyond Androcentrism (Missoula, MT: Scholars Press, 1977).Google Scholar