Encyclopedia Categories | Jewish Women's Archive

Dalia Marx

In teaching liturgy to rabbinical students from around the world, Rabbi Dalia Marx is shaping how the next generation of rabbis interprets the tradition.

Matriarchs: A Liturgical and Theological Category

Among egalitarian religious congregations throughout the world, the most popular addition to the traditional liturgy is the mention of the Matriarchs in birkat avot (the blessing of the ancestors), the opening blessing of the Amidah.

Mother of Micah: Bible

The story of Micah’s mother in Judges 17 is short, but it offers a key insight into ancient Israelite women’s important role as a leader in household worship.

Cover of "Stunden der Andacht" ("Hours of Devotion")

Fanny Neuda

Fanny Neuda was born into a Moravian family of rabbis and acted in line with her family tradition when she published a book of prayers. The book, which was specifically aimed at women, was hugely popular. Neuda continued to write until the end of her life, emphasizing the importance of a moral upbringing for Jewish girls.

Observance of Mitzvot: Custom and Halakhah

Women’s existence in a space between custom and halakhah has allowed them to create unique practices and observances. Women are exempt from some halakhah but also have created informal agreements to adapt certain customs to their needs.

Rabbi Ben-Zion Meir Hai Ouziel

Rabbi Ben-Zion Hai Ouziel was the Sephardic chief rabbi of Israel. Ouziel believed women could vote and be elected, serve as judges, use birth control for health reasons, and inherit property. He proposed a marriage formula that would prevent women from becoming agunot (“chained”).

Poetry in the United States

The contributions of Jewish women poets to American literary history and political activism, as well as to the enrichment of Jewish culture and practice, are astounding. Many Jewish women poets write with a strong sense of social responsibility and a desire to create poetry that can shape reality, drawing on the Jewish teachings of tikkun olam.

Poland: Early Modern (1500-1795)

Polish Jewish Women played a complex role in their society and culture during the early Modern Period. This role was usually gender segregated, but upon a closer look, was more gender flexible than one might think.

Rashi

The medieval commentator Rashi, through his commentary and halakhic works, was an advocate for improving the status of women, introducing innovative exegesis to support his views. His followers, the Tosafists, would continue to innovate and support Jewish women.

Mathilde Schechter

Mathilde Schechter, wife of Solomon Schechter, founded the Women’s League for Conservative Judaism. She was a multifaceted individual, creative both in her home and in the public arena. As an organizational person, she developed herself fully, in line with the traditional women’s roles of the times yet stretching them in new and creative ways.

Seder Mitzvot Nashim

Seder Mitzvot Nashim refers to the genre of literature in Ashkenazic and Italian communities that explained the specifics of how women should observe the commandments that were particularly associated with them. This handbook was reprinted many times, most famously by Rabbi Benjamin Aron Slonik, whose 1585 version of Seder Mitzvot Nashim was a veritable best seller of the pre-modern age.

Spirituality in the United States

Jewish women’s spirituality developed historically within the confines of a patriarchal tradition. Over time, feminists have developed rituals and created spaces that honor the unique experiences of women.

Savina Teubal

Savina Teubal created space for Jewish women to participate in holidays and rituals, and created a powerful new tradition to recognize her own rite of passage from adult to elder.

Cover of the Tkhine of the Matriarchs for the New Moon of Elul, a personal prayerbook in Yiddish.

Tkhines

Tkhines were collections of prayers published in Yiddish, often specifically for women, across Europe from the sixteenth to the nineteenth century. The prayers addressed many themes of domestic and family life, although some also suggested women ought to be allowed into traditionally male spaces.

Women of the Wall

Women of the Wall (WOW) is an international community of women who, since 1988, have sought the freedom to conduct women-led Torah services in the women’s section at the Western Wall in Jerusalem. WOW’s legal claims and political strategies raise questions about women’s rights to equality within Judaism and under Israeli law, the nature of religious toleration for non-Orthodox Jewish movements, and Israel’s identity as a Jewish and democratic state.

Women's Tefillah Movement

The Women’s Tefillah Movement grew out of a need for Orthodox Jewish women for more meaningful and participatory roles in prayer services that remain within the boundaries of Jewish law and practice. With the growth of “partnership minyanim,” the number of Women’s Tefillah Groups has diminished somewhat, but they are still important places within Orthodoxy especially for young girls celebrating becoming a Bat Mitzvah.

Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef

Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef was the Sephardi chief rabbi of Israel and the leader of the Shas political movement.

Elaine Zecher

Rabbi Elaine Zecher uses her own experiences of illness and struggle to counsel congregants and craft prayers for Mishkan T’fillah and Mishkan HaNefesh, the prayer books of the Reform Movement.

Sharing Stories
Inspiring Change

The Shalvi/Hyman Encyclopedia of Jewish Women

Religion: Prayer