FIGHTING OVER THE TOYS

בס"ד
Tamuz 2



"The Light of Torah" Copyright A. Barclay

In response to the flaming I have received over my wearing tzitzit, I'm posting a general idea I have about the "equal but different" treatment of the genders within traditional Judaism.

I can't speak for all women, obviously, but I speak for myself & many other Orthodox feminists when I say that women don't want to COMPETE with the men, we just want to feel welcome in our synagogues & in our religion.

Women are integral members of the Jewish community. Without women & our children there would BE no community - so we must feel welcome. Otherwise, if the women don't feel welcome, that feeling will be sensed by the children & this will negatively affect the survival of the community, G@d forbid. Look at how many people we've already lost.

Daughters should have a sense of joy growing up Jewish!

Just because Jews do this or that, that doesn't make it Jewish or Judaism - we are cautioned against adopting the practices of others in the way we worship G@d - in fact, it's a mitzvah. So it is the responsibility of our rabbis & other community leaders to separate cultural traditional practices adopted from the dominant cultures we have lived under from what we understand the Torah's message to women is.

Rabbis, are you writing books giving legal rulings based on the conditions you wish to create? Your intentions may be right, you may be attempting to prevent us from accidentally sinning, but the result of your actions is wrong. You are excluding your mothers, your sisters, your partners, the mothers of your children - we are the larger part of the community.

That which deprives Jewish women of the ability to choose our place within Judaism will either drive us away or underground or serve to suffocate the beautifully sincere expression of cleaving to The One which we yearn for. & sometimes, but not always, that expression of seeking holy intimacy with G@d will take the form of performing mitzvot which we have been freed from by our Sages. Those wishing to uncover & do Ha-Shem's will for them should be allowed to do so unfettered. In fact, they should be applauded.

If each of us focused on ourselves & whether we were on our Path, we wouldn't spend so much time criticizing or attempting to control others. Torah is about light, folks.

That's all.




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