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A Close Look on the Role of Women in Judaism

October 7, 2010 by admin Filed under judaism rule
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There are two different views of the role of women, that of the Reform Judaism and Orthodox Judaism. Although the Reform view may seem to be cut and dried compared to the Orthodox view, such is not actually the case. The main difference between the two views lie in the definition of equality but however this transcends barriers since both are based on the Holy Book, the Torah. Although The Torah proclaims the equality of man and woman in the performance of their duties and responsibilities, the lack of a definitive interpretation of rights and privileges for both sexes makes the situation more complex and seem unequal. The Reform Judaism strongly believes in the equality of men and women, to the extent that they introduce alternative mitzvot (commandments) and rituals to be able to deal with Jewish religious requirements. They have generously allowed women to perform the duties of rabbis and cantors, counts women as an integral part of the minyon (the quorum requirement for public prayer), permits women to make the first move in a divorce proceeding and even provides the equivalent of a berit (circumcision) ceremony for girls although no medical procedure is performed. Reform Judaism is considerably more liberal since they advocated shorter religious services, the use of English in most of the rituals and the mixed seating of men and women during worship. On the other hand, Orthodox Jews have a more complex interpretation on the role of women in religion as they observe Jewish laws more strictly. Although Orthodox Judaism look at Jewish women as actively involved in matters like the observance of Sabbath and dietary laws, reflection, social interaction, personal development, business practice and charity the role of women in these matters of concern are subject to the particular interpretation from era to era and from each individual person. Orthodox Jews firmly believe that Jewish law does not regulate every detail of life but rather provides a fundamental framework within which each person may express their individuality and personality. For thousands of years, the duties and obligations of a Jewish wife and mother are looked on as leading indicators of religious expression and responsibilities for Jewish women. Orthodox Jews firmly believe that the joint roles of wife and mother provides for enormous opportunities of spiritual manifestations and growth. The overlapping role of women as a wife, mother and as an individual person in Orthodox Judaism provides for an endless resource in which to practice familial love, personal intellectual and spiritual development and in the community including performance of communal responsibility. The Torah however points out that it does not preclude women from holding jobs but rather emphasizes that material achievements should not be the primary goal but should only be secondary to more profound religious obeisance and dutiful performance of family-centered life, prayer, and charity. Although the ideal role of a woman in Orthodox Judaism is to get married in order to more fully perform her duties and obligations, traditional Torah authorities say that marrying is not a requisite for a woman to fulfill her religious duties and obligations. Instead, dedication to others is an acceptable virtue to a family-centric life in the strictest sense. The difficulty of defining the role of the Jewish woman in Orthodox Judaism therefore is not as easily defined in the traditional sense because there are various intersecting planes of responsibilities, roles, obligations and

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http://devorah.us/judaism-rule/a-close-look-on-the-role-of-women-in-judaism/[2/12/2013 7:12:50 PM]

A Close Look on the Role of Women in Judaism | Devorah duties that a woman needs to develop by herself in accordance within the general constraints of Jewish law and philosophy.

The issue becomes more complicated as the Torah proclaims the equality between men and women but then makes an important distinction between rights and obligations. It becomes even more complex because Orthodox Judaism looks at events and interaction in terms of duties and obligations and from the sociopolitical viewpoint of rights and privileges as we are more familiar with. In Orthodox Judaism, the issue of rights and privileges never arises and is almost antithetical to duties and obligations. Source: http://www.devorah.us

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