Dear readers,
I grew up in a religious home, as “the Orthodox rabbi’s” daughter. Actually, I was the Orthodox, chassidic rabbi’s daughter.
But don’t let that fool you into believing that I am not bothered by the status quo.
As I matured into my early adulthood, I tried to make some of my own small changes to what I perceived as imbalanced in our society. For example, as I began to realize how little information was easily accessible about great Jewish female role models from the past, I decided to do something about it.
As a Jewish woman, I wanted to learn life lessons from these great role models and apply their uniquely feminine perspective to my own life’s circumstances. And so I did my part researching and digging into original source texts to piece together a cogent story of the lives of these great women so that it could be readily available to others who, like me, were searching for a better understanding.
From those long nightly research sessions, I eventually published books on the lives of biblical women. I also began extensive speaking tours to teach about the amazing powers of the Jewish woman.
At the time that I published my first book, this genre was a novelty. In fact, one publisher to whom I submitted the manuscript told me that the research was well done and interesting, but that this type of book was “far too deep for women”! But, he assured me, he would be willing to publish it because “perhaps their husbands would read it.”
Needless to say, that was not the publisher I chose.
This week, I explore the implications of a blessing that men recite daily, thanking G‑d for “not making me a woman.”
I’d love to hear your thoughts on my piece.
Wishing you a wonderful week, full of probing questions.
And even more liberating answers.
Chana Weisberg,
Editor, TJW
