Holy Rebellion: Feminist and Queer Approaches to Jewish Law
Lecture and conversation with Ronit Irshai and Avigail Ben Dor Niv, part of the program of events accompanying the exhibition Sex: Jewish Positions (in English)
It is commonly assumed that Judaism, unlike Christianity, espouses a positive theological view of sexuality that does not see abstinence as a spiritual ideal. Only recently have new approaches in feminist criticism, gender studies and queer theory challenged Judaism’s position on hetero-normative sexual identities. Scholars are questioning the basic gender-related assumptions within the Jewish intellectual tradition, as well as in Jewish law and theology.
Past event
Where
W. M. Blumenthal Academy,
Klaus Mangold Auditorium
Fromet-und-Moses-Mendelssohn-Platz 1, 10969 Berlin
(Opposite the Museum)
In her lecture, religious scholar Ronit Irshai traces the radical transformation of these principles, which not only influence romantic relationships and the family as a patriarchal institution, but also define the meaning of sexuality and its role in Judaism. This will be followed by a conversation with rabbi Avigail Ben Dor Niv.
Ronit Irshai is associate professor and head of gender studies at Bar-Ilan Univeristy in Israel, research fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem (for pluralistic Judaism), member of the board of the Reckman Center of Bar-Ilan University (for women’s rights) and member of “Kolech,” a religious-feminist forum.ciaa Her book Holy Rebellion: Religious Feminism and the Transformation of Judaism and Women’s Rights in Israel (co-authored with Tanya Zion-Waldoks) will be published this year.
Avigail Ben Dor Niv has a diverse background in both academia and the arts. She studied cinema and worked in the television industry in Israel while earning her first degree with honors from the Department of Talmud at Tel Aviv University. Her master's thesis focused on femininity and disguises in Talmudic legends. Currently residing in Berlin, Avigail was ordained as a rabbi at the Abraham Geiger Rabbinical Seminary in Berlin. She serves as the rabbi of the liberal community in Basel, Switzerland, and teaches religion at the Jewish high school Moses Mendelssohn in Berlin.
Wrestling With Leviticus; Susan Kaplow, New York, 2012, 2023
Sex: Jewish Positions: Features & Programme
Exhibition Webpage
Sex: Jewish Positions: Exhibition, 17 May to 6 Oct 2024
Publications
- Sex. Jüdische Positionen: Catalog accompanying the exhibition, German edition, 2024
- Sex: Jewish Positions: Catalog accompanying the exhibition, English edition, 2024
Digital Content
- Letʼs Talk About Sex: Online feature accompanying the exhibition
- What do the artists say? Interview series accompanying the exhibition
- Listen to the exhibition’s soundtrack: Playlist on Spotify
- The Song of Songs. Between Literal and Allegorical Loves: Essay by Ilana Pardes
- “Sex Is A Force:” Interview with Talli Rosenbaum
- Androgynous Characters in I.B. Singer’s Literary Shtetl: Essay by Helena Lutz
- Jewish Places: Find information about Jewish sites related to the exhibition on our interactive map
