Episodes
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In this episode we continue to study modern midrashim written by women in the wake of October 7 with Tamar Biala, editor of the "Dirshuni" series.
Tamar Biala has been collecting and editing modern womenâs midrashim for over 20 years and published them as part of the âDirshuniâ series, with two volumes in Hebrew and one in English. The first Hebrew volume was co-edited with Nehama Weingarten-Mintz.
Since October 7, Biala has received many texts relating to the Hamas attack and its aftermath. In this two-part session we will study these powerful texts written by women about grieving mothers and angry grandmothers, faith and doubt, the Jewish present and past and how they interact with one another.
To learn more about women's midrashim and Dirshuni, listen to this 2002 interview with Tamar Biala:
https://newbooksnetwork.com/dirshuni
Texts discussed in part 2:
All Your Brothersâ and Sistersâ Bloods are Crying to Me from the Soil
Gili Mivtzari Zivan
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1aNGyHlWLSoPh-tIzkJfnit4iaG4sEcdYpAvO1sNDzzA/edit?usp=sharing Redeeming Captive Women
Oshrat Shoham https://docs.google.com/document/d/1130ptM6jQPTRuUT47bGrWLcOJD-70A00nWiuGifleXM/edit?usp=sharing Sleeps and Slumbers, The Guardian of Israel
Rivkah Lubitch
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Wr5hn_P0zmtrByKMZq4LOC7lwZzCe5uVGthg4AFl-LQ/edit?usp=sharing Midrash One People to Another
Rabbi Yael Vurgan
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1NmgwsUUv8mC33mawGrM_rhH8d8jcLNDg8outpF_TjCg/edit?usp=sharingSupport and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice.
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Tamar Biala has been collecting and editing modern womenâs midrashim for over 20 years and published them as part of the âDirshuniâ series, with two volumes in Hebrew and one in English. The first Hebrew volume was co-edited with Nehama Weingarten-Mintz.
Since October 7, Biala has received many texts relating to the Hamas attack and its aftermath. In this two-part session we will study these powerful texts written by women about grieving mothers and angry grandmothers, faith and doubt, the Jewish present and past and how they interact with one another.
In the introduction to this episode, Rivkah explains the background behind womenâs midrashim. If youâd like to learn more, please listen to this 2022 interview with Tamar Biala about Dirshuni:
https://newbooksnetwork.com/dirshuni
See a video about Leora Ayalonâs granddaughter:
https://www.mako.co.il/mako-vod-keshet/heroes-s1/VOD-78a0c38dde9ec81027.htm
Texts discussed in Part 1:
Liora Ayalonâs midrash: âThe Power of a Community to Diminish Suffering in the Worldâ
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1niJjmDMmEUCFaegsMxc_X5dJSU_nQadnL_wDO7TMv-8/edit?usp=sharingNurit Hirschfeld-Skupinskyâs midrash âMidrashim of Destructionâ
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1m71SJkROg-lNBez6bfIAbOfxKjOPlagmIRmiedfoKpQ/edit?usp=sharingSupport and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice.
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Missing episodes?
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Thousands of Lone Soldiers come from all over the world to serve in the Israeli army. What caused these brave youngsters to leave everything and come to Israel? Where do they live? Who does their laundry when they get out for weekends? How do they pay rent?
Arlene Abrams is a mother of a lone soldier, Efraim. She talks about her sonâs experience in the Gaza War. Ellen Tuggle is the mother of Zack, a lone soldier who finished his army service. She tells us about her work with Big Brother/Sister Organization.
Efraim Abrams at Yom Hazikaron Ceremony 2024
Big Brother/Sister organization
Support and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice.
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Anne Rethmann, a PhD fellow from Berlin studying at Hebrew University, explains how the notion of âdignityâ entered into the discourse on human rights, and describes the gap between individual human rights and collective human rights. Anne also tells us about her personal experience on October 7, and how various countries, particularly Germany, responded to the war.
Support and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice.
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Nigun Halev is a center for Jewish life, ritual, social action, and culture. Rabbi Liora Ezrachi-Vered, Rabbi of Nigun Halev and board member of Tag Meir, talks about their work with Jewish and Arab evacuees of the Galil.
https://www.facebook.com/nigunhalev
Support and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice.
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Esther Markus, a social worker and therapist, manager of clinic resilience center of Sdot Negev, and member of Kibbutz Alumim talks to us about her experience on Oct. 7th and the work she has been doing since. The personal tragic story of her husbandâs death is part of the bigger story of the horrific attack of Hamas.
Support and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice.
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Hana Cooper, a digital selections collector for the National Library of Israel, collects online materials related to October 7 and the ensuing war for the massive âBearing Witnessâ project. While the library has always collected material on historical events, this is the first time it became actively involved from the start. We learn from Hana the ethical and logistical challenges of collecting, sorting and ensuring access to the vast amounts of material in both Israel and the Diaspora. All of us can get involved by finding and submitting materials that document, memorialize or preserve the events of October 7 and their aftermath.
The library recently commended Hana for her work on this project.
To learn more about the project and submit materials, go to the National Library website.
Previous episodes mentioned in this podcast:
With Hannah Wacholder KatsmanWith Dr. Sarai Aharoni
Support and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice.
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Dr. Susan Weiss, founder and director of the Center for Womenâs Justice, interviews podcast host and to'enet rabbanit Rivkah Lubitch about how Jewish law might affect women in the aftermath of the Gaza war. Susan and Rivkah talk about women who might not be able to get divorced (agunot); women who might need their brother-in-lawâs permission to remarry (halitzah); and women who may â or may not â have been raped, and how that affects their relationships. Who might be affected adversely by Jewish law? Who might be absolved? How, if at all, will the rabbis resolve the issues raised? Will there be a systemic solution for all the cases that arise, or will each case be decided on its own? And what does the State have to do with it?
Podcast interview with Hannah Wacholder Katsman on âExit Strategyâ here.
Support and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice.
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Shana Aaronson is the director of Magen, an organization that services and advocates for victims of sexual abuse in the Orthodox and ultra Orthodox Jewish communities. She speaks about the impact of the Gaza War on her work. She explains how the war has had a triggering affect on women who have experienced sexual abuse in the past; and she describes the problems of sexual harassment that have arisen in hotels that are hosting evacuees from the northern and southern borders of Israel.
https://magen-israel.org/en/
Support and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice.
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How do we preserve womenâs stories, especially those of sexual violence? Dr. Sarai Aharoni delves into the historical, ethical and feminist questions she navigates while archiving womenâs testimonies.
Support and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice.
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Celia Jawabreh, a feminist social activist and educator in the Arab-Israeli community, has a very painful and candid conversation with us. She tells what it is like to grow up as a woman in a patriarchal religious society, and especially how Arab women (and men) are faring since the 7th of October. We learn what it is like to be identified in public as an Arab and having Israeli Jews suspect her as being pro-Hamas. She described how shocked Israeli Arabs were by what happened on the 7th of October, and their pain at being constantly under suspicion.
Support and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice.
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Leader of the Religious Kibbutz Movement Sarah Evron describes the miraculous story of how Kibbutz Saâad was spared on October 7th, the challenges of evacuation, and how the community has rallied together in inspiring ways.
Support and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice.
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Embedded trauma specialist Lisa Fliegel recounts working with children survivors of October 7th. Drawing on her experiences in three disparate high conflict zonesâIsrael, Northern Ireland and inner city BostonâLisa shares insightful and effective ways of responding to children processing trauma.
Read about Lisaâs experiences with children survivors post-October 7th here.
Check out Lisaâs book, Bulletproof Therapist, here. Support and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice. -
Why is humor the quintessential Jewish coping mechanismâeven during war? Bazy Rubin talks about making funny videos of her struggles as a reservist wife and mom on the home front, and why they resonate with so many right now.
Check out Bazyâs funny videos on Facebook and Instagram.
Support and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice.
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Since the start of the war, Israel has drastically loosened and expedited the process for citizens to obtain gun permits. But at what cost? Social worker Tamar Schwartz of Womenâs Spirit shares how war affects women victims of domestic violence and warns of the deadly consequences of guns falling into the wrong hands.
Support and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice.
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What compels a volunteer forensic pathologist to travel all the way from New Zealand to Israel? Dr. Judy Melinek speaks about the crucial role of science in bearing witness to the Hamas attacks on October 7th.
Read Dr. Melinekâs firsthand account here.
Support and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice.
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Why do international feminists, who champion human rights and social justice for minorities, seem to have a blind spot when it comes to antisemitism? Feminist icon Dr. Phyllis Chesler shares her experiences confronting antisemitism over decades in feminist activism and academia.
Read Dr. Cheslerâs article on the silence of feminists regarding Hamasâ use of rape as a weapon of war against Israelis.Support and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice.
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While the home front supports the military, who supports the home front? Yael Yechieli shares how an innovative volunteer database facilitates critical support for the women and families back home.
Learn more about the volunteer database, Anchor for the Reserve Families, and the 50-50 Partnership for Equity.
Support and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice.
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Atar Maor recounts a harrowing 20 hours spent hiding in the closet with her two young children as terrorists hunted them down in Kibbutz Beâeri on October 7th. As she answers their innocent questions and makes split-second decisions to save their lives, she wonders: can she preserve their faith in humanity?
Support and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice.
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As a girl growing up in Northern Israel in the 80s, Rina Levanon evacuated her home many times. Now, she must contend with wartime evacuation yet againâbut this time, as a mother of three. Rina shares her experiences navigating memories of personal trauma, unexpected parenting challenges and anchoring herself in routine while her life has turned upside down.
Support and amplify women's voices by contributing to the making of this podcast: Donate now to the Center for Womenâs Justice.
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