Four Centuries of Jewish Women's Spirituality: A Sourcebook (HBI Series on Jewish Women) [Paperback]

Ellen M. Umansky (Author), Dianne Ashton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 28, 2008 | Series: HBI Series on Jewish Women

Much has changed for Jewish women since the first edition of Four Centuries of Jewish Women's Spirituality appeared in 1992. Associations of Jewish women--academic, religious, secular--have proliferated, making the women's voices heard. In collecting material for this completely revised edition, the editors drew upon sources that express the diversity of Jewish women, mainly from 1560 to the present. They sought material by Jewish women of different ages, sexual orientations, educational and socioeconomic backgrounds, and nationalities. Reflecting a wide variety of literary genres, sources include spiritual works (sermons, addresses, ritual blessing, prayers) as well as letters, sisterhood minutes, and committee reports that also express the spiritual concerns of their authors. Writings by women rabbis and contemporary Orthodox women, along with documents from Latin America, bring the volume up to date.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Various works composed between 1560 and 1990 by some 100 Jewish women living in Europe, America and the stet/pk land of Israel testify to a strong, age-old female religious self-identity. Defending herself to a Catholic cleric in a 1641 pamphlet, Italian poet Sara Copia Sullam declares her belief in the immortality of the soul; 17th-century German merchant Gluckel of Hamelnsp ok urges her children to set aside time for the study of Torah and to be honest in money matters with both Jews and gentiles; and also offered here is a prayer, found in an anomymous 1648 Amsterdam collection, that women said when they put the Sabbath bread into the oven. During the 19th century, American Emma Lazarus honors, in a poem, the Touro Synagogue of Newport, R.I., and American Penina Moise composes English-language hymns for use in Reform temples. In 1916, American Zionist Henrietta Szold explains in a letter that she will defy Jewish tradition and say kaddish for her mother; and Hungarian-born WW II heroine Hannah Senesh dreams of a national homeland for the Jews. Contemporary voices create new rituals as they meditate on menstruation, sexual abuse and rape, miscarriage, conversion, feminism and nuclear arms. Umansky and Ashton are religion academics.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

This unique anthology is devoted to writings by Jewish women. While the book spans four centuries, the emphasis is on recent decades, with one-third of the material written in the past 30 years. The collection is significantly strengthened by an expansive overview entitled, "Piety, Persuasion, Friendship" and by insightful introductory material to each of the four sections. The term spirituality is used very broadly and includes social service and charitable activities. Selections run the gamut from prayers, poems, ethical wills, and sermons to excerpts from sisterhood minutes, women's organizational handbooks, and speeches to Jewish women's service organizations. The fascinating materials reflect the changing roles of Jewish women. An important addition to women's studies collections.
- Carol R. Glatt, VA Medical Ctr. Lib., Philadelphia
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 404 pages
• Publisher: Brandeis; Revised edition (December 28, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1584657308
• ISBN-13: 978-1584657309
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.9 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #899,958 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Merle Feld is a widely published poet, award-winning playwright, peace activist and educator. She is the author of a new volume of poetry, "Finding Words," (URJ Press, 2011) and a highly acclaimed memoir, "A Spiritual Life: Exploring the Heart and Jewish Tradition" (State University of New York Press, revised edition 2007).

Merle's award-winning plays include "The Gates are Closing," which has offered hundreds of synagogue communities and university groups from Brooklyn to Beijing a powerful and moving introduction to the themes of the High Holidays. In "Across the Jordan" (published by Syracuse University Press in the anthology "Making a Scene"), Biblical characters share the stage with contemporary Israelis and Palestinians struggling for recognition and rapprochement.

Merle is a popular scholar-in-residence nationally; abroad, she has facilitated Israeli-Palestinian dialogue on the West Bank and at Seeds of Peace, and has traveled to collaborate with and support Jewish women activists in the former Soviet Union through Project Kesher. The Russian translation of "A Spiritual Life" enjoys a wide audience in the FSU; its publication occasioned a unique three-week book tour of Ukraine. Both her experiences facilitating dialogue on the West Bank and traveling across the FSU are detailed in the revised edition (2007) of "A Spiritual Life."

Since 2005 Merle has served as Founding Director of the Albin Rabbinic Writing Institute, guiding rabbinical students and rabbis from all denominations to develop and explore their own spiritual lives and to serve more effectively as spiritual leaders. Her prose and poetry (including her signature poem about women and men at Sinai) can be found in numerous anthologies and prayer books, most recently in the celebrated volumes "Mahzor Lev Shalem" and "The Torah: A Woman's Commentary." Merle and husband Rabbi Edward Feld make their home in Western Massachusetts.

Visit Merle's website www.merlefeld.com for further details about her books and plays, her speaking and teaching schedule and her guidance to begin or enrich your own spiritual writing practice.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Unfortunate deletion from newer edition, November 2, 2011

By 

Abraham Solomon "avisolo" (Philadelphia, PA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Four Centuries of Jewish Women's Spirituality: A Sourcebook (HBI Series on Jewish Women) (Paperback)

Savina J. Teubal's ritual "Simchat Chokhmah" has been deleted from the paperback edition with nary a mention! This is unfortunate since this was what made the book worth it's price in the first place. I would advise the lady editors to restore Savina's ritual in future editions. I recommend buying the first edition only for now.