JOFA's Torch
The Torch explores gender and religion in the Jewish community. Named for Deborah the Prophetess, “the woman of torches,” the blog highlights the passion and fiery leadership of Jewish feminists, while evoking the powerful image of feminists “passing the torch” to a new generation. Disclaimer: All posts are contributed by third party authors. JOFA does not assume responsibility for the facts and opinions presented in them.
Living “Out” Within the Orthodox Community
I grew up 100 percent Camp Ramah and United Synagogue Youth (both Conservative movement institutions), but after marrying a Modern ...
Feminism Comes in Many Different Forms
“Why don’t you learn to read the megillah,” asked my husband a few months before Purim.I thought about it for ...
Opening the Walls of Our Chuppah
There is a particular photograph that adorns the imagination of every engaged couple; it is of a young girl, age ...
Wandering Jewess
Jew. Woman. American. Those three attributes are as intrinsic to my identity as my own name. A close fourth would ...
Finding My Voice Through the Book of Ruth
I have always fancied myself as a feminist. When I was in primary school, I remember arguing with one of ...
My First Aliyah L’Torah
Partnership minyans are a relatively new phenomenon in our part of northwest London, so when one started around the corner ...
Two Women Make a Quorum
As I wrote in The Torch last fall, I started attending the early morning minyan at my synagogue with the ...
It’s Okay to Leave
Megillat Ruth is named for the heroine Ruth, who clung to Naomi in what the tradition has perceived as an ...
Hello, Labels: Creating a Feminist Orthodox Wedding
The night before my wedding, as I was falling asleep, I realized that my fiance and I hadn’t discussed whether ...
Uniforms, Unity, Dress Codes, and Discord: The Context of the Debate
My daughter is thrilled to start wearing a uniform next year, and frankly, I share her enthusiasm. At her Bais ...