Role of Women in Jewish Religion

Religion has existed for as long as man has. Both men, and women believed in a

In many cultures, the roles of women vary reluctantly. While researching the many aspects of Buddhism, the religion is sometimes practiced differently and the roles of women differs. According to Experiencing World Religions, (Molloy, 127) Buddhism is one of the world's oldest yet most significant religions thus far. It has influenced many cultures, originating from India and making its way to migrate throughout the country of Asia, and women have been involved since the very first day. In today’s society, although men are predominantly inferior over women, women are granted the same opportunities. Just like many other societies in other countries or many other religions there are discriminations and prejucial acts against women. Although, woman are offered the second class citizenship in many Buddhist traditions, a woman's role is very important when helping maintain the religion resulting in mass population of worshipers , fulfilling the duties as caregivers and also wives to their husbands, and also providing any assistance if needed in the community. (Molloy, 127)

The stories told about women in the bible illustrate the importance of their role and contribution to society. Although the Bible does not explain God’s relationship with women as with Moses and other prophets, it illustrates love and devotion women had for Him. The stories of the bible describe brave, nurturing, and God fearing women whose decisions impacted the existence of the Israelites.

     The Jewish female is like the ovule of a flower, it spreads its seeds to create future generations. It is known that the true root of a Jewish person lies in the hands of his/her mother. As it was once said by Golda Meir, “To be successful, a woman has to be much better at her job than a man.â€? (Golda Meir Quotes par. 1). And in fact it is true, that women had to be better than man to survive the holocaust, but not only to survive the holocaust but to live on to tell the stories, and to spread Judaism. Although every Jewish person was equally a victim in the genocide of the holocaust, the Jewish women were one of the main targets. This is because the Jewish women were connected to

There are many important things necessary to look at when examining the Holocaust. These could include geographical location, Nazi leader in charge of certain ghettos or concentration camps, or even the anti-Semitism prior to the Holocaust. We have seen many of these factors discussed in detail and how they apply to the Holocaust and its terrible events. These aren’t the only approaches we should be considering when looking at the Holocaust. There are many other important aspects that we seem to gloss over like the importance of gender. How did suffering differ throughout the Holocaust based on gender?

While women’s experiences during the Holocaust were not entirely different from those of men, it would be false and misleading to assert that they were identical. There were many instances in which an individual’s ordeal was shaped by his or her gender and it is only by understanding what was unique to women and children, and what was unique to men, that we can provide a complete account of what occurred during the Holocaust. One of the reasons it took so long for historians to comprehend the importance of these perspectives is because women were busy rebuilding their lives after the Holocaust. It wasn’t until the 1970s when feminist scholarship was sparked, that there became an interest in the stories of women survivors. Eventually, after the women were able to put their lives back together and raise their children, it became important for them to share their memoirs.

As anyone who studies the history of the Holocaust can tell you the Holocausts extremely complex. There are many sides as many factors that permitted this atrocity. One side that isn’t always highlighted is the role that women played in the resistance. Sadly, throughout most of history women have not usually been seen in Key roles or of having any real part in these events. The history of the Holocaust is no different. The Holocaust which took place between 1941-1945 was the largest most widespread act of genocide in human history. By the end over 11 million individuals had been killed, six million of those were European Jews (xiv). Besides killing two thirds of the Jewish population of Europe the Nazis killed German defectors as well as others who they saw as racially inferior. These were gypsies or Romani as they prefer to be called and Slavs from all over

The women helped with this matter by forming sisterhoods in each congregation. The work they did to support educational programming became the backbone of the educational mission of the conservative synagogues. These sisterhoods began to take on projects with the intentions of enhancing synagogue life and contributed both financially through fundraising and through countless volunteer hours. Women assisted in Sunday schools and other religious schools in education of children, but also felt it was important to educate Jewish mothers whose role it was to educate each of their families. In order to accomplish this, they organized classes for mothers in the community pertaining to Jewish living and observance. They served as cooks in the synagogue kitchens as well as hostesses whenever the synagogues hosted events for the congregation and community. The women also often had important roles in finding ways to unite the congregation and the Conservative Jewish communities. They would do things such as putting together “Sisterhood Cookbooks” with both traditional Jewish and American recipes and sell them to raise funds for the congregation. They worked on campaigns to refurbish and redecorate synagogue buildings, and helped to pick the new carpet, paints, and other things in the redecorating process. These women often took on the responsibility of fundraising for these kinds of projects, as well as for opening new schools and buildings and refurbishing other existing buildings used by the congregations. In this way, these women were able to feel like important and contributing members of their congregations, and they were highly valued by the men in the congregations. The Conservative Movement also encouraged equal education for both boys and girls at a time when girls were only receiving little education at home. The Teachers Institute of the Jewish Theological Seminary offered Jewish

Both books begin with the telling of life before the Second World War and the holocaust. It effectively sets up the devastation of later chapters that paints the gruesome pictures of concentration camps and the horrifying experiences of the German rule. While Women in the Holocaust continuously clarifies that men went through their own hell in camps and beatings from the Nazis, the book underlines the tribulations women suffered from that are strikingly different from the experiences of men, before and after the war. Women in the Holocaust follows various women’s voices to both outline the historical facts and share their memoirs about their survival as Jews. The book begins by introducing the gender structures before the war; women’s role in comparison to men, their status in society, mothers’ responsibilities with taking care of their family and their relationship with their neighbours. The prewar

With the institution of religion being so steeped in patriarchal ideals throughout history, Reform Judaism has proven to be a beacon of acceptance for Jewish women looking to live fulfilling lives in both the private and public spheres. Within North America, Women of Reform Judaism has lead women to to become active citizens and stand up for worthy causes. As well, the introduction of female congregational leadership has presented a fresh opportunity for spiritual enrichment. In Israel, which is governed by traditionalism, Reform Jewish people worldwide are in support of equality at the Western Wall- supporting an organization called Women of The Wall. Even though religion is on a decline within Western society, Reform Judaism has grown to

Holocaust is a Greek word that means “sacrifice by fire” and this was a theme which the Nazis used against the Jewish population after they came in power in January of 1933. Jews were not the only race that were targeted during this period. The Gypsies, the disabled, the Poles, homosexuals, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and also the Russians were also part of the different groups that were targeted by the Nazis when their reign began in 1933. The Jews endured the most impact of the Holocaust because well over nine million of Europe’s population in 1933 were Jews. This hatred towards the minorities and mostly the Jews happened as a result of the Nazi racial ideology known as the Aryan race. This Aryan race, which is also known as the “master race” was the characterization of biological Germans as having the basic blonde hair and blue eyes features and Hitler, the mastermind behind this construction of racial difference believed that the only way to purify this “master race” again will be through exterminating the people who do not fit the description set forth by the Aryan race. My first primary figuration comes from The Holocaust survivor, Elie Wiesel. Wiesel who was only 16 years old when he was sent to the Auschwitz camp along with his family, talks about the different ways that people were killed in the Holocaust. Genocide is figured as being favorable to patriarchy in this figuration made by Elie Wiesel. This can be seen in “Night” when Elie Wiesel states, “ Men to

Founded by Abraham and Moses, Judaism is almost 4,000 years old and is based on the Jewish people’s covenant relationship with God. In the traditional Judaism belief, women are viewed as separate but equal to their male counterparts. In other words, although within the religion, women live under heavier restrictions regarding their responsibilities and obligations, their roles are just as important as those of the men. In the Orthodox Jewish religion, women are expected to stay at home and take care of the house and children. They are exempted from all positive mitzvoth that are time –related, because the women’s duties as wife and mother are so

There are multiple branches of Judaism in existence in the world, each with variation in beliefs. In North America alone, there are four branches of Judaism (Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and Reconstructionalist), and even within each of these there are variations. One of the areas that have undergone the most changes between denominations over the years has been the differing roles of males and females. The two branches are the most vastly different and have undergone the most changes in the area of gender roles are Orthodox Judaism and Conservative Judaism. The changes in gender roles in these two branches will be discussed in this paper.

     Since the beginning of the Jewish religion, women have had what seems to be a marginalized role that encompasses almost every facet of life. In many cases within the body of Jewish texts, clear misogynist statements and commentary are made dealing with every aspect of what it means to be female. Within the Orthodox

In terms of religious obligations, such as offering daily prayers, fasting and pilgrimage, woman is no different from man. In some cases indeed, woman has certain advantages over man. For example woman can and did go into the mosque during the days of the Holy Prophet (PBUH) and thereafter attending the Friday prayers is optional for them while it is mandatory for men. This is clearly a tender touch of the Islamic teachings because of the fact that a woman may be nursing her baby and thus may be unable to offer prayers in mosque. They also take into account the physiological and psychological changes associated with her natural female functions.