Jewfem Blog

Amanda Borschel-Dan writes a comprehensive and honest report on the issue of counting women in Jewish prayer.Here is how she quoted me:“Not counting as a person standing before God is the deepest offense you can lodge at a person. You know, when some guy starts counting heads and you are standing right there, you literally do not exist. Your body. Your soul. Invisible,” said Jewish feminist writer and researcher Dr. Elana Sztokman, author of “The Men’s Section: Orthodox Jewish Men in an Egalitarian World.”What do you think about that? http://www.timesofisrael.com/orthodox-women-rabbis-dont-count-in-prayer-quorums-should-they/

"Elana Sztokman is one of the most proactive Jewish feminist thinkers on the scene today. An award-winning author of three books on gender equality in the Jewish world, a PhD in sociology and a former executive director of the Jewish Orthodox Feminist Association (JOFA), Dr. Sztokman seeks the edge. This past spring, she inaugurated a course, Dynamics of Jewish Feminism, via webinar for a worldwide reach. Judith Plaskow, Rachel Adler, Blu Greenberg and Letty Pogrebin were among the more than 30 distinguished panelists over the course of 8 weeks. Energized by the response,Szotkman has now embarked on a second course, DESIRE: Sex, Judaism and Feminism . Susan Reimer-Torn interviews her for the Sisterhood. "Susan Reimer-Torn: What made you decide to offer a webinar on Sex and Desire?Elana Sztokman: I realized that almost all our feminist conversation lead to sex. We manage to dance around the issue. We do talk about slut-shaming, for example, or excessive modesty demands. But what are those really about if not owning women’s sexuality? Girls’ and women’s sexuality are some kind of communal property that needs to be purely maintained. When we talk about inequality in marriage and divorce and the agunah issue, it all comes down to cultural practices that see a woman as the property of a man — with all that entails. Talking about our own desires explodes that basic assumption. It lets women take back ownership of our sexuality, ownership of our bodies." Read more: http://forward.com/sisterhood/311669/desire-sex-judaism-and-feminism/#ixzz3gK6347Rv

  Your intimate partner will love you for it….You will get some great ideas about how to communicate more effectively in the bedroomYou will benefit from personal connections with some of the best sex therapistsYou’ve really wanted to talk about some of these topics for a long time and haven’t had a space to do it – this is it!You can ask all your questions in a safe, closed, private, online environment where you share only what you want to share about yourselfTaking this course can be a romantic date-night with your partner!If you’re having sexual issues or problems or pains (emotional or physical), this is your chance to learn moreBecause sexual power and health is a feminist issueYou are ready to start living more fully and open the doors that often remained closed.Because you know you want to! Sign up here http://www.jewfem.com/telecourse/brand-new-telecourse-from-jewfem-com Questions? FAQ here Or contact Elana directly elana@jewfem.com