Shabbat Parashat Shoftim
6 Elul 5772
August 23rd, 2012
Shalom,
Last week's article brought an unusual number of emails and I thank you all for your feedback and for sending them. In particular, one comment brought to my attention, the fact that one of the greatest programs in our community, Tzahal Shalom, was inspired by the ParaOlympic games. Our dear friend Saul Cohen said, "You may be interested in knowing that the 1976 ParaOlympic games were held in Canada -- Montreal, I believe -- and served as the stimulus for Stamford to begin the Tzahal Shalom program. Before returning to Israel, the ParaOlympians were invited to the home of Nusia and Aron Chilewich on Wallach's Point in Stamford for a fund-raising reception. At that reception Mrs. Chilewich heard about a program sponsored by the Pittsburgh JCC which brought disabled Israeli veterans to the US for two weeks; she decided that she wanted to have that program in Stamford too. To accede to his wife's desire, Mr. Chilewich called Rabbi Ehrenkranz, who referred Mr. Chilewich to me -- and we started the program at the JCC."
On a different note... I have a unique hobby, I collect siddurim. Why? And what do I do with them? I promise to talk about that some other time. An article in the newspaper this week, about the publication of a new siddur, therefore attracted my attention and I made some research.
"Women need a different siddur than the one men are using." This is a halachic response not given by one of the modern, liberal voices in today's Jewish world, but rather by Rabbi Meir Benbenisti who lived in the 16th century. He took it upon himself to compile such a siddur, naming it "Seder Nashim." The siddur was written in Ladino because most women at the time did not know how to read Hebrew. It is now being published for the first time in Hebrew by the Ben Tzvi institute in Jerusalem.
While most women used the regular, one-size-fits-all, version of the siddur, with which we are all familiar, Benbenisti's siddur is completely different. In the introduction, the Rabbi wrote that usually women do not daven because men are afraid the davening is too long, and that would interfere with the women's care of the children. Therefore, he was looking for a way to teach women the davening "without detracting from their role as mothers." Believing that women are obligated to daven, Rabbi Benbibisti taught his daughters how to read and write Ladino and lamented the fact that many women were illiterate. He recommended that every man "teach his daughters every evening how to read and write."
This siddur is different in many respects. First, there are several changes in text. The line, "for your covenant which you sealed in our flesh," is omitted from the grace after meals since women are not circumcised. The blessing, "blessed are You...for not having made me a woman," with no alternate version, is gone as well. One can also find rules and prayers about how to maintain a traditional Jewish way of life without the presence of a man, such as an emphasis on the laws of Eruv, Mezuza, and more. The siddur also includes the Passover Hagaddah in a version written in feminine form for women who are leading the seder themselves.
Even though this siddur speaks in a feminist voice, 5 centuries old, it still does not break new ground. Many parts of the service were omitted because the author assumed women cannot or do not need to daven with a minyan, because of their total commitment to raising children. The siddur, therefore, does not have Kaddish or Kedusha, nor does it state that the davener should face Israel and the Temple. It states that just the "heart should face the Land of Israel." The reason for this change is that women did not enter the inner sections of the Temple, so that reference is eliminated.
The editor of this version of the siddur, Ora Schwartzwald, at the end of her introduction, asks why the siddur that was written in Ladino and contributed so much for the status of women, did not inspire the writing of additional similar siddurim? Her answer is essentially that this was and is a man's world! At the time, men did not approve of the trend of educating women, and did not want them to have a guide which would enable them to understand and fulfill mitzvot, and gain followers in their efforts, without the menfolk!
I cannot agree with Ora Schwartzwald. I think that while there is a need to make adjustments in our siddurim for women, it is important that men and women use the same siddur. By using the same siddur, we become aware of the needs of others. Using a different siddur, in my opinion, makes it harder to find solutions and acceptable adjustments for women so they can become involved in the service, as integral parts of the community. A separate siddur promotes disunity and differences, rather than conciliation and unity. We need to find ways to include women in our prayers and rituals, while we all share the same guide, the same siddur, and the same service.
Shabbat Shalom from Jerusalem,
Cantor Arik Wollheim
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