It’s always been hard to justify my feminist and Orthodox Jewish ideals. Can women be counted in a prayer quorum? Can they be rabbis? What about women’s lesser obligation in certain laws? At first, I didn’t know the answers, so I compartmentalized my feminism and Orthodoxy. Then I discovered the Jewish Orthodox Feminist Alliance (JOFA), an organization that works to expand the spiritual, ritual, intellectual and political opportunities for women within the framework of Jewish law. I discovered I was not the only Orthodox feminist.

I attended the annual JOFA conference on March 14 in New York City. At every conference are sessions with Jewish feminists discussing different issues that affect women in the Jewish community.

The first person I heard speak was Avital Campbell Hochstein (the wife of Yisrael Campbell, of Circumcise Me fame), who talked about women’s inclusion in some laws and exclusion from others. Avital discussed several examples of women’s exclusion in the Midrash, then explained that the laws’ basis was societal, not religious. The men who wrote the commentaries lived in medieval Jewish communities—a time and place not exactly known for being pro-feminist. When women are excluded from the law, it’s rooted in societal norms; when women are included, it’s because of religious obligations that the rabbis could not deny. Avital’s message was that it’s important for women to fight for inclusion in all obligations, but the way we’re included is important, too.

Another session led by Adena Berkowitz and Rivka Haut discussed women’s place in prayer. The two speakers focused on women’s obligations and their overlooked role in the Grace after Meals. They mentioned that a zimmun (the recitation of Grace with three to nine men) should also be made with women. (I am currently trying to form a zimmun at my extremely conservative all girls’ school—wish me luck!) They also mentioned how to make prayer—dominated by the names of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob—a feminist exercise in connecting to God by thinking of Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah. I’m glad to know I’m not the only one who is irritated by the mention of the Patriarchs but not the Matriarchs!

Blu Greenberg, the creator of JOFA, also spoke. Blu, my hero, wrote (and signed my copy of) the book On Women and Judaism: A View from Tradition, the Jewish feminist Bible. She spoke about women’s place in divorce law. In a divorce, the husband has to present his wife with a “get” (divorce paper), but if he refuses to, they are still technically married and neither is able to remarry. This horrible situation is called agun, and the victimized woman is called an agunah. Rabbis try to force recalcitrant husbands into giving a “get,” but all too often women spend a lifetime without receiving one (see Savta Bikorta videos discussing this issue). “We’ve made our cholent,” Blu said. “We need to take to the streets and protest.” Her suggested solutions to agun were to schedule conferences to brainstorm answers; promote prenuptials with a condition to have a “get”; have the state of agun declared as unjust and a violation of human rights; have scholars trained to end agun; and, as a last-resort step, bring husband unwilling to grant divorce to shame by exposing him to the public.

The highlight of my day was the panel discussion with three female Orthodox rabbis, Rabba (the feminine version of rabbi) Sara Hurwitz, Ritual Director Rachel Kohl Finegold and Rosh Kehila Dina Najman. Each agreed that at the beginning of their tenure, mostly women approached them, but soon the entire congregation accepted them. “Now I assert my voice in the main of synagogue,” Rabba Hurwitz said. She also said that since women can’t be part of a prayer quorum or Judaic court it can be difficult, but that her gender has never detracted from her rabbinical position and 90% of her responsibilities overlap with male rabbis’ jobs.

Rachel Kohl Finegold disagreed with Rabba Hurwitz, feeling that there was 100% overlap. “It’s not the rabbi’s job to read from the Torah or lead prayer,” she said. “It’s the rabbi’s job to make sure it gets done.” Rabba Hurwitz said that it’s a challenge to be a full-time mother and rabbi, but she manages to find time for the two. Rabba Hurwitz has gone from being called Rabbi to Maharat to Rabba—there’s been a lot of controversy over what to call a female rabbi. Dina Najman said that originally she was called Marta D’Atra, the feminine form of Mara D’Atra (decider of Jewish law), but she’s switched to the gender-neutral term Rosh Kehila (head of the congregation).

Rabba Hurwitz said that the future is bright—there are young women in synagogues and schools all over the country who are looking forward to high-powered careers in both religious and secular fields. “The sky’s the limit,” she said. “This is just the beginning of the women of the Jewish community impacting Judaism.”

Talia Weisberg is a freshman at Manhattan High School for Girls in the heart of New York and a member of the JTab. She adores writing and has finished five (as of yet unpublished) books. She created Bleep!, an organization to stop kids and teens from cursing. You can visit her site at http://sites.google.com/site/bleeporganization.