500 Women Attend Jewish Feminist Conference

Judith Plaskow, associate professor of religious studies at Manhattan College, was the keynote speaker at a feminist Judaism conference in New York City, sponsored by the National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW).

Plaskow spoke about recreating Jewish history to include women’s experiences which are largely omitted from key Jewish texts. In particular, she pointed to the Sinai experience which is described in the Torah. “One has to ask the question, ‘Is God speaking to us as women?’ and this is a painful question to ask!’ she stated.

Other speakers included author Francine Klagsbrun, playwright Wendy Wasserstein, Rabbi Nina Beth Cardin, Professors Martha Ackelsberg, Judith Hauptman, Paula Hyman and Ellen Umansky, LILITH co-founder Aviva Cantor, and author Blu Greenberg.

Approximately 500 people attended the all-day conference, which marked the twelfth anniversary of the Jewish Women’s Resource Center, a research library sponsored by NCJW’s New York Section.