Priestesses of the shtetl - new article in Feminism and Religion
I'm very excited to have this article published in the online blog/journal Feminism and Religion, where I talk about this work and about...
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Upcoming classes and events
Online course with Ritualwell: Threading Stones, an Elul tradition
Tuesdays, July 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 and August 6, 2024
2-3:30 p.m. EDT
$250
In this Ritualwell Immersion program, you will be guided on how to carry out the rituals of cemetery measuring and soul candle making based on translated Yiddish ethnographic studies and memoirs. The session will include teaching Yiddish songs, reciting tkhines (Yiddish prayers), and reading poems, some of which are focused on this ritual.
Delving into the history of this tradition will shed light on how cemeteries were perceived in shtetl society, serving as a means to communicate with the deceased and seek their assistance. At the end of this Immersion, you will be able to host a cemetery measuring event in Elul or any other time of the year. We will also teach alternative rituals for those who don't have access to cemeteries.
This Immersion is open for all! If you are intrigued by Yiddish, Jewish, or local history; eager to explore overlooked folklore and protective practices; or seeking new avenues to connect with your ancestors; if you are a Jewish educator, spiritual leader, or community members interested in leading this program during the month of Elul at their local cemeteries
Co-taught with Kohenet Sarah Chandler and Yiddish singer and multi-instrumentalist Eléonore Weill. For details and to register go to:
https://ritualwell.org/event/threading-stones-an-elul-tradition/2024-07-02/
Online course with the Workers' Circle: How to talk to the dead in Yiddish - the practices of feldmestn (cemetery measuring) and kneytlekh-leygn (soul candle making)
Sundays 12:00-1:30 PM June 30 July 14, 21, 28, August 4
In this course we will read sources relating to this practice from Yiddish memoirs, fiction, ethnographic studies and yizker bikher (memorial books). All materials will be provided by the teacher. Designed for intermediate–advanced speakers, the course will be conducted in Yiddish, with explanations in English where needed. Although the focus is on learning about the practices of cemetery measuring and making neshome likht, we will also pay attention to language as we study the sources.
https://www.circle.org/2024yiddish#intermediate
Publications and interviews
'Priestesses of the Shtetl? The Jewish Women Spiritual Leaders of Eastern Europe', Feminism and Religion, 23 June 2024
Sarah Biskowitz, 'The Past and Future of Yiddish Spirituality', Gashmius Magazine, (2023)
‘Gravewalkers’ in T.S. Mendola, Jewish Voices from the Pandemic (Ben Yehuda Press, 2021)
Making Soul Candles : a female-led Jewish ritual revived', Forward (Sep. 2020.)
'The forgotten women's rituals of Yom Kippur', Vashti Media (Sep. 2020)
In Yiddish:
'Ikh lern studentn an altn froyen minheg far yom-kiper', Forverts, Sep. 2021.
'A traditsioneler minheg gefirt fun froyen : feldmestn un kneytlekh-leygn', Forverts, Sep. 2020
For my other publications not related to this subject, visit my about page
Past events, classes and lectures
Priestesses of the Shtetl : a six part online course with Beit Kohenet, January - February 2024
Midwives, Exorcists, and Shamanesses: Female Ritual Leaders of the Shtetl: a six-part online course with the Jewish Theological Seminary
Threading Stones: Soul Candles for Elul, with Shamir Collective, The Workers' Circle and Shomer Collective, Mount Carmel Cemetery, August 2023. Click here to see a video of this in-person workshop.
'Forgotten Eastern European Jewish women’s rituals and customs', guest lectures at Georgetown University, Yale University, City College New York, and Wheaton College, March-April 2023.
'Wailing to mark three years of the pandemic', online with Kalil Cohen, Tony Westbrook jr., and Noam Lerman. March 2023.
'Threading Stones', an in-person workshop with The Neighborhood, Brooklyn, at Greenwood Cemetery, March 2023.
'Vayberishe Zababones' – a four-part workshop on women’s customs and superstitions, Yiddish New York, December 2022.
‘Soul Candles: Honoring Ancestors in Elul’, High Holidays at Home, Sept. 2022
‘Soul Candles: a pre-Yom Kippur ritual in two parts’, Shamir Collective, Sept. - Oct. 2022
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