Hello everyone and thank you for inviting me to address you this evening. I’ve been asked to speak to you about LGBTQ Pride from a Jewish perspective. As we gather here together at this Village MCC Church, I’m sure we are very conscious that our identity encompasses, both, being LGBTQ and our sense of being […]
The tribute I gave in honour of the late Rabbi Lionel Blue, Z”L, at the Erev Pride Erev Shabbat service held at the Liberal Jewish Synagogue, London. This evening, at our erev Pride Erev Shabbat service, I have been invited to pay tribute to Rabbi Lionel Blue, zichrono livrachah, may his memory be for blessing, […]
I participated in a meeting meeting in Central London on 28.06.17 about ‘The Left, Israel/Palestine and Anti-Semitism: Changing the Conversation.’ It involved members of Jews for Justice for the Palestinians, Independent Jewish Voices and the Jewish Socialist Group. I contributed to a panel of three speakers. The other speakers were Julia Bard of the JSG and Dr Brian […]
The Jewish contribution to an Interfaith Conversation on the theme of Compassion and Mercy at Chichester Cathedral, 1 November 2016, which also included contributions from Catholic, Muslim and Buddhist religious leaders, concluding with Revd Dr Martin Warner, the Bishop of Chichester. Good evening everyone. It is pleasure to be here and participate in this Interfaith […]
Science and Faith Weekend at Great Malvern in Worcestershire Good afternoon everyone. It is pleasure to be here and participate in this multifaceted exploration of compassion. I have prepared a hand-out of the Hebrew words and their meanings in the order they come up in my talk, which you may wish to refer to. Compassion: […]
In the early 1990s the women rabbis in Britain officially heard about a German woman rabbi called Regina Jonas, who was ordained in 1935, when Dr Hermann Simon, Director of the Archiv Der Stiftung Neue Synagoge Berlin – Centrum Judaicum (the Archive of New Synagogue Berlin, Central Jewish Foundation)[1] presented the Leo Baeck College in […]
Introduction Recently, a revival of feminism – particularly among young women – in the context of myriad eruptions of male sexual abuse and violence around the globe, has put the issue of male power and privilege back on the societal agenda. This revival also challenges us – this gathering of Bet Debora, ‘the House of […]
Introduction ‘Confounding Patriarchy: From Lesbian Nation to the Wilderness where Others Meet.’ The title of this paper requires some explanation. Lesbian Nation: Specifically, the book of that name by the radical lesbian feminist author, Jill Johnston, first published in 1973.[1] Wilderness: a natural, empty space; ‘No-Man’s-Land’; a ‘borderland’ between nations and monoliths; the terrain of spiritual wanderings and discoveries; unchartered […]
The Torah portion for this week, T’rumah, interrupts the narrative concerning the events at Mount Sinai to introduce an entirely new theme: the building of the mishkan, ‘tabernacle’ (literally: ‘dwelling place’), in the wilderness – also referred to as a mikdash, ‘sanctuary’. Why? One way of responding to this question is to explore the interruption […]
The following Paper was given in the panel discussion at ‘LGBT Rights in Europe: A search for common solutions’, Brighton University, 31.08.12. Introduction Good afternoon. I am here today to speak from the perspective of Judaism.[1] My particular take on LGBT rights is rooted in my own experience of gender dysphoria as a child and […]