Author Archives
Jewish feminist scholar, activist and professor living in Prague, Czech Republic.
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Two Reflections for the New Year: 5774 By Ivy Helman
In June, my friend, Shifra, and I became Co-Chairs of the Ritual Committee at our shul. During the past few weeks, we have occasionally turned to one another and said, “I can’t wait for the High Holy Days to be… Read More ›
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On Fasting and Feminism by Ivy Helman
On July 16th, I fasted for Tisha b’Av, when Jews commemorate the destructions of the temples in Jerusalem among other events. On July 23rd I attended, as a member of GLILA, iftar, hosted by the Tolerance and Dialogue Student Association of… Read More ›
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The Inter-Faith Youth Initiative and Feminism by Ivy Helman
From June 25th through July 2nd 2013, I participated, as one of three Jewish mentors, in IFYI (Inter-Faith Youth Initiative), an inter-faith immersion experience for high school and college-age youth sponsored by Cooperative Metropolitan Ministries (CMM). The mentors and the… Read More ›
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Tikvah v’hashamayim (Hope and the Heavens): A Jewish Perspective on Redemption by Ivy Helman.
The Torah is bursting with hopes over-fulfilled. Abraham and Sarah hoped for a child and gave birth to a nation. The Israelites hoped for freedom from slavery and eventually received an entire Promised Land. We understand hope and, in so… Read More ›
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Review of “The Book of Mormon” by Ivy Helman
My friend and I won two tickets to “The Book of Mormon” showing as part of Broadway in Boston. Having known nothing about the musical, we were curious and excited to be going. Nearly two weeks later, we are still… Read More ›
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The Roman Catholic Theology of Womanhood by Ivy Helman
The Vatican has created an entire theology of womanhood without the input of a single woman! Searching the Vatican archives reveals a wide range of documents pertaining to women, some of which mention women tersely only in their capacity as… Read More ›
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Purim and the Value of Courage by Ivy Helman
The Jewish Festival of Purim and the book of Esther offer us an opportunity to reflect on the value of courage from a feminist perspective. The online Webster’s Dictionary defines courage as, “mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and… Read More ›
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On Pronouns and Liberation in the Classroom by Ivy Helman
In my introduction to Christianity class, almost every one of my students (who come from diverse religious backgrounds – primarily Roman Catholic, Protestant and Muslim), continues to believe that the best image if not the only appropriate image for G-d… Read More ›
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On Love, Theodicy and Domestic Violence by Ivy Helman
Last week, I introduced my students to the theological concept theodicy. Theodicy is a theological explanation of why suffering and evil occur that usually includes some kind of defense of divine attributes. For example, if G-d is all-knowing (omniscient), ever-present… Read More ›
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The Israel-Palestine Conflict and Ecofeminist Insights for Lasting Peace By Ivy Helman
On Thursday, November 29, 2012, the United Nations officially recognized the Palestinian Authority as a sovereign state and granted its petition for observer status within the international decision-making body. Sixty-five years before the United Nations had approved a two-state solution… Read More ›
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Building a Bridge toward the Future: Will You Meet Me in the Middle? By Ivy Helman
On Tuesday, President Obama’s acceptance speech included the following statement about coming together as a country across differences of opinion. He said, “We will disagree, sometimes fiercely about how to get [toward the future we hope for]…by itself, the recognition… Read More ›
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“From Teshuvah to Justice: Jonah’s Call to Change” by Ivy Helman
(I offer here an abridged version of the sermon I gave on Yom Kippur (5773) at Temple Emanuel in Lowell, MA. The full version will be available on their website soon. The book of Jonah is always read on Yom… Read More ›
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Alcohol is a Feminist Issue Too. By Ivy Helman
Sex sells. The sexual objectification of women is used in advertising to sell anything from auto parts to cologne to alcohol. Despite the myriads of feminist critiques of women’s sexual objectification to sell products, it still exists. Open a Vogue… Read More ›
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How literal is too literal? My Experience with Tallit Katan. By Ivy Helman
I tried a new spiritual practice yesterday. I wore a tallit katan. It is commonly worn by Orthodox, Hasidic and other Ultra Orthodox men and boys from the age of 3 onward and usually not worn by women within these… Read More ›
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Why a Kippah Reminds Me that Rationality Should Not Be Our Only Imago Dei By Ivy Helman
Neil Gilman in his book Sacred Fragments writes, “Since our faculty of reason is G-d-given, since it is the quality that distinguishes us from the rest of creation, and since all human beings share that same innate faculty, what better… Read More ›
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The Transformative Power of Daily Practices by Ivy Helman
My simple daily rituals and spiritual practices are what keep me mindful of G-d and G-d’s presence in my life. They also remind me of G-d’s call to justice, care, compassion and love. “I find by experience, not by reasoning,… Read More ›
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JUDGES 19: A BRIEF PAUSE FROM JUSTICE-WORK TO BE WITH HER IN THE SILENCE BY IVY HELMAN
Elie Wiesel, Holocaust survivor and renowned Jewish thinker, believes that no one can ever truly understand the profundity and tragedy of the Shoah unless one experienced it. For him, silence is the best way to express the events since words… Read More ›
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The Need for a Positive Counter-Narrative of Religious Involvement in Feminism by Ivy Helman
I’ve admired JC for years. That’s Joan Chittister, OSB the Benedictine nun of course. I first saw her speak when I was in graduate school and she visited Yale. I’ve also read a number of her books. Her life… Read More ›
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Reflections on My Spiritual Journey: Claiming Judaism By Ivy Helman
“Is Ivy Helman Jewish?” This question and knowing that eventually I’d have to respond one way or another to it has caused me many sleepless nights. At the same time my faith journey has become integral to who I… Read More ›
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On Being in the Moment By Ivy Helman
Time. We mark years, months, days, hours, minutes and seconds. We mark seasons. We mark life events. We live our lives in time: both circular and linear. Time began before we did and time will continue after we cannot experience… Read More ›
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On Cooking and Eating by Ivy Helman
In patriarchal heterosexist societies women do most if not all of the cooking for their families. Women are also usually assigned the tasks of cleaning, raising children, tending the family garden, gathering water and anything else that is considered part… Read More ›
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RE-SOULING ON SHABBAT BY IVY HELMAN
I attended a service at Congregation Shalom in Chelmsford, MA two Fridays ago. During the service, Rabbi Shoshana Perry spent a few minutes addressing the last word of a Hebrew prayer found in the Reform siddur, Mishkan T’filah. It was… Read More ›
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Motherhood: Still Women’s Most Valued Creative Contribution to Society? by Ivy Helman
I’m expecting… The stork is delivering as we speak! I hope you can join me in celebrating this joyous news – although you should know, the stork is the United States Postal Service, and I am expecting my first book,… Read More ›
