The cover photo of Nashim, No. 21 (Spring 2011, on the theme of "Women in the Responsa Literature,"
under the consulting editorship of David Golinkin), shows a close-up of a phenomenon unheard of until a very few years ago: a woman's hands scribing a traditional Torah scroll.* The hands are those of Shoshana Gugenheim, one of the world's first women Torah scribes. In her article "A Torah Scroll" (Read for Free) in the issue, Judith Margolis, Nashim's Art Editor, calls attention to Shoshana's work and to her involvement in two related and remarkable projects by Jewish women scribes and artists.
The Women's Torah, completed in Seattle, Washington, on October 15, 2010, with the help of many hands, hearts, and spirits, is not only the first Torah scroll to be written and embellished by an international community of women; it is also the first Torah scroll to be literally sewn together in community. READ MORE.
Women of the Book: Jewish Women Recording, Reflecting, Revisioning, a midrashic (interpretive) scroll based on the form and content of a traditional Torah scroll, is being created on 54 parchment panels (the number of Torah portions) by 54 Jewish women artists from around the world. It is an international, multi-denominational installation that acknowledges the centrality of women’s voices in the texts of our lives. READ MORE.
Lidia Rosanski, Parashat Mishpatim, created for Women of the Book. Etching. 65 × 42 cm.
Sharon Rosenzweig, Parshat Behar, created for Women of the Book. Acrylic. 50 × 70cm.
*Photo of Shoshana Gugenheim by Rebekah Raleigh
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