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D'vorah Grenn, Ph.D is a Yoreshet, lineage-holder of a female Kabbalist tradition, a Kohenet/priestess, and ordained Mashpi'ah/spiritual life coach and guide. She founded The Lilith Institute, A Center for Feminist Spirituality (1997), co-directed the Women & Spirituality MA Program at ITP/Sofia University, and was a founding theorist of the Kohenet priestess movement, serving on their Founding Advisory Board. She created and taught in her Institute's Women's Leadership Program and has taught for a number of colleges and synagogues on feminist thealogy and philosophies, women's history, sacred arts, literature, Jewish mysticism. She taught Humanities and Philosophy classes at Napa Valley College, co-teaches an annual course on the Tree of Life with Yerusha's Rabbi Nadya Gross, and serves on the Aquarian Minyan's Education Advisory Board.One of D'vorah's favorite subjects to teach is Jewish Magic & Folklore, and she will be teaching a course through Yerusha on December 10th, and December 17th, we've posted the link in the show notes for this episode.Her publications include:Lilith's Fire; Talking to Goddess, an anthology of writings from 72 women in 25 traditions; “Lilith's Fire: Examining Original Sources of Power”, Feminist Theology Journal; Jewish priestess and Lilith entries in Encyclopedia of Women in World Religions; “Spiritual Brokenness and Healing Presence of the Sacred Feminine”, FEMSPEC feminist journal. She has been a guest on podcasts including this one, as wellas the Revelation Podcast Project and Breaking Down Patriarchy, and co-created and co-hosted 50 episodes of the “Tending Lilith's Fire” broadcast with Kohenet Annie Matan.SUPPORT: To take D'vorah's Jewish Magic and Folklore class,register at yerusha.org.To receive D'vorah's newsletter you can contact her via email at dvorah@lillithinstitute.comTo purchase D'vorah's books visit lilithinstitute.com or you can purchase "What Would Lilith Do?" T-shirts and other merch at redbubble.com/shop/ap/84226530FOLLOW: You can find D'vorah online at lilithinstitute.com or @lilithinstitute on Instagram and facebook.com/idvorah99 on FacebookLISTEN: Listen to the past recordings of Priestessingthe Priestesses at youtube.com/@tendinglilithsfire
Getzel Davis is the founder and executive director of Unorthodox Celebrations, a project launched to help folks find the right person to officiate at their weddings, bar/bat/b mitzvahs, baby namings, or other Jewish life cycle event. He joins Dan and Lex for the 4th conversation in an ongoing Judaism Unbound mini-series exploring Jewish weddings.Register for the next gathering of Shabbat Unbound on November 22nd via this link! If you're listening after 11/22, you can register for our December edition of Shabbat Unbound (a 12-month-long Shabbat service), via this link.Access full shownotes for this episode via this link. If you're enjoying Judaism Unbound, please help us keep things going with a one-time or monthly tax-deductible donation -- support Judaism Unbound by clicking here!Davis recently launched a new project called Zivug Together that he mentions at the end of this podcast. Check it out by visiting ZivugTogether.org! To learn about the couples visioning work that Davis facilitates through Zivug Together, head to this page.
"This is a spiritual test, this is a spiritual war, as much as it is a material one. People say, ‘As above, so below.' How we are interfacing with the physical realities of this moment, the ways that we are leveraging our daily energy are either making us complicit with life's desecration or helping us to affirm life and the spirit of resistance. The battle that we are in is right now!"— Layla K. Feghali on the violence in Gaza, Sounds of SAND, Ep. #76We are now over four months into a worsening genocide in Gaza — with over 30,000 murdered and over 2 million now enduring military-enforced famine enacted by Israel, the US, and their global allies. There is no way a 90-minute teaching can impact the depth of sorrow, injustice, betrayal, and state-sponsored violence unfolding in Palestine. And yet, we share a moral obligation to resist the life-desecrating forces at work. In this gathering, our three guests share of their personal attempts as Earth-honoring ritualists and educators to embody core values and take tangible action in a time of genocide. Calls to Action to Support these GoFundMe Campaigns: SAND's GoFundMe to help Amina & her family Layla Feghali's connection to Ahmed Al Munirawi's campaign Layla Feghali's connection to Reem Shaheen's campaign Guests:Daniel Foor is a doctor of psychology, experienced ritualist, and the author of Ancestral Medicine: Rituals for Personal and Family Healing. He is a practicing Muslim and initiate in the Òrìṣà tradition of Yoruba-speaking West Africa who has also learned from Mahayan Buddhism and the older ways of his English and German ancestors. Daniel was a U.S. Fulbright scholar in Cairo, Egypt as a student of Arabic language, and he is passionate about generational healing and training leaders and change makers in the intersections of cultural healing, animist ethics, and applied ritual arts. He lives with his wife and daughters near his adoptive home of Granada, Spain in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Taya Mâ Shere is a ritual artist embracing embodied, earth-honoring devotion as liberatory spiritual practice. She serves as a professor of Organic Multi-Religious Ritual at Starr King School for the Ministry and co-weaves Makam Shekhina, a Jewish and Sufi Muslim multi-religious community committed to counter-oppressive spiritual practice. Taya Mâ hosts the acclaimed podcast, Jewish Ancestral Healing and The Sarah & Hajar Series: Sacred Practice and Possibility at the Intersections of Judaism and Islam. She is currently tending Ceasefire movement chaplaincy and From the Deep, an emergent mystery school of earth-reverent ritual and counter-oppressive devotion. She co-founded the Kohenet movement and is co-author of The Hebrew Priestess: Ancient and New Visions of Jewish Women's Spiritual Leadership. Her five albums of sacred chant have been heralded as “cutting-edge mystic medicine music.”Layla K. Feghali is an ethnobotanist, cultural worker, and author who lives between her ancestral village in Lebanon and her diasporic home in California, where she was born and raised. Her dedication is the stewardship of our earth's eco-cultural integrity and the many layers of relational restoration, systemic reckoning, and healing that entails. Feghali offers a line of plantcestral medicine and other culturally-rooted offerings, with an emphasis on Southwest Asia and its diasporas. Her recent book, The Land in Our Bones, documents cultural herbal and healing knowledge from Syria to the Sinai, while interrogating colonialism and its lingering wounds on the culture of our displaced world. Topics: 00:00:00 — Introduction 00:05:43 — Daniel Foor 00:21:44 — Taya Mâ Shere 00:35:44 — Layla K. Feghali 01:00:28 — Guided Practice 01:10:22 — Questions from the Event Chat 01:20:29 — Yeye Luisha Teish 01:23:48 — Closing Statements Support the mission of SAND the production of this podcast by becoming a SAND Member
Jill Hammer – award-winning author, scholar, ritualist, poet, dreamworker and midrashist – is co-founder of Beit Kohenet and of the Kohenet movement, and currently serves as the Director of Spiritual Education at the Academy for Jewish Religion. She joins Dan Liebenson and Lex Rofeberg for a conversation about dreaming as a medium for communal connection, Jewish meaning-making, and divine revelation.Check out our upcoming full semester classes in the UnYeshiva by heading to www.judaismunbound.com/classes!Access full shownotes for this episode via this link. And if you're enjoying Judaism Unbound, please help us keep things going with a one-time or monthly tax-deductible donation. Support Judaism Unbound by clicking here!
Ketzirah Lesser, haMa'agelet (The Circle Maker), is a maker and teacher of the sacred arts who is an ordained Kohenet and Celebrant as well as holding a BFA from the University of Miami. Through Devotaj Sacred Arts, she explores Jewishly-rooted making, mussar, and magick to connect past, present, & possible future(s); cræfting artifacts for a forgotten future that is more equitable, just, and spiritually alive. The second edition of her oracle deck, Eit/Aht: a Netivot Wisdom Oracle, which is based on Jewish teachings recently funded in only five days on Kickstarter and will be available to the public soon. She lives in Washington, DC with her husband, two pet rabbits, and a house filled with ensouled teddy bears, enchanted appliances, and magickal creatures. On this episode, Ketzirah discusses her peace amulet for Israel-Palestine, the history of Jewish witches, and how she crafts magic in all aspects of her Jewitchery.Pam also talks about her current thinking about Israel-Palestine and intergenerational wounds, as a Jewitch who believes in manifesting peace for all. Donate to Doctors without BordersKetzirah's sigil for peace is hereOur sponsors for this episode are Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, Snowy Owl Tea, Open Coven, BetterHelp, The Many Moons 2024 Lunar Planner, Benebell Wen's book, I Ching, The Oracle (North Atlantic Books), Sphere + Sundry, and the Psyche Magic podcast We also have brand new print-on-demand merch like Witch Wave shirts, sweatshirts, totes, stickers, and mugs available now here.And if you want more Witch Wave, please consider supporting us on Patreon to get access to bonus Witch Wave Plus episodes, Pam's monthly online rituals, and more! That's patreon.com/witchwave
Recover Your Soul: A Spiritual Path to a Happy and Healthy Life
Nina Pick, renowned author of the Mind Body Guide to the Twelve Steps, takes us on a transformative journey into the depths of somatic therapy, trauma, and addiction recovery. This captivating conversation brings to light the powerful dialogue between our bodies and minds, and how understanding our internal perception of safety - or neuroception - can help us navigate the intricate maze of trauma. We unpack the way trauma embeds itself in our bodies, impacting our relationships with self, others, and our spiritual essence.She works with individuals and couples, and also offers Somatics of Recovery classes. She received an MA in counseling psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute, an MA in comparative literature from UC Berkeley, and ordination from Kohenet. She has additional training in a range of modalities, including Integrative Somatic Trauma Therapy, Somatic Attachment Therapy, NeuroAffective Touch, and Reiki. Website: ninapick.com | IG: @ninailuminaFor more information about Rev. Rachel Harrison and Recover Your Soul- visit the website www.recoveryoursoul.net use the code TRYASESSION for 40% off your first Spiritual Coaching session when you book on the website.Soul Recovery Support Group on Zoom -The 1st Monday of the Month, 6PM Mountain Time. This is a drop in support group where we can come together to explore, connect and support each other on our Soul Recovery journey. Visit the website to register and receive the meeting invite. Free to attend- donations appreciated.This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not allied or representative of any organizations or religions, but is based on the opinions and experience of Rev. Rachel Harrison. The host claims no responsibility to any person or entity for any liability, loss, or damage caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly as a result of the use, application, or interpretation of the information presented herein. Take what you need and leave the rest.Support the show Make a one time donation to support the Recover Your Soul Podcast on the home page or become a monthly supporter from $3 to $10, follow us on Instagram, Insight Timer, TikTok, YouTube and Facebook and join the private Facebook group to be part of the RYS community. Support this podcast and have access to bonus content by becoming a Patreon Member or subscribing on Apple Podcasts and have access to an EXTRA episode each Friday. Episode Transcripts found here https://recoveryoursoul.buzzsprout.com
What are the purposes of ritual in our lives? What are the ingredients that go into a successful ritual? Rachel Rose Reid, a ritualist and storyteller who was the first British person to be ordained by the Kohenet Hebrew Priestess Institute, joins Dan and Lex for a conversation about crafting Jewish ritual. Rachel Rose Reid is teaching a course in the UnYeshiva this Fall entitled Crafting Jewishly-Rooted Ritual. You can register for it (and explore our other Fall 2023 courses as well) by heading to www.judaismunbound.com/classes!Access full shownotes for this episode via this link.And if you're enjoying Judaism Unbound, please help us keep things going with a one-time or monthly tax-deductible donation. Support Judaism Unbound by clicking here!
In this episode (recorded as an Instagram Live before April's Kohenet ordination), April unpacks and examines the buzzword term "trauma-informed." Thinking and talking about trauma has become more and more common. While this is, generally speaking, a good thing, it's important--especially with something fraught, fragile, and potentially triggering--for us to be clear about what we mean, what is possible, and what is safe. April offers a new term, "trauma-agile," to help make things clear. Discussion and reflection questions:What in this episode is new for you? What have you learned and how does it land?What is resonating? What is sticking with you and why?What feels hard? What is challenging or on the edge for you?What feelings and sensations are arising and where in your body do you feel them?Visit https://joyousjustice.com to learn more about Joyous Justice, LLC, our team, and get connected & involved in our community!Join our online community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/590922415522750Submit a question, insight, or topic or guest suggestion at https://joyousjustice.com/connectFind April's TikTok videos here: https://www.tiktok.com/@aprilavivabaskinFollow us on Instagram (@joyous.justice), Twitter, (@JoyousJustice), or Facebook (www.facebook.com/joyousjustice365)Visit https://joyousjustice.com to learn more about Joyous Justice, LLC, our team, and get connected & involved in our community!Want to work with us? If you are considering one of our group or executive coaching packages, but want to talk it through, you can schedule a no-obligation zoom with April: https://app.usemotion.com/meet/april-baskin/chat-w-april?d=30All content © 2023 The Joyous Justice Podcast.
Today I'm super excited to welcome D'vorah Grenn to the show! Kohenet Ruach D'vorah Grenn, Ph.D., is an educator, writer and mashpi'ah ruchanit (spiritual guide.) She founded The Lilith Institute, A Center for Feminist Spirituality in 1997, Co-Directed the Women's Spirituality MA Program at ITP/Sofia University, and has taught many Humanities and Philosophy classes at Napa Valley College. Her writings include: Lilith's Fire: Reclaiming Our Sacred Lifeforce; Talking to Goddess: Powerful Voices From many Traditions, a prayer/blessing anthology with sacred writings from 72 women in 25 spiritual traditions; "The Kohanot: Keepers of the Flame" in Stepping into Ourselves: An Anthology of Writing on Priestesses; Jewish priestess and Lilith entries in Encyclopedia of Women in World Religions and “Spiritual Brokenness and the Healing Presence of the Sacred Feminine” in FEMSPEC, an interdisciplinary feminist journal. She co-hosted 50 episodes of “Priestessing the Priestesses" and Tending Lilith's Fire” broadcasts with Kohenet Annie Matan. Two of her favorite subjects to teach are Jewish Magic & Folklore, and anything on the Sacred Feminine in different traditions. First I ask D'Vorah to explain all the words I stumbled over and mispronounced in her introduction, then we wander into all sorts of talk about the Goddess as usual. SUPPORT: You can purchase D'vorah's books and other merch at: lilithinstitute.com/lilithwp/shop or you can purchase "What Would Lilith Do?" T-shirts and other merch at redbubble.com/shop/ap/84226530 FOLLOW: You can find D'vorah online at lilithinstitute.com/lilithwp/ or @lilithinstitute on Instagram or at @IDvorah on Facebook LISTEN: Listen to the past recordings of Priestessing the Priestesses at youtube.com/@tendinglilithsfire --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thegirlfriendgod/message
In this episode we discuss: Context for us as two white Jews having this conversation What internalized anti-semitism is and how it shows up How to use the Transcending Jewish Trauma website as a tool in DEI and social justice work Complicated feelings around Israel and navigating these conversations in this work Healing and transformation to move DEI and social justice work forward Jo's bio: Jo Kent Katz (she/her) is a social justice educator, an Intuitive healer, and an ordained Kohenet. She is a political educator who centers healing, and a healing practitioner who believes in collective liberation. Jo is committed to reclaiming Ancestral connection, healing inherited legacies, and bolstering our collective capacity to dismantle racism and all forms of oppression. Connect with Jo: jokentkatz.com transcendingjewishtrauma.com Connect with Rorri: Connect on Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rorri-geller-mohamed-lcsw-75004076/ Join the email list: https://mailchi.mp/b02360d4b5a6/sul4h5by2y Interested in DEI leadership development or DEI support for your organization? Send an email to Rorri@upowerchange.com
Rabbi Gershuny explores the meaning and power of the Priestly Blessing. Rabbi Sarah Bracha Gershuny is a writer, ritualist, musician, healer and teacher. Originally from the UK, she currently lives in Boulder, Colorado, where from 2014-2020 she was the rabbi of Nevei Kodesh, a Jewish Renewal congregation. Rabbi Gershuny has received two ordinations: one as a Rabbi from Boston's transdenominational Hebrew College Rabbinical School; the other as a Kohenet from the Kohenet Hebrew Priestess Institute, a contemporary wisdom school devoted to female expressions of Jewish leadership. She is on a mission to transform human consciousness through direct spiritual transmission and fierce joy. She writes and teaches regularly for MyJewishLearning.com.
This week, we are honored to bring you our interview with organizer, coach, and leader April N. Baskin. April is the founder and CEO of Joyous Justice, a “multiracial community-powered social justice and spiritual transformation organization that seeds and leads systemic change and healing.” We explore the intersection of justice work and spirituality, her path to becoming a Kohenet, and the work of “coming home.” How do you access spiritual sustenance? Check out this week's show notes on our website. Follow us on facebook and instagram @thelight.lab. Join our facebook group to connect around each episode. Support our show! Donate here, and please rate, subscribe, and share around. Thank you!
Kohenet Meshacreret Amah (One Who Liberates Her People) aka, YA, (she/her) is from Brooklyn, NY by way of Puerto Rico. She brings 25 + years of experience supporting people at the crossroads of transformation. She creates decolonial frameworks through multidimensional rituals & teachings. Her prophetic practice integrates divination, energy work, mixed media poetry, & herbal medicine. She is a Jewish priestess initiated through the Kohenet Hebrew Priestess Institute. She has been certified in strategies for trauma awareness and resilience by the Center for Justice & Peacebuilding. www.TheHouseofLiberation.com, www.Patreon.com/TheHouseofLiberation @thehouseofliberation Join our Patreon: www.patreon.com/dreamingtheworldtocome You can find video versions with captions and ASL on our youtube channel. Thank you Erin Sanders-Sigmon and Idy Fass for doing the ASL this month!!! Starting 1 Tevet, the Indwelling Dreams of Olam haBa planner is on super mega-sale for $18!!!! Purchase at www.dreamingtheworldtocome.com Show Notes Tevet Conversation: Tevet: the fourth month of the Hebrew year Queen Tzimtzimai: a mysterious character mentioned one time in the Babylonian Talmud, said to have saved the only remaining piece of cinnamon bark in her storehouses Tzimtzum: the contracting/expanding nature of god, from kabbalistic teachings, said to have contracted at the beginning of time in order to make room for creation Judith/Yehudit: a woman warrior from the second temple period, who took decisive action to behead the general who threatened her people's existence. From the Apocrypha. Chag HaBanot/Festival of Daughters: A north African festival celebrated on Rosh Chodesh Tevet, the seventh night of Chanukah. Interview: Boricua: a term referring to people of Puerto Rican heritage, honoring the island's indigenous Taíno heritage. Borikén was the original name of the Taíno population before Spanish conquistadors showed up. Nuyorican: a term referring to Puerto Ricans living in the New York area. T'shuvah: return Shomer Shabbat: “keeper of the sabbath” - in an orthodox sense, one who observes all the rules for observing Shabbat Lech Lecha: A Torah portion in which god tells Abraham to “go forth” or “go to yourself.” Halachah: Literally, “the way,” this refers to laws and ordinances that have evolved to regulate religious observance and daily Jewish life This Way to Olam haBa: Shatzi Weisberger: the “people's bubbe,” Shatzi died on Dec 1, 2022 at the age of 92. Learn more at https://www.autostraddle.com/shatzi-weisberger-the-peoples-bubbie-dies-at-92/ Song: Deep Watery Blue, written by Erin Daly. See a video of Erin and Nomy performing this song together in 2012 at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-F-t1NlMapc. Hear more of Erin and Nomy's music at https://doublehug.bandcamp.com/album/songs-and-spells-for-decolonizing-bodies
Episode 60 Guest: Kohenet Shoshana A Brown, LMSW & Autumn Leonard Host: Shimon Cohen, LCSW www.dointhework.com Listen/Subscribe on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify Follow on Twitter & Instagram, Like on Facebook Join the mailing list Support the podcast Download transcript We are offering our Racial Justice & Liberatory Practice Continuing Education Series at Columbia University, Michigan State University, and the University of Houston. Join us! Thank you to this episode's sponsor! The University of Houston has a phenomenal social work program that offers face-to-face master's and doctorate degrees, as well as an online and hybrid MSW. They offer one of the country's only Political Social Work programs and an Abolitionist Focused Learning Opportunity. Located in the heart of Houston, the program is guided by their bold vision to achieve social, racial, economic, and political justice, local to global. In the classroom and through research, they are committed to challenging systems and reimagining ways to achieve justice and liberation. Go to http://www.uh.edu/socialwork to learn more. In this episode, I talk with Shoshana Brown and Autumn Leonard of the Black Jewish Liberation Collective and Jews for Economic & Racial Justice, based in New York City. We discuss what antisemitism is, ways it functions, and how antisemitism and racism are features of white supremacy. Shoshana and Autumn talk about their work to provide a communal space for Black Jews and how they organize to disrupt antisemitism and racism. We get into a lot in this interview but there is so much more on this topic that needs to be talked about. I know that even though I'm Jewish, I could do a better job talking and teaching about antisemitism, and how it works to divide us. It can be frustrating to bring it up when so many people are not taught the origins of antisemitism and how it operates. At the same time, those of you who follow the podcast know that we can't avoid these hard topics, and like Shoshana, Autumn, and I talk about, change only comes when we address antisemitism and racism and work to build community. I hope this conversation inspires you to action. www.blackjewishliberation.org IG: blackjewishliberation Twitter: @bjlcollective Facebook: BlackJewishLiberation Kohenet Shoshana www.shoshanaakua.com IG: illuminatorofx Twitter: @ShoB Autumn www.bodygetfree.com IG: autumng0tstamina Facebook: autumn.leonard.31
D'vorah J. Grenn, Ph.D., Kohenet, is the Founding Director of The Lilith Institute (1997), a San Francisco Bay Area-based producer of women's spirituality/study circles, public and private rituals and a variety of lecture series. She served as Co-Director and later Chair of the former Women's Spirituality MA Program, Institute of Transpersonal Psychology/Sofia University in Palo Alto, California, and was the founding kohenet/priestess of Mishkan Shekhinah, a movable sanctuary honoring the Sacred Feminine in all spiritual traditions. Dr. Grenn's dissertation, “For She Is a Tree of Life: Shared Roots Connecting Women to Deity” was an inquiry into Jewish women's religious/cultural identities, beliefs and ritual practices among the South African Lemba and United States women.Dr. Grenn co-produced the annual Women's Rites of Spring Festival in Napa since its inception in 2004 through 2007, with Kahuna Leilani Birely, founder of Daughters of the Goddess. She also created Kol Ha-Ruach/Voice of the Spirit classes.Her other writings include:Lilith's Fire: Reclaiming our Sacred Lifeforce (Universal Publishers, 2000)“How Women Construct And Are Formed By Spirit: She Who Is Everywhere In Women's Voices, Kol Isha, Maipfi A Vhafumakadzi” (She Is Everywhere, Volume I, Lucia Chiavola Birnbaum, ed. 2005)“Creator Woman – Deity, Snake and Life-Giving Waters: The Active Female Principle in the Fertile Crescent, Carthage and South Africa” – She Is Everywhere, Volume II (Annette Williams, Karen Villanueva and Lucia Chiavola Birnbaum, eds.; Authors Choice Press, 2007.)“Claiming The Title Kohenet: Examining Goddess Judaism and the Role of the Priestess” – A paper presented at “Women and the Divine” Conference, Liverpool and later published in the Women in Judaism Multidisciplinary Journal, 2008 (available: https://wjudaism.library.utoronto.ca/index.php/wjudaism/article/view/3545)“Lilith's Fire: Examining Original Sources of Power, Re-defining Sacred Texts as Transformative Theological Practice” – Feminist Theology journal, September 2007.Her most recent book is an anthology of the sacred writings of 72 women from 25 different spiritual traditions: Talking To Goddess: A Collection of Blessings, Prayer-Poems, Chants, Meditations and Invocations (available on Lulu.com.) Comments and discussion are welcome on the blog.https://www.lilithinstitute.com/lilithwp/ Support the show
About D'vorah Grenn: D'vorah J. Grenn, Ph.D. and Kohenet, Hebrew Priestess, is Founding Director, The Lilith Institute (1997). She co-directed the former Women's Spirituality MA Program at the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology/Sofia University, founded Mishkan Shekhinah, a movable sanctuary honoring the Sacred Feminine in all traditions, and served on the Founding Advisory Board of the Kohenet Hebrew Priestess Institute. D'vorah leads the Lilith Institute's Women's Leadership Program and co-hosts the “Tending Lilith's Fire” broadcast/podcast with Annie Matan. Her Talking To Goddess anthology includes sacred writings of 72 women from 25 spiritual traditions. Other publications include Lilith's Fire: Reclaiming our Sacred Life force; "The Kohanot: Keepers of the Flame", in Stepping into Ourselves: An Anthology of Writing on Priestesses (Key & Cant); Jewish priestess and Lilith entries in the Encyclopedia of Women in World Religions (de-Gaia), and “The First Resister: Evoking Lilith For Transformation And Freedom” in Original Resistance: Reclaiming Lilith, Reclaiming Ourselves (Girl God Books). In this episode, Kim Andryc, Lora Solomon, and D'vorah Grenn discuss: Knowing and acknowledging your full story. Collaborating, not competing, with other women. Having courageous conversations. Moving past caring about what others think of you. Key Takeaways: We are both Lilith and Eve. There is good and bad in all of us and we get to acknowledge all parts of ourselves. Be willing to do critical thinking, even when it hurts. Acknowledge our own faults so that we can move forward, even if it's painful, uncomfortable, unpopular, or simply inconvenient. You can model what feels authentic to you, even (and especially) if it is different from what you were raised with. "We're all living in a patriarchal system - we get to recognize it, call it out, and then act according to our own knowing, by choosing new ways of being." — D'vorah Grenn Connect with D'vorah Grenn: Website: https://www.lilithinstitute.com/ Email: dvorah@lilithinstitute.com Book: https://www.lilithinstitute.com/lilithwp/shop/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYYnhC2YC6xclEp_wVGm2Xg/videos LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dvorah-j-grenn/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/idvorah99/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lilithinstitute/ Get the Lilith Institute App through the Apple App or Google Play Stores! Sign in to the app and mention you heard D'Vorah on the podcast and you will get a special offer of early registration for the next Women's Leadership Program and 15% off the tuition! Sign up for the newsletter on www.lilithinstitute.com to receive a FREE Creative Uses of Anger Workbook! Connect with Sacred Rebellion: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LoraAndKim Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sacredrebellionpodcast/ Email Lora: connect@lorasolomon.com Email Kim: kim@kimandryc.com Show notes by Podcastologist Chelsea Taylor-Sturkie Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it.
In today's conversation, Tracie recounts how the meditation practice that is part of her karate class–and the transcendence that has eventually come with it–is a growing edge for her. It validated something April has known and been teaching for a while – that spiritual work is not divorced from justice work. In fact, spirituality, healing, and well-being are integral to justice work. Interested in joining our Grounded & Growing, Shift Your Life in 60 Days cohort, or any of our other programs? Fill out this form and check the relevant boxes: https://joyousjustice.com/interest-formFind April's TikTok videos here: https://www.tiktok.com/@aprilavivabaskin Follow us on Instagram (@joyous.justice), Twitter, (@JoyousJustice), or Facebook (www.facebook.com/joyousjustice365)Find April and Tracie's full bios and submit topic suggestions for the show at www.JewsTalkRacialJustice.comLearn more about Joyous Justice and join our mailing list: https://joyousjustice.com/Support the work our Jewish Black & Cherokee woman-led vision for collective liberation here: https://joyousjustice.com/support-our-workRead more about Tosha Silver and her books here:https://toshasilver.com/Learn more about Kohenet Taya Mâ: https://taya.ma/Find Tracie's #Gratidoodles at her Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tracieguydecker/Read more about Alison Bechdel's book The Secret to Superhuman Strength:https://bookshop.org/books/the-secret-to-superhuman-strength/9780544387652Discussion and reflection questions:What in this episode is new for you? What have you learned and how does it land?What is resonating? What is sticking with you and why?What feels hard? What is challenging or on the edge for you?What feelings and sensations are arising and where in your body do you feel them
Daily Halacha Podcast - Daily Halacha By Rabbi Eli J. Mansour
The status of Kedusha (sanctity) with which Kohanim are endowed applies only to male Kohanim, and not to female Kohanim. The Sages inferred this rule from the fact that the Torah refers to the Kohanim with the term "Beneh Aharon" – "the sons of Aharon," implying that the unique status of priesthood does not apply to the "daughters of Aharon," meaning, the daughter of a Kohen.Therefore, a Kohenet (female Kohen) is allowed to marry anyone whom an ordinary Jewish woman is allowed to marry. Whereas a male Kohen is forbidden to marry certain groups of people, such as a Halala – the product of a marriage between a Kohen and a woman forbidden for a Kohen – a Kohenet may marry any Jewish man. Even though her father and brothers are Kohanim, there are no restrictions on whom she may marry. This Halacha is rooted in the fact that "Yihus" – lineage – is determined based on the father. Thus, for example, if a Kohenet marries a regular Jew – a "Yisrael" – her sons are regular "Yisraelim," and not Kohanim, since her husband is a "Yisrael." A woman does not pass down the status of Kehuna (priesthood), thus demonstrating that she does not have this status, which applies only to male Kohanim.It should be noted that being the daughter of a Kohen does entail certain privileges. During the times of the Bet Ha'mikdash, a Kohen was allowed to share with his family the sacrificial food and the Teruma gifts that he received. As part of a Kohen's family, the daughter is allowed to partake of this food, which is forbidden to non-Kohanim. With regard to marriage, however, the daughter of a Kohen does not have the status of "Kehuna," and she may therefore marry whomever she wishes.Summary: The daughter of a Kohen has no special restrictions with regard to marriage; she may marry anybody whom ordinary Jewish women are allowed to marry.
All About MindFlow: Increase reading speed, improve comprehension, and reduce anxiety when taking tests with educator and author Bara Sapir What are five things you will learn in this episode? What is the story behind MindFlow? How does MindFlow work? Who currently uses MindFlow? What kinds of outcomes do users experience? What should someone curious about MindFlow know about it? ABOUT MINDFLOW MindFlow is an online mindful speed reading platform created to help students increase reading speed, improve information comprehension, and reduce anxiety when taking admissions tests. The program was initially taught in-person and through online live workshops, and was recently launched as a more robust online platform. MindFlow has a proven track record of enhancing test performance in the hundreds of MindFlow students who consistently experience an increase in their reading speed – up to 5x faster –as well as an average 13% score improvement on reading-based test sections. The program currently offers ISEE, SHSAT, SSAT, SAT, ACT, GRE, GMAT, LSAT, MCAT, TOEFL, IELTS, PTE tracks, general tracks for students in middle school, high school, and college, and for adults not taking tests, but who seek reading and mindset improvement professionally or personally. What's the secret to MindFlow students' success? An effective training that combines speed reading processes and mindful techniques which aren't traditionally included in the school or test prep curriculum. These may be the missing links needed to improve one's test-taking performance, as well as reading in school, for work, and in life. MindFlow's holistic techniques help students better understand what, how, and why they're learning, while helping them embody a more focused, confident, and relaxed mindset under the pressure of taking a high-stakes test. MindFlow's creator Bara Sapir has over 20 years of experience in test prep and test anxiety reduction. She holds Master's degrees in Education and Art History and certification in Hypnosis, Neuro-Linguistic Programming, Integrated Life Coaching, Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction for Teens (MBSR-T), and is an ordained Kohenet. Bara has produced various study aids, including ten titles in The Full Potential Audio Course, a complete mindset upgrade training for test-takers. She is co-author of The GMAT Full Potential Sentence Correction Intensive and author of The Full Potential Manual. She is a professional artist and active in dog rescue. She lives with pup, Chata. To learn more, please contact business@mindflowspeedreading.com. Businesses, tutors, and schools can find out about our revenue stream opportunities here. ABOUT THIS PODCAST Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page. ABOUT YOUR HOSTS Mike Bergin is the president of Chariot Learning and founder of TestBright. Amy Seeley is the president of Seeley Test Pros. If you're interested in working with Mike and/or Amy for test preparation, training, or consulting, feel free to get in touch through our contact page.
Yevamot 99 : Marc Chipkin: 2022-06-14 Confusion with children and how to deal with that. A man and a woman can sometimes have children belonging to five different genealogical categories. A Kohenet's child and her maids event's child get mixed up. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1nZNF0UtLcfuxn5LvN4WWUsQGoOJ6zlRb/view?usp=drivesdk
Kohenet Keshira haLev Fife is disrupting expectations about what it means to practice Judaism. As the Executive Director of the Kohenet Hebrew Priestess Institute and founder of Kesher Pittsburgh, she brings her community together and offers space to connect, reflect, and discover embodied, Earth-based spirituality. In this episode, she speaks with Ilana Kaufman about reclaiming ancient traditions and rituals to create an inclusive, liberated experience for all who seek it.Follow our hosts on Twitter:Gali Cooks, @galicooksIlana Kaufman, @fogtownieElana Wien, @ElanaWienLearn more about our organizations:Leading Edge influences and inspires dramatic change in how Jewish organizations attract, develop, and retain top talent. Learn more at https://www.leadingedge.org/, and follow them on Facebook, and Twitter.The Jews of Color Initiative is a national effort focused on building and advancing the professional, organizational and communal field for Jews of Color. Learn more at https://jewsofcolorinitiative.org/ and follow the Initiative on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.SRE Network is a Jewish network of over 150 organizations committed to creating safe, respectful, equitable workplaces and communal spaces in North America. Learn more at, https://srenetwork.org/, and follow them on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.Special thanks to the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation for their support of this podcast! To visit them, go to https://hjweinbergfoundation.org/, and follow the foundation on Facebook, and Twitter.
Throughout history women have been misrepresented as villains and monsters: witches, demons, succubus, and beyond. And this misrepresentation of our bodies and minds as evil is no accident! Rather, the vilification of women is a practical tool of patriarchal systems which remains painfully relevant today. After all, if we cast women as monsters, that must make the men controlling them heroes—and who would want to listen to the words of a she-demon? Who would want to vote for one? The damage caused by this vilification is long lasting, so in order to help us unpack some of its history and present-day impact two remarkable women joined us for this episode — Dr. D'Vorah Grenn and Lucy Allebest. Lucy Allebest (she/her) studies History at the University of St Andrews. She enjoys dancing, organizing, wearing green, and sleeping at any time of day or night. Her greatest joy is hugging her parents and her greatest fear is the Pixar lamp. She hopes to one day do something interesting enough to write a bio longer than sixty words. D'vorah J. Grenn (she/her) Ph.D. and Kohenet, is Founding Director, The Lilith Institute (1997). She co-directed the former Women's Spirituality MA Program at Institute of Transpersonal Psychology/Sofia University, and founded Mishkan Shekhinah, a movable sanctuary honoring the Sacred Feminine in all traditions. D'vorah leads the Institute's Lilith's Fire Circle, does a https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYYnhC2YC6xclEp_wVGm2Xg (“Tending Lilith's Fire”) broadcast/podcast with Kohenet Annie Matan and also serves as a spiritual mentor and guide.
THE KOHENET HEBREW PRIESTESS INSTITUTEFeaturing: Keshira HaLev Fife, Executive DirectorMission: Kohenet Kavannah (Organizational Intention): Kohenet Hebrew Priestess Institute reclaims and innovates embodied, earth-based feminist Judaism. Kohenet's spiritual leadership training, ordination programs, publications and community offerings center ritual as transformative practice. They draw from ways women and other marginalized people have led across time - shrinekeepers, prophetesses and wise women of the Hebrew Bible and beyond. Kohenet honors the ways in which Shekhinah appears to them through traditions, imaginations, prayers, dreams, ancestors, and role models throughout Jewish history. They celebrate the sacred in the body, the earth and the cosmos. Kohenet is a training program, a sacred community, and a movement changing the paradigm of Jewish spiritual leadership. Kohenet Shabbat, holidays, and Virtual Temple / online classes are open to all.The three-year Kohenet training and ordination program welcomes applications from trans women, cis women, and nonbinary people, who are drawn to Kohenet's kavannah (intention). Kohenet's Why:The first known poet, Enheduanna, served as a priestess of Inanna in Sumer, and there were priestesses in many cultures throughout the known world. Yet the title of priestess does not appear to exist in the Hebrew Bible, and indeed, the patriarchal authorities who compiled the Bible eliminated most references to women's spiritual leadership. However, some aspects of women's spiritual power shine through. From these hints, we can deduce how women participated in the sacred cult of the Israelite nation: as mothers, prophetesses, and even ritual officiants. We know, for example, that women baked cakes for the Queen of Heaven as part of a sacred rite honoring the Divine feminine. Our later Jewish foremothers did not entirely abandon the priestess role even after it was written out out of the tradition. The title "priestess" appears several times on Jewish gravestones during the Roman period. Other titles such as "eldress" "mother of the synagogue," and "head of the synagogue" on similar gravestones lead one to believe that women served in leadership functions in pre-Talmudic and Talmudic times. However, following this period the title fell entirely out of practice. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, women served as dreamers and diviners in communities of Jewish mystics in Sfat and elsewhere. In their names, we seek to re-establish this sacred tradition.Definitions and ClarificationsBrit Shalom-lit. Covenant of peace; alternative to medical circumcision, welcoming a baby into Jewish traditionKohain- priestKohenet/ Kohenot- priestess / priestessesm'beit- from the house ofMizrahi (s) / Mizrahim (pl) - A Jewish member or descendant of the Jews who lived in North Africa and the Middle East and whose ancestors did not reside in Europe.Pogram- an organized massacre of a particular ethnic group, in particular that of Jewish people in Russia or eastern Europe.Safardi(s) / Safardim (pl) - a Jewish person of Spanish or Portuguese descent. They retain their own distinctive customs and rituals, preserving Babylonian Jewish traditions rather than the Palestinian ones of the Ashkenazim; any Jew of the Middle East or North Africa.Shoah - HolocaustTashlich- Jewish religious ceremony that entails visiting a body of water following the afternoon service on Rosh HashanahVisit The Kohenet Hebrew Priestess Institute here. Follow Kohenet on Facebook , andSupport the show (https://www.bridges613.org/donate)
Arielle Rivera Korman, in conversation with Kohenet Keshira haLev Fife, speaks about co-founding Ammud: Jews of Color Torah Academy, their shared Filipinx Jewish identity, and on the role of song and music in her ancestral journey.
Galeet Dardashti takes us on a journey into Persian Jewish Prayer, shares exquisite compositions, and speaks intimately on weaving her voice with the voices of her ancestors, across place and time.
Taya Mâ Shere welcomes us into season 2, reflecting on ways ancestors shape our identity, offering insight into the complexities of longing and belonging and foreshadowing the Jewish Ancestral Healing season to come.
Qes Efraim Lawi shares Beta Israel / Ethiopian Jewish traditions, offers prayersongs in his ancestral language of Ge'ez, and speaks about being the first spiritual leader of Beta Israel / Ethiopian Jewish community born in diaspora.
The Torah commands in the Book of Shemot (13:2), “Kadesh Li Kol Bechor, Peter Kol Rehem Bi'Bneh Yisrael” – “Consecrate for Me every firstborn, the first issue of every womb among Beneh Yisrael.” This command requires us to declare as sacred the male firstborn of every kosher Behema (domesticated animal), as well as every male firstborn donkey. At the birth, the owner must proclaim, “Hareh Zeh Kadosh” – “This is hereby sacred,” and then give the newborn animal to a Kohen. The Kohen must then offer the animal as a sacrifice, and after the blood is sprinkled and the fats are offered on the altar, the Kohen must eat the meat in Jerusalem. If the animal has a blemish that disqualifies it as a sacrifice, then the Kohen may eat the animal wherever he wishes, and may also share it with whomever he wishes. The Sefer Ha'hinuch explains that the purpose of this Misva is to remind us that everything belongs to G-d, and that everything we own has been given to us by Him in His infinite grace and kindness. When a person works very hard and invests a great deal of effort tending to his animal, hoping that it will reproduce so he could profit from it, and then, when it finally gives birth, he gives that animal to G-d, he is shown that he does not really own anything. The firstborn animal, the Sefer Ha'hinuch writes, is especially precious to the farmer, and so giving it to G-d leaves a very strong impression upon him, teaching him that even when he exerts effort and works hard, he is not entitled to anything, and it is Hashem who gives every person all that he has. Additionally, the Sefer Ha'hinuch writes, this Misva reminds us of the miracle that occurred on the night of the Exodus, when G-d delivered a plague upon Egypt, killing the firstborn people and animals, but did not kill any firstborns among Beneh Yisrael. The Sefer Ha'hinuch advances the view that this Misva applies at all times, even after the destruction of the Bet Ha'mikdash, when the Kohen is unable to bring the firstborn animal as a sacrifice. The Torah obligation, the Sefer Ha'hinuch writes, applies only in Eretz Yisrael, but the Rabbis enacted that it should be observed also in the Diaspora. Both men and women are included in this obligation, and thus a woman who owns an animal must give its male firstborn to a Kohen. Unlike the obligation to redeem a human firstborn, which is not binding upon Kohanim, the obligation to consecrate firstborn animals applies even to Kohanim. Thus, a Kohen who owns an animal that delivers a male firstborn must offer the firstborn as a sacrifice, and then partake of its meat in Jerusalem. The Rambam rules in Hilchot Bikkurim (1:10) that the firstborn animal must be given to a Kohen, and not to a Kohenet (daughter of a Kohen). Therefore, if a Kohenet has an animal that gives birth to a male firstborn, she must give it to a male Kohen, and cannot fulfill the Misva by offering it as a sacrifice herself.
To be with D'vorah Grenn is to sit by the fire with the wise woman, and to deeply connect to and reveal the suppressed herstory of the sacred feminine. As a teacher and a scholar, she is a wealth of introspection, warmth and storytelling and I love both her brilliant mind, and her loving and playful heart. D'vorah and I travel to ancient and erotic places in this episode and reveal the layers of power contained within the uncensored and creative feminine life force to discuss what's possible as more women awaken and step into our power. In addition to being a disciple of truth and divinity, D'vorah is also a lover of laughter and sisterhood, so I know you'll love this episode and the revelations we share that include: Why Lilith is such an important archetype for women, and why her fire needs tending. Understanding that for thousands of years women have been silenced, erased, marginalized, and our opinions and preferences discounted, denigrated or mocked and why that has to change. D'vorah shares her personal story about her descent into her dark night and recounts her own reclamation and spiritual awakening. Contemporary thinkers have been redefining "sin" and re-visioning the erotic as a sacred life force. These concepts are so important for women to explore and embody. Why women feel deeply nourished by learning more about the sacred feminine, and how it fills an inner void when we reveal hidden stories about the feminine face of the divine. How religions have been part of fracturing our understanding of the divine feminine and suppressing the importance of her presence in our lives. The power of women's circles and being witnessed, received and loved in our true expression by other women in sisterhood. Why Eden is a paradise, and not a prison, and how women can reclaim our power and our voices by leaning into the true mythologies and stories of the feminine, not the stories that were co-opted and shaped to fit a narrative intended to keep women oppressed and unrealized. The more conversations women have about our lives, our ideas, our philosophies, our experiences and our real feelings, the more unified and collaborative we can become and the better our world will be. D'vorah J. Grenn, Ph.D. & Kohenet/Priestess, is Founding Director, The Lilith Institute (1997). She Co-Directed the former Women's Spirituality MA Program at Institute of Transpersonal Psychology/Sofia University, and founded Mishkan Shekhinah, a movable sanctuary honoring the Sacred Feminine. An Adjunct Professor at Napa Valley College, D'vorah also serves as a spiritual mentor and guide. Her Talking To Goddess anthology includes sacred writings of 72 women from 25 traditions. Other publications include Lilith's Fire: Reclaiming Our Sacred Lifeforce; "The Kohanot: Keepers of the Flame" in Stepping into Ourselves: An Anthology of Writing on Priestesses; and the Jewish priestess and Lilith entries, Encyclopedia of Women in World Religions. Contact info: dvorah@lilithinstitute.com; @lilithinstitute on Instagram, or The Lilith Institute on Facebook.
Rabbi Jill Hammer is the co-founder of the Kohenet Hebrew Priestess Institute, which is a training program in earth based embodied feminist Jewish leadership and spiritual life. She invites us to join in a davvening practice rooted in the Kohenet community, and which she would engage in herself, sitting in Central Park, or at home on Shabbat.
Tune in to episode 19 of the Jewish Ancestral Healing podcast as Taya Mâ is in conversation with Arthur Waskow. Arthur tells intimate stories of his ancestors as the inspiration for his lifelong justice work, shares powerful racial, social and environmental justice movement history as it intersects with his own deepening on a Jewish spiritual path, and invites us to find God everywhere and in everything.
Tune in to episode 20 of the Jewish Ancestral Healing podcast as Taya Mâ is in conversation with Daniyel Berchenko. Daniyel shares of his pilgrimages to ancestral homelands in Eastern Europe, invites us into the portal that can open when visiting the place of one’s people, and speaks to gathering genealogical research as a pathway for revealing connection.
Tune in to episode 21 of the Jewish Ancestral Healing podcast as Taya Mâ is in conversation with Rachel Rose Reid. Rachel speaks to story-telling as a portal for ancestral memory, shares ways of tending grief-rituals across distance, and invites us to listen for the deep wells of wisdom beneath the surface of things.
Tune in to episode 18 of the Jewish Ancestral Healing podcast as Taya Mâ is in conversation with Jill Hammer. Jill shares the brilliance of ancestral wisdom in the earliest Jewish mystical text, the Sefer Yetzirah, speaks to the magic of midrash, creatively telling the stories of ancient ancestors, and invites us into the power of ancestral dreaming.
Tune in to episode 17 of the Jewish Ancestral Healing podcast as Taya Mâ is in conversation with Matta Ghaly. Matta shares their journey of multireligious identity, speaks to Karaite Jewish traditions, sings Jewish prayer in the maqam of the heart and brings blessings of connection with queer ancestors.
Rabbi Jill Hammer discusses the Kohenet Hebrew Priestess Institute (www.kohenet.org), a program in earth-based, embodied, feminist spiritual leadership. The post Kohenet Jewish Priestess Institute discussed on Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast appeared first on Jewish Sacred Aging.
Rabbi Jill Hammer discusses the Kohenet Hebrew Priestess Institute (www.kohenet.org), a program in earth-based, embodied, feminist spiritual leadership. The post Kohenet Jewish Priestess Institute discussed on Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast appeared first on Jewish Sacred Aging.
Simcha Raphael shares how he first came to understand the existence of life beyond death, and takes us on a dynamic journey through Jewish views of the afterlife, and offers wisdom on how to show up well for those who are dying.
Shoshana Jewdab speaks to the power of remembering, as the child of a Holocaust survivor, sings us into the mystery of creation and ways that animals can be a bridge for ancestral connection.
Rachel Leah (Reya) Bello shares with us Yemenite Jewish traditions, stories of her midwife great-grandmother and how the support of her ancestors guides her in her personal journey as a healer.
Jo Kent Katz shares her map for transcending Ashkenazi trauma, speaks to how legacies of intergenerational trauma impact the body, and to the possibility of unwinding these impacts toward healing.
Rami Avraham Efal brings us to bear witness in Auschwitz-Birkenau, unpacking the radical act of showing up to honor the unthinkable, and inviting us to find healing and transformation in ceremonial silence.
Keshira haLev Fife invites us to embody resilience, shares her experience priestessing in the wake of the Tree of Life Synagogue shooting, and speaks to intersections of her Ashkenazi and Filipinx ancestral identities and legacies.
Today I welcome Kohenet Ketzirah on the podcast to chat about a topic I love to explore; fear. We discuss expansive fear, also translated as awe, according to Musar, the study of ethics. I loved chatting with Ketzirah and learning from this wise woman. You can learn more about her, here. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/lolacommunity/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/lolacommunity/support
Lynn Gottlieb speaks to her journey as one of the first women rabbis, tells stories of the ancient ones and the power of naming, and asks us to dream into restorative justice.
Annie Kohen invites us into feldmestn, the Eastern European Jewish women's tradition of cemetery-measuring, as an embodied practice of honoring our beloved dead.
Tune in to episode 5 of the Jewish Ancestral Healing podcast as Taya Mâ is in conversation with Shoshana Akua Brown. Shoshana shares about weaving mixed ancestral spirituality, altars as a portal for connection, justice work as ancestral tending, and our existence as an expression of ancestors’ deepest dreams.
Hadar Cohen weaves Mizrahi magic and activism through the lens of sacred arts, Jewish mysticism, and her ever-evolving relationship with longing and belonging, in relationship with exile and her ancestral homeland of Jerusalem.
Noam Lerman reclaims the power and practice of tkhines ~ spontaneous Yiddish prayers ~ sharing ways tkhines have been kept alive in their family and have been a home for women and gender-marginalized Ashkenazi Jews, as well as ways we can engage this practice of prayer from the heart today.
Dori Midnight shares the honey-dripping alchemy of working with Jewish ancestral plants including garlic, cedar and pomegranate, as well as the wisdom of her grandmothers on working and playing for collective liberation.
Jill Hammer and Taya Shere, co-founders of Kohenet Hebrew Priestess Institute, join Dan Libenson and Lex Rofeberg for a conversation about the old, the new, and the ways in which Kohenet's work blurs the line between the two.This episode is the third in a series of episodes exploring the history, and contemporary leadership, of America's Jewish women.If you're enjoying Judaism Unbound, please help us keep things going with a one-time or monthly tax-deductible donation. Support Judaism Unbound by clicking here!To access shownotes for this episode, click here.
Here's a quick overview of how Kohenet came into my life and my heart. Happy to share any of the readings with you, pleasance@lilomm.com with love, gratitude and deep appreciation for the Kohenet Community, You can learn more here. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/lolacommunity/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/lolacommunity/support
Susun Weed answers 90 minutes of herbal health questions followed by a 30 minute interview with Taya Shere (Taya Mâ). Taya is the co-founder of Kohenet Hebrew Priestess Institute, co-author of The Hebrew Priestess: Ancient and New Paths of Jewish Women's Spiritual Leadership, and faculty at Starr King School for the Ministry and the Chaplaincy Institute, where she trains emergent clergy across faith traditions. She teaches Ancestral Lineage Healing, offering individual sessions virtually, and in-person workshops across the country. Taya is also a Somatic Experiencing practitioner and offers online courses in Embodied Presence, Pleasure as Prayer, Conscious Menstruation and Ancestral Healing. Her Hebrew Goddess chant albums — This Bliss, Wild Earth Shebrew, Halluyah All Night and Torah Tantrika — have been heralded as "cutting-edge mystic medicine music." She makes home, music and other magic in Berkeley, California, on occupied Ohlone lands.
Madlik Podcast – Torah Thoughts on Judaism From a Post-Orthodox Jew
In this Mother's Day episode of the Madlik Podcast we explore the emergence and stature of matrilineal descent within Judaism, an otherwise male dominated and patrilineal religion and legal society. Recorded live at TCS, The Conservative Synagogue of Westport Connecticut we come to the surprising conclusion that the introduction of matrilineal descent might have more to do with removing any stigma attached to a captured and redeemed single-mother and less to do with the status of the child. Featured Links: Yael Deckelbaum / Prayer of the Mothers - Official video https://youtu.be/YyFM-pWdqrY Three Part Series by Rabbi Ethan Tucker of Hadar Institute on MATRILINEALITY AND PATRILINEALITY IN JEWISH LAW AND COMMUNITY, PARTS 1-3 https://www.hadar.org/torah-resource/matrilineality-and-patrilineality-jewish-law-and-community-part-1 https://www.hadar.org/torah-resource/matrilineality-and-patrilineality-jewish-law-and-community-part-2 https://www.hadar.org/torah-resource/matrilineality-and-patrilineality-jewish-law-and-community-part-3 Source texts below: Breaking News As part of the historic handover of Japan’s imperial throne on Wednesday, the incoming emperor, Naruhito, will receive a sword, a jewel and official seals in a sacred ceremony that dates back thousands of years. But the new empress, Masako, Naruhito’s wife of 26 years, will not be allowed to attend — another illustration of the diminished status of women in the imperial family, and of the challenges women face more broadly in Japanese society. Under the Imperial Household Law, which governs the line of succession as well as most matters of protocol related to Japan’s monarchy, women in the royal family are not permitted to be in the room when the new emperor receives the sacred regalia signifying his rightful succession to the world’s oldest monarchy. But the prohibitions go much further. Women are not allowed to reign. In fact, women born into the royal family must officially leave it once they marry, and none of their children can be in line to the throne. NY Times April 29, 2019 In the Torah You shall not intermarry with them: do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons. For they will turn your children away from Me to worship other gods, and the LORD’s anger will blaze forth against you and He will promptly wipe you out. Deuteronomy 7: 3- 4 וְלֹ֥א תִתְחַתֵּ֖ן בָּ֑ם בִּתְּךָ֙ לֹא־תִתֵּ֣ן לִבְנ֔וֹ וּבִתּ֖וֹ לֹא־תִקַּ֥ח לִבְנֶֽךָ כִּֽי־יָסִ֤יר אֶת־בִּנְךָ֙ מֵֽאַחֲרַ֔י וְעָבְד֖וּ אֱלֹהִ֣ים אֲחֵרִ֑ים וְחָרָ֤ה אַף־יְהוָה֙ בָּכֶ֔ם וְהִשְׁמִידְךָ֖ מַהֵֽר In Tanach Now then, let us make a covenant with our God to expel all these women and those who have been born to them, in accordance with the bidding of the Lord and of all who are concerned over the commandment of our God, and let the Teaching be obeyed. Ezra 10: 3 וְעַתָּ֣ה נִֽכְרָת־בְּרִ֣ית לֵ֠א-לֹהֵינוּ לְהוֹצִ֨יא כָל־נָשִׁ֜ים וְהַנּוֹלָ֤ד מֵהֶם֙ בַּעֲצַ֣ת אֲדֹנָ֔י וְהַחֲרֵדִ֖ים בְּמִצְוַ֣ת אֱ-לֹהֵ֑ינוּ וְכַתּוֹרָ֖ה יֵעָשֶֽׂה In Rabbinic Judaism Wherever there is [a valid] betrothal and no sin, the child follows the male [with regard to familial status]. Which is this? This is a Kohenet, a Levite woman, or an Israelite woman who married a Kohen, a Levite or an Israelite. Wherever there is [a valid] betrothal and there is a sin, the child follows the defective one. Which is this? This is a widow married to the Kohen Gadol [High Priest], a divorcee or a chalutzah [the widow of a childless man released from the obligation of levirate marriage by a ceremony performed by her brother-in-law] [married] to an ordinary Kohen, a mamzeret [the female offspring of certain prohibited relationships who may not marry into the general Jewish population] or a Netina [female Gibeonite] to an Israelite, a female Israelite to a mamzer or Netina. [With] any [woman] for whom there is no betrothal to him, but there is betrothal to others, the child is a mamzer. Which is this? This is one who has sexual intercourse with any one of the forbidden sexual relations [mentioned] in the Torah. Any [woman] for whom there is no betrothal either to him or to others, the child is like her. Which is this? This is the child of a [non-Jewish] maidservant or a non-Jewish woman. Mishna Kiddushin 3: 12 כָּל מָקוֹם שֶׁיֵּשׁ קִדּוּשִׁין וְאֵין עֲבֵרָה, הַוָּלָד הוֹלֵךְ אַחַר הַזָּכָר וְאֵיזֶה, זוֹ כֹהֶנֶת, לְוִיָּה וְיִשְׂרְאֵלִית שֶׁנִּשְּׂאוּ לְכֹהֵן וּלְלֵוִי וּלְיִשְׂרָאֵל. וְכָל מָקוֹם שֶׁיֵּשׁ קִדּוּשִׁין וְיֵשׁ עֲבֵרָה, הַוָּלָד הוֹלֵךְ אַחַר הַפָּגוּם. וְאֵיזוֹ, זוֹ אַלְמָנָה לְכֹהֵן גָּדוֹל, גְּרוּשָׁה וַחֲלוּצָה לְכֹהֵן הֶדְיוֹט, מַמְזֶרֶת וּנְתִינָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל, בַּת יִשְׂרָאֵל לְמַמְזֵר וּלְנָתִין. וְכָל מִי שֶׁאֵין לָהּ עָלָיו קִדּוּשִׁין אֲבָל יֶשׁ לָהּ עַל אֲחֵרִים קִדּוּשִׁין, הַוָּלָד מַמְזֵר. וְאֵיזֶה, זֶה הַבָּא עַל אַחַת מִכָּל הָעֲרָיוֹת שֶׁבַּתּוֹרָה. וְכָל מִי שֶׁאֵין לָהּ לֹא עָלָיו וְלֹא עַל אֲחֵרִים קִדּוּשִׁין, הַוָּלָד כְּמוֹתָהּ. וְאֵיזֶה, זֶה וְלַד שִׁפְחָה וְנָכְרִית Rabbinic Judaism (more) Aha Sar HaBirah and R. Tanhum bdR Hiyya from K’far Akko redeemed captive women… one of whom had been impregnated by a Gentile. They came to R. Ami, who said to them: R. Yohanan, R. Elazar, R. Hanina all say: When a Gentile or a slave has intercourse with a Jewish woman, the child is a mamzer. Said R. Yosef: Is it a great trick to mention many names? Rav and Shmuel in Bavel, and R. Yehoshua b. Levi and Bar Kappara in Eretz Yisrael… all say that when a Gentile or a slave has intercourse with a Jewish woman, the child is kasher! … When a Gentile or a slave has intercourse with a Jewish woman, the child is a mamzer. R. Yehoshua b. Levi says the child is mekulkal. Abaye said to him: Why do you rely on R. Dimi [to establish that Rabbi [Yehudah HaNasi]’s position was that the child is a mamzer], rely on Rabin! For when Rabin came, he said: R. Natan and R. Yehudah HaNasi rule permissively… Babylonian Talmud Yevamot 44b45b[i] Reform Responsa The concept of paternity as the determining factor in progeny being considered as having Jewish descent is a constant in the Hebrew Bible, as the authors of the Report elaborated: "both the Biblical and the Rabbinical traditions take for granted that ordinarily the paternal line is decisive in the tracing of descent within the Jewish people." Numerous examples in the Hebrew Bible determine a child's status by the father's tribe. The Report further asserts, "in the Rabbinic tradition, this tradition remains in force," citing as prooftexts examples of Priestly status--"the child of an Israelite who marries a Kohenet is an Israelite" and the Talmudic precept, "the most important parental responsibility to teach Torah rested with the father (Kiddushin 29a; df. Shulchan Aruch, Yoredeah 245.1)." Only in the case where "the marriage was considered not to be licit, the child of that marriage followed the status of the mother (Mishna Kiddushin 3.12, havalad kemotah)." The Report offers a sociological interpretation of the reason for matrilineal descent in illicit unions: "the woman with her child had no recourse but to return to her own people.[ii] In Contemporary Israel – The Problem Lev Paschov, an Israeli soldier who immigrated to Israel under the Law of Return from the Former Soviet Union, was killed while on active duty in Southern Lebanon in 1993, and buried twice. He was first interred in a regular Israeli military cemetery, but after it was discovered that his mother was not Jewish, his body was exhumed, and Paschov was buried a second time, in a cemetery for non-Jews. For many Israelis, the macabre end of Paschov’s brief life journey was deeply disturbing. How was it possible that someone could be welcomed to Israel under the Law of Return, serve the Jewish state’s army, and die defending his adopted homeland, and still not be considered Jewish enough to be buried alongside his comrades?[iii] Return to Patrilineal descent in Israel Responsa of Rabbi BenZion Meir Hai Uziel, the chief rabbi of Israel in the 1940s and 1950 ...From here we learn,that a patrilineal Jew brought by his father for a conversion should be accepted by the beit din. Even though this child is called the child of the Gentile woman, he is still considered zera yisrael (of Jewish stock)... everyone agrees that children of a Jewish man born to a Gentile woman are called zera yisrael, therefore, when the father brings him to convert, the child reverts to his original lineage. Responsa Piskei Uzziel BeShe’eilot Hazeman #64[iv] ...מכאן אנו לומדים במכל שכן כשגוי זה הוא בן ישראל מנכרית ואביו מביאו להתגייר שבי"ד נזקקים לגרותו משום דאע"ג שהוא נקרא בנה של הנכרית אינו יוצא מכלל זרע ישראל... הלכך כשאביו הביאו להתגייר חוזר הילד לעיקר זרעו, … הא למדת דבן הבא מן הנכרית נקרא זרעו של ישראל ועובר עליו משום ומזרעך לא תתן להעביר למולך, הלכך אם בא לגיירו מצוה עלינו להזדקק לגרותו כדי לכפר עון האב מאחרי הגרות ולבל ידח ממנו נדח. ואין לחוש שמא יגרר אחרי אמו דאדרבא אם דוחים אותו ועוקרים אותו ממקור חייו וזרעו שהוא אביו ודאי שיטמע בין הגויים ויכפור באלהי ישראל, וישנא תכלית שנאה את היהדות ותורתה... Feminist Response - Irony I hope it is not impertinent, for someone writing thousands of miles distant from the great country in which the women’s liberation movement has made such rapid strides, to express astonishment that the clamor to change an ancient law which makes Jewish status depend on the mother should have originated in that very country. There is no problem of Descent, Lous Jacobs[v] 10. Feminist Response - The Jewish Community’s “Need” to Punish Men Who Intermarry Judith Hauptmann, a Talmud scholar widely known for her work in advancing feminist scholarship of Judaism. … proceeds to argue that the modern Jewish community should not rescind matrilineal descent because doing so would have the effect of removing a punishment against Jewish men who intermarry.[vi] Matrilineal descent Redux Hence a man leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife, so that they become one flesh Genesis 2: 24 עַל־כֵּן֙ יַֽעֲזָב־אִ֔ישׁ אֶת־אָבִ֖יו וְאֶת־אִמּ֑וֹ וְדָבַ֣ק בְּאִשְׁתּ֔וֹ וְהָי֖וּ לְבָשָׂ֥ר אֶחָֽד׃ Rashi ONE FLESH — Both parents are united in the child. לבשר אחד. הַוָּלָד נוֹצָר עַל יְדֵי שְׁנֵיהֶם וְשָׁם נַעֲשֶׁה בְשָׂרָם אֶחָד Genesis 17: 21 וְאֶת־בְּרִיתִ֖י אָקִ֣ים אֶת־יִצְחָ֑ק אֲשֶׁר֩ תֵּלֵ֨ד לְךָ֤ שָׂרָה֙ לַמּוֹעֵ֣ד הַזֶּ֔ה בַּשָּׁנָ֖ה הָאַחֶֽרֶת׃ But My covenant I will maintain with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this season next year.” A certain man of the house of Levi went and married a Levite woman[vii]. Exodus 2: 1 וַיֵּ֥לֶךְ אִ֖ישׁ מִבֵּ֣ית לֵוִ֑י וַיִּקַּ֖ח אֶת־בַּת־לֵוִֽי [i] MATRILINEALITY AND PATRILINEALITY IN JEWISH LAW AND COMMUNITY, PART 1 Rabbi Ethan Tucker [ii] 1 "Reform Movement's Resolution on Patrilineal Descent," Report of the Committee on Patrilineal Descent, adopted on March 15, 1983. Can be accessed at http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/source/Judaism/patrilineal1.html [iii] WHAT, NOT WHO, IS A JEW? Daniel Gordis March 1, 2011 [iv] MATRILINEALITY AND PATRILINEALITY IN JEWISH LAW AND COMMUNITY, PART 2, Rabbi Ethan Tucker [v] Originally published in Judaism 34.1 (Winter 1985), 55-59. [vi] Patrilineal Descent–an Examination of Non-Lineal Descent.” Judaism, Winter 1985, pp. 46-50. [vii] Laws regarding a Bat Levi as relates to the redemption of the first born son: If the father is a kohen or a levi, or if the mother is the daughter of a cohen or a levi, there is no mitzvah of pidyon haben (Shulchan Aruch 305:18). If a boy is born from a non-Jewish father and a bas levi, there is also no mitzvah of pidyon haben since his mother is the daughter of a levi. However, if a boy is born from a non-Jewish father and a bas kohen, a pidyon haben is performed. Since the daughter of the kohen has violated her kedusha by having relations with a gentile, she loses her hallachic status as a bas kohen (Shulchan Aruch 305:18). Similarly, if a bas yisroel has a child with a non-Jew, a pidyon haben is performed. The Aruch Hashulchan comments that in this scenario it is difficult to ascertain who is obligated to perform the pidyon haben. The father, who is not Jewish, is obviously not obligated to perform this or any mitzvah. The mother is exempt as well, as this mitzvah is never the obligation of the mother (as we shall explain). Rather, in this case the child should perform his own pidyon when he reached the age of thirteen. Other poskim disagree and feel that the beis din should perform the pidyon right away- see Igros Moshe Y.D. 195 and Sheilas Yeshurun page 140. The mishna taught that Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel said: There were no days as happy for the Jewish people as the fifteenth of Av and as Yom Kippur. However, what is the special joy of the fifteenth of Av? Rav Yehuda said that Shmuel said: This was the day on which the members of different tribes were permitted to enter one another’s tribe, by intermarriage. It was initially prohibited to intermarry between tribes, so as to keep each plot of land within the portion of the tribe that originally inherited it. This halakha was instituted by the Torah in the wake of a complaint by the relatives of the daughters of Zelophehad, who were worried that if these women married men from other tribes, the inheritance of Zelophehad would be lost from his tribe (see Numbers 36:1–12). What did they expound, in support of their conclusion that this halakha was no longer in effect? The verse states: “This is the matter that the Lord has commanded concerning the daughters of Zelophehad, saying: Let them marry whom they think best; only into the family of the tribe of their father shall they marry” (Numbers 36:5). They derived from the verse that this matter shall be practiced only in this generation, when Eretz Yisrael was divided among the tribes, but afterward members of different tribes were permitted to marry. On the day this barrier separating the tribes was removed, the Sages established a permanent day of rejoicing. א"ר שמעון ב"ג לא היו ימים טובים לישראל כחמשה עשר באב וכיוה"כ: בשלמא יום הכפורים משום דאית ביה סליחה ומחילה יום שניתנו בו לוחות האחרונות אלא ט"ו באב מאי היא אמר רב יהודה אמר שמואל יום שהותרו שבטים לבוא זה בזה מאי דרוש (במדבר לו, ו) זה הדבר אשר צוה ה' לבנות צלפחד וגו' דבר זה לא יהא נוהג אלא בדור זה
When I met Annie and found out she was a Jewish Priestess, I had to find out more. My website: www.anniematan.com Passover Seder: Https://matanotlevseder.eventbrite.com Passover Family Experience: Https://FamilyPassover.eventbrite.com Contact Annie about Jewish Mentorship: contact@anniematan.com More about Kohenet: www.kohenet.com Book: The Hebrew Priestess by Rabbi Jill Hammer and Taya Shere
Welcome back to the Torah of Life podcast. Thanks for listening. Wait, there are MORE Jewish holidays this week? Really? Haven't we had enough? Well, just a few more days, but don't skip over these last days! Shemini Atzeret is, according to today's guest Kohenet Sarah Chandler, the pinnacle of the High Holiday season. Given that few Jews have heard of Shemini Atzeret that sounds crazy. And yet, she may very well be right. You've heard of Rosh Hashanah. You've heard of Yom Kippur. You're probably familiar with Sukkot, and Simchat Torah. Shemini Atzeret? That's what I thought, my friends, that we should just relegate this holiday to the dustbin of Jewish history and put us out of our holiday misery. And then I read Sarah's piece about Shemini Atzeret a few years back and it stuck with me ever since. Listen to today's interview so you can understand why this might just be the most important Jewish holiday, and what it can teach us about what's really important, and needed, today. (And then go have lots of fun on Simchat Torah too!). To hear more about Sarah's work, visit her and read more of her writings at: https://www.facebook.com/shamirpowerproductions/ https://groknation.com/soul/spiritual-practices-urban-dwellers/ https://groknation.com/health/mobile-games-meditation/ https://www.jta.org/2015/10/01/life-religion/why-shemini-atzeret-is-the-pinnacle-of-the-high-holidays-season-2 The Geshem prayer Sarah referenced can be found here: http://www.neohasid.org/resources/geshem/ Thanks for listening to the Torah of Life podcast, your home for transformational wisdom from a Jewish lens. Like what you hear? Please share the episode with your friends, subscribe to the show and leave us a rating and review on iTunes, or your favorite podcast platform. Have something to say about what you heard today? Great! Be in touch at rabbiilan@torahoflife.com I'll be back again soon with the next episode. Many blessings, Rabbi Ilan
This episode Autumn and Jera talk to Na’amah Segal about Jewish Goddess Worship and Kohenet training. To learn more about Kohenet training and Jewish Paganism: http://www.kohenet.org/. http://www.devotaj.com/. http://www.peelapom.com/ To follow Na’amah: http://www.naamahsegal.com/. http://thoughtsincarnate.wordpress.com/ To follow Millennial Pagan Podcast https://www.facebook.com/MillennialPaganPodCast/, https://twitter.com/MillennialPagan, and Instagram @paganpod. Email us at Millennialpaganpod@gmail.com. To find Jera: https://twitter.com/JeraStone and https://www.instagram.com/hagard_hagrid_cosplay To find Autumn: https://twitter.com/AutumnIronWolf, https://www.facebook.com/autumn.wolfe.9216, and https://ironwolfcircle.wordpress.com/.
In the second episode, we discuss our work with Poor Magazine (poormagazine.org), Media Island International (mediaisland.org), Sins Invalid (sinsinvalid.org), Kohenet (kohenet.com) and the successes of the past couple weeks. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/success1/support
A Kohenet to a regular Jew? Jan 6, 2015
Co-founders of Kohenet, the Hebrew Priestess Institute, Rabbi Jill Hammer and author/musician Taya Shere share with listeners their new initiative to train Jewish women in the art of becoming a priestess. We'll discuss their training and ordination of women and the work of their progressive synagogue.