In a reaction to the RCA’s recent statement banning women from Jewish clergy positions, JOFA promoted a petition and issued an advocacy statement expressing its disappointment and reaffirming its commitment to higher education and spiritual leadership opportunities for women within orthodoxy.
One of the bright spots that JOFA clung to in the RCA’s statement was:
“JOFA welcomes the RCA’s recent reaffirmation of the importance of women’s advanced Torah learning and communal leadership. We note with particular pleasure the RCA’s explicit endorsement of some of the wonderful programs that train and teach outstanding women scholars and leaders, including Nishmat and GPATS.”
Nishmat is the seminary founded and headed by Rabbanit Chana Henkin that runs a course of study to train and certify women to be taharas hamashicha advisors, known at Yoatzot Halacha. The GPATS program is the The Graduate Program for Women in Advanced Talmudic Study run by Stern College for Women.
In its statement, the RCA specifically mentioned those two programs, and seemingly gave its endorsement to both (as opposed to the Yeshivat Maharat program which it does not endorse):
““This resolution does not concern or address non-rabbinic positions such as Yoatzot Halacha (advisors on Jewish law), community scholars, Yeshiva University’s Graduate Program for Women in Advanced Talmudic Study, and non-rabbinic school teachers,” the resolution concludes. “So long as no rabbinic or ordained title such as “Maharat” is used in these positions, and so long as there is no implication of ordination or a rabbinic status, this resolution is inapplicable.””
However, in an article on the Cross-Currents blog, RCA Exectutive Committee member Rabbi Avrohom Gordimer, clarifies that the mentioning of Nishmat and GPATS was not meant as an endorsement by the RCA. Rabbi Gordimer stresses that he doesn’t speak for the RCA in the article, but is expressing his personal opinion and observations on the recent proclamation. In his article, Rabbi Gordimer says –
“The drafters of the resolution sought to restrict the focus to the ordination of women, and not to address the propriety of Yoatzot Halacha and other women’s positons and halachic training programs. Unfortunately, despite this intent, many have construed the wording of the resolution as actually endorsing the Yoatzot programs and so forth. Although this seems to be a legitimate reading of the resolution, this was not at all its intent. The drafters purposefully did not want to convey an opinion about the propriety of Yoatzot programs and the like, as the RCA has no official position on the matter, and many RCA members, this writer included, are not in favor of such programs. This is a critical point of clarification that must be made and publicized.”
Basically, even the one victory that JOFA and other women read in the original RCA statement, is not really a victory after all.
I wrote a piece awhile back mentioning the Nishmat program, discussing the careful language used on their web site so as not to ruffle rabbinic feathers. Their pages are marked with a disclaimer that none of the information provided is to be used as a psak, and that women must ask their local orthodox rabbi for a final decision. Also, the website makes it clear that every aspect of the information provided is approved by a rabbi and a physcian –
“For example, a popular women-run resource, the Nishmat website, has this disclaimer concerning the halachic and medical advice dispensed on its website –
“This internet service does not preclude, override or replace the psak of any rabbinical authority. It is the responsibility of the questioner to inform us of any previous consultation or ruling. As even slight variation in circumstances may have Halachic consequences, views expressed concerning one case may not be applied to other, seemingly similar cases. All health and health-related information contained within Nishmat’s Women’s Health & Halacha Web site is intended to be general in nature and should not be used as a substitute for consulting with your health care professional. The advice is intended to offer a basis for individuals to discuss their medical condition with their health care provider but not individual advice. Although every effort is made to ensure that the material within Nishmat’s Women’s Health & Halacha Web site is accurate and timely, it is provided for the convenience of the Web site user but should not be considered official. Advice for actual medical practice should be obtained from a licensed health care professional.”
The women who must be the most careful with their language and deference to male authority are the ones who are the most learned and respected. It’s not the run-of-the-mill women in the community who pose a threat to the current establishment, but the women who are the most revered and admired for their Torah scholarship and personal spirituality. As representatives of female Jewish leadership, they are the ones who must set the tone for their students and other women in the community. They are the soldiers on the front line who show women the proper order of ranking in the community, starting with themselves.
These are the women who must display a level of humility and adherence to the God-given glass ceiling of Torah learning and spiritual leadership that no man has ever had to face. These are the women who must walk the tightrope of achievement in Torah excellence, while deferring to the male scholars who will always outrank them. If they want to be allowed to continue their good work, they must continually show the community leadership and their own students that no matter how great the woman, she must always consult with someone greater for the final opinion. The superstars must downplay their own significance. In fact, such humility is coined as modesty and tzniut – one of the highest compliments you can pay a frum woman.”
Also, here I wrote about niddah advisors conceding the final authority to rabbis, even in their own field of expertise –
“…even with the advancement of highly trained female experts in the area of niddah, none of the women currently acting as advisers serve as poseks, or a final authority on a woman’s status, nor is that their goal. Rather, their role is to act as an intermediary between a woman and a rabbi….
… when it comes to making the final call on a niddah shaila, even those pioneer women who have studied, certified, and taken it upon themselves to become instructors in hilchos niddah agree that a man should be the ultimate authority on determining a woman’s status. In the end, it’s a rabbi who must assess our discharges and confer a halachic state of tumah or tahara.”
So, if Rabbi Gordimer’s sentiments are reflective of the unofficial position of many RCA rabbis on Yoatzot Halachot – “the RCA has no official position on the matter, and many RCA members, this writer included, are not in favor of such programs” – how have the efforts of Nishmat to follow protocol helped them gain acceptance among orthodox poskim? It seems the concept of the Yoatzot Halachot, even in the restricted realm of taharas hamishpacha, is still under suspicion as a feminist threat regardless of how careful they are in their language and activities. If JOFA is the rebellious daughter and Nishmat the obedient one, what incentive is there for either to play by the rules if both are effectively hobbled without endorsement from rabbinic leadership?
