Passover and Harriet Tubman, The Black Moses

Passover will arrive in just under 24 hours (where I live), and time is of the essence. There are many places you can go to find funky, alternative seders and traditions. I wish I had time to give a significant list of links. But since I don't, I'm going to focus on Moses. Specifically, the Black Moses. You know, the woman.

Green Esther

Just wanted to share a drawing I did last week inspired by the theme of Purim. The hair color was a happy coincidence.

8 Interesting Facts About Purim

This weekend, the Jewish calendar turns to the Purim festival. Purim is a trickster holiday in that it is a time of jokes, riddles, masks and merriment. While not everyone celebrates Purim or even knows about it, it is a fairly popular holiday. I myself celebrated Purim as a child in Hebrew School and knew that it related to the biblical book of Esther, but I was not aware of the rich symbolic and mystical traditions and legends surrounding it. I also did not have the opportunity to explore the biblical and scholarly texts with the feminist and renewalist perspective I do today. So to help you celebrate Purim, here are 8 interesting Purim facts for your pleasure!

Mary Magdalene, Holy Hooker

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about the symbolism surrounding Mary Magdalene's hair color. But I knew I had more to write; I want to share my thoughts on Mary herself. It's not surprising, given that Mary Magdalene is  a fascinating biblical figure that has stayed in public consciousness for about two thousand years.

I was raised in a Jewish home, and it was only around the age of twelve or thirteen that I began to learn more about Christianity. At some point, I learned about Mary Magdalene. First, I learned that she had been a prostitute saved by Jesus. Soon, I started to hear snippets about Mary Magdalene as an ancient Goddess figure and High Priestess defamed by "The Patriarchy" (which is to feminists what "The Man" is to African-Americans).  And finally, as Jesus' wife and possible divine consort.

Mary Magdalene's Red Hair : Ravishingly Racist?

Today, I'd like to bring Mary Magdalene's hair color to your attention. Certainly, there is much more to the woman than her hair, and I will be writing more about her in the future. For the moment, though, I want to put in my two cents on the historical and contemporary obsession with Mary Magdalene's hair color.

Hagar vs. Sarah : Fear and Loathing in Lech Lecha

A couple of months ago, I wrote about the biblical figure Abraham. Today, I want to share my thoughts on a connecting relationship in the Bible/Torah - that of Sarah and Hagar. Let's start by looking at the text in Chapter 16 of the Torah, Parshah Lech Lecha (16 is also the corresponding biblical chapter).

16:1
Abram's wife Sarai had not borne him any children. She had an Egyptian slave-girl by the name of Hagar.

Abraham the Rapist, a.k.a. A Jewish Woman's Changing Perspective Of The Father of the Jewish People

Today I'm going to write about something that has offended many Jewish (and probably some non-Jewish) people I've spoken with over the years. I'm going to write about my opinion about a Jewish Patriarch and Catholic saint, Abraham. I'm going to write about the fact that Abraham, or "Avraham Aveinu" (Abraham, our father), often called Father of the Jewish People, was a rapist. He is also guilty of enslavement, a particularly nasty and prevalent form abuse or life-long torture. Oh, and I'd better not forget child neglect. And attempted negligent homicide.