Girls in Trouble: an indie-folk/art-pop song cycle about women in Torah by musician, writer and teacher Alicia Jo Rabins. The Girls in Trouble Curriculum: a series of study guides accompanying the songs, intended for teens and adults in a wide range of Jewish education settings or for self-study, created with generous support from the Covenant Foundation.
Deception, sexuality, and a surprising move for power by a woman who seems to have none at all: Tamar’s tale is as dramatic and gripping as Shakespeare... or the best TV. Her story raises questions which are still relevant today. What are our obligations to one other? How should we use our sexuality? What does it mean to be truly seen?
The Binding of Isaac is one of the most challenging stories in Judaism. It’s even more complex when imagined from the perspective of Isaac’s mother, Sarah. Focusing on Sarah, we broaden the spotlight of ethical questions beyond the relationship between father, son, and God. We invite the mother in.
To learn about Lilith is to encounter demons, angels, magic, incantations, and radical re-imaginings of the story of Creation. Many contemporary feminist thinkers, artists, and writers have reclaimed Lilith’s compelling power in modern times. To follow Lilith’s journey is to experience a prism of relationships to female power. Demoness or heroine: which version will you choose? Or will you imagine a new Lilith?
Bat Yiftach's story is one of the most fascinating and neglected passages in the Hebrew Bible, raising compelling questions about the consequences of our actions, the danger of blind faith, and the true meaning of power.
As a mother, Eve was completely on her own: no mother of her own, no women friends, no parenting blogs. How can we imagine Eve’s experience? What does it mean that the first mother has such a complex and ultimately tragic experience of motherhood? And how can we reconcile Eve’s power as the Mother of all Living with her powerlessness as the mother of two feuding sons?
Miriam is celebrated for her leadership and prophecy throughout Exodus. But later in the Torah, as the Israelites wander in the desert, God strikes Miriam with leprosy, and she is exiled from the camp for seven days.
How does this episode fit into the rest of Miriam’s life? How might she feel about this experience? And how can this story guide us through challenging moments in our own lives?
Hannah's story reflects the questions we all face when we want (or need) something we can't have. Is it better to accept our life for what it is, or try to change it? What are the risks and costs of each of these decisions? And how should we approach the Divine – with humility or chutzpah?
Judith, a young widow in a city under siege, saves her people by dressing up and performing a risky (and violent) act. In her transformation from grieving widow to brave activist, her resourcefulness, courage and creativity are a model for the possibilities hidden deep inside each of us.
Sisterhood is powerful; it’s also powerfully complicated. What is your experience of the sibling relationship, or close friendships that resemble the sibling relationship? What challenges and joys do you find there? How can the story of Rachel and Leah inform our own relationships with those we love?
Through her bold choices, Ruth transforms her life. What bold risks might we take in our own lives? What unimagined future might lie ahead of us if we are brave enough to leave the familiar and set out for parts unknown?