Female rabbis are no longer a curiosity: The first woman rabbi in North America was ordained in 1972. The many women who have entered the rabbinate since then have all been ordained by non-Orthodox streams of Judaism. Until 2010, that is. Rabba Sara Hurwitz is the world’s first female Orthodox rabbi. (Rabba is the female form of the Hebrew word Rav.) She was ordained by Rabbi Avi Weiss. nearly a decade ago. Hurwitz faced numerous obstacles to achieving her dream, and winning acceptance from many in the Orthodox Jewish community continues to be a challenge. Still, she has been followed by a small number of Orthodox women who’ve emulated her pioneering path.
Quote: “Today, just five years later [after being ordained], so much has changed. I no longer feel isolated, and I am 100 percent certain of the future of Orthodox women serving as clergy in halakhically [Jewish religious law] committed communities across the United States.”
Sources: Wikipedia, Ha’aretz
Learn more about Rabba Sara Hurwitz on Wikipedia. >>
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