2008 Woodie Awards
BOOK REVIEW: Where do women sit at the Seder table?
Sammy Sultan
Issue date: 3/29/05 Section: Features
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"Women at the Seder: A Passover Haggadah."
By Dr. Joel Wolowelsky
KTAV Publishing
$16.95
The Haggadah, amongst our countless traditional religious texts, likely boasts the most readership and variegated publication. As basic as the Maxwell House Haggadah, as standard as Artscroll's Passover Haggadah, and as unique as Uncle Eli's Dr. Seuss-style Haggadah - a rhyming poem depicting the Passover story - the Haggadah has seen manifold interpretations and adaptations. Upon this backdrop, Dr. Joel Wolowelsky's "Women at the Seder: A Passover Haggadah" blends right in. Yet, the singularity of Wolowelsky's Haggadah manifests itself in numerous ways. Taken together, this duality reflects the book's overall combination of tradition and innovation.
Dr. Wolowelsky, teacher and dean of the faculty at the Yeshivah of Flatbush, brings to the table a familiarity with women's issues, having written substantially in various forms, authoring "Women and the Study of Torah," for example. Besides being a coed school, Flatbush also combines the rich traditions of Sephardic and Ashkenazic communities, enabling Dr. Wolowelsky to add another novel dimension to his Haggadah. Maintaining the traditional Ashkenazic text, his Haggadah incorporates and explains many Sephardic customs, providing the reader with a healthy sense of acceptable variations, as he or she learns of women's role in the seder.
Dr. Wolowelsky's Hagaddah offers the reader with a collection of insightful remarks relating to the Seder, including remarks from women scholars and general commentary regarding women. To begin with, the Haggadah is novel in its non-apologetic approach to dealing with different and even derogatory opinions on women's roles. For example, after quoting Rabanit Dalia Falk, Dr. Wolowelsky mentions that "the Magen Avraham dismisses her ruling, quoting R. Eliezer's aphorism that 'there is no wisdom among women.'" Such a presentation, if not bordering on the unnecessarily provocative, at least demonstrates a confidence and fearlessness in being open about conflicting opinions.
By Dr. Joel Wolowelsky
KTAV Publishing
$16.95
The Haggadah, amongst our countless traditional religious texts, likely boasts the most readership and variegated publication. As basic as the Maxwell House Haggadah, as standard as Artscroll's Passover Haggadah, and as unique as Uncle Eli's Dr. Seuss-style Haggadah - a rhyming poem depicting the Passover story - the Haggadah has seen manifold interpretations and adaptations. Upon this backdrop, Dr. Joel Wolowelsky's "Women at the Seder: A Passover Haggadah" blends right in. Yet, the singularity of Wolowelsky's Haggadah manifests itself in numerous ways. Taken together, this duality reflects the book's overall combination of tradition and innovation.
Dr. Wolowelsky, teacher and dean of the faculty at the Yeshivah of Flatbush, brings to the table a familiarity with women's issues, having written substantially in various forms, authoring "Women and the Study of Torah," for example. Besides being a coed school, Flatbush also combines the rich traditions of Sephardic and Ashkenazic communities, enabling Dr. Wolowelsky to add another novel dimension to his Haggadah. Maintaining the traditional Ashkenazic text, his Haggadah incorporates and explains many Sephardic customs, providing the reader with a healthy sense of acceptable variations, as he or she learns of women's role in the seder.
Dr. Wolowelsky's Hagaddah offers the reader with a collection of insightful remarks relating to the Seder, including remarks from women scholars and general commentary regarding women. To begin with, the Haggadah is novel in its non-apologetic approach to dealing with different and even derogatory opinions on women's roles. For example, after quoting Rabanit Dalia Falk, Dr. Wolowelsky mentions that "the Magen Avraham dismisses her ruling, quoting R. Eliezer's aphorism that 'there is no wisdom among women.'" Such a presentation, if not bordering on the unnecessarily provocative, at least demonstrates a confidence and fearlessness in being open about conflicting opinions.