In this issue: Life lessons from the mythological Betty Friedan on the not-so subtle connections between the feminine mystique and Judaism. Why Jewish men fear the women’s movement. Holy cow—a meditation on those sacred cows: Jewish women’s organizations.

The Lilith Question

by Aviva Cantor Zuckoff

"The demonic Lilith overshadowed the original independent Lilith in all subsequent legends to the point where the name Lilith engendered only the association of demon/witch. It is this demonic image which has both reflected and shaped men's thoughts and feelings about women for generations. But the time for reassessment of the Lilith myth has arrived."

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Marjorie Morningstar Revisited

by Elenore Lester

A deft demolition of the mythic warning in this 1950’s blockbuster novel: that without the virginity of the Jewish woman, the House of Israel will crumble.

Women’s Liberation & Jewish Law

by Blu Greenberg

"My belief in the perfect God does not allow me to think that the Lord would favor one sex over the other in any area of life."

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Ms. Lot

poetry by Muriel Rukeyser

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The High Price of “Failure”

by Mary Cahn Schwartz

If a Jewish woman is not allowed to be more successful than her husband, what does she do if he’s not successful at all?

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American Jewish Men: Fear of Feminism

by Bob Lamm

Why Jewish men fear the women's movement-and why they must face the issues it raises.

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The Wedding

poetry by Diane Levenberg

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A Woman’s Wrath

by Yitzhak Leib Peretz, translated by Zora Zagrabelna

A truer picture than "Fiddler on the Roof" of what shtetl life was like for women - a new translation from the work of the great Yiddish storyteller.

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Beyond the Valley of The Shmattes

by Doris B. Gold

We must evaluate where our women’s organizations are heading, competing with each other for membership while they’re relegated to housekeeping for the Jewish community.

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