March  27, 2008 Class #5  These are the notes I used for the class.   Because some may like to know the sources, I’ve left some of them in.  Bibliography at the end.   What is listed are the ideas I brought to the class, but in many cases people brought up other interpretations, and we did not necessarily discuss everything here.   However, this is useful for anyone who would like to review the texts or go over the class in their mind. Introductory ideas Bible as literature – stories are carefully crafted for a purpose – human beings are messy –…

March 6, 2008 Class #4  Rather than try to recapitulate our discussion, I am posting my lesson plan, so as to give an idea of what we went over.   We did an overview to date: Looking at texts with our own eyes Filters – how it is not possible to approach the texts objectively, but that we have filters, such as feeling that women in the bible are mistreated.  In fact, every author we read has filters. The key thing is to try and be aware of filters as we study. Having a prejudice against Rivka the trickster – nasty…

February 21, 2008, Class #3  How did Rachel and Leah build up the House of Israel?  Why is it Rachel and Leah and not Rifka and Sarah.    This is a question to keep in the back of our minds. Today we looked at women as critical ancestors and the trickster.  These are aspects of the role of women in building up the House of Israel.  We saw that women also do their thing and disappear Thematically we first introduced Abraham the trickster – Gen 12:13-20 –  Abram asks Sarai to lie.  She is in Pharaoh’s harem – not a good…

Here are a few points from our class on February 7, 2008.  I owe thanks to the works that I am currently studying, including Women’s Bible commentary by Carol Newsom and Sharon Ringe and Women of the Bible and In the Wake of the Goddesses, both by Tikva Frymer Kensky.  My teachers at Hebrew college are very helpful, in particular Professor Judith Kates and Rabbi Natan Margalit. I would recommend that everyone read the Book of Ruth.   We will not get to it for a while, but you may wish to have some knowledge of it as we go along.  …

Here are a few salient points from our class on Jan 24 2008.   If anyone has questions or comments, whether you  attended or missed please let me know. Note that after talking to a few folks after class, I have moved the start time to 7:30. Next class will be Feb 7.  Class schedule is on the second page. Our focus of study will be the women of Ruth, so that in the month of May we can study the book of Ruth in preparation for Shavuot.   A hoped for outcome of the class will be that those students who…