by TheWanderingJew [➚] · Friday, July 3rd, 2009
Jewschool’s own Danya Ruttenberg was interviewed by Haaretz. It’s a great read, and not only for her not-so-subtle dig at Shmuley Boteach:
There are plenty of people who find Shmuley Boteach’s simplistic approach [to "kosher sex"] to be insultingly dumbed-down Judaism. He’ll say, “This is what the Bible says,” and then give a one-sentence answer to a complicated question that cuts out 2,000 years of serious discussion and debate. Certainly, the Bible didn’t say that, whatever “that” is, and it’s not certain that rabbinic texts said it either. We can give ourselves and our children the opportunity to see the dynamism in Jewish thought, and to see that faith and engagement don’t have to come at the expense of our intelligence. There are plenty of people who are looking for something more nuanced. There’s definitely a class of educated, sophisticated lay Jews in America who want to have a serious conversation, and one that takes them seriously.
The rest of the interview touches on feminism (is it ruining Judaism?), Israel (not just a false dichotomy?), sex (you can salt your meat?), and topics that I would like to see in a sequel to her book, “The Passionate Torah: Sex and Judaism” (pornography, anal sex, and sex toys - oh my!). Full Haartez article is here.
Great article! Mazel tov, Danya. I can’t wait to read the book.
—T · July 3rd, 2009 at 11:17 am
She’s so aweseome.
—Yonah · July 3rd, 2009 at 2:13 pm
Danya has Jews conversing on topics previously considered taboo by Jews and rabbis alike. Kol HaKavod
—Rabbi Andy Sacks · July 4th, 2009 at 4:07 pm