Our Stories, Our Bodies, Our Torah:
Coming Together as a Community After Dobbs
With the recent Supreme Court ruling on reproductive rights, we have been thinking deeply about how SVIVAH can add value to this moment.
What is coming up for us most is the stories – the personal experiences of those directly connected to the abortion experience, and the feelings evoked by this loss of bodily autonomy. We are hearing increased panic and anxiety from the fertility space, resurfacing trauma from those who have faced this choice in the past, and real fear in response to this betrayal on the part of governmental leadership. We hear you seeking pastoral voices of leadership. Seeking comfort and reassurance. We hear you asking faith leaders to show up with a voice of reason and understanding, and a commitment to the humanity of women*.
This is a moment for pastoral voices to bring us together in compassion and holiness and care.
In partnership with Hadar, Maharat, The Covenant Foundation, and the Jewish Women’s Archive, we are creating a space for pastoral leadership to shine, while amplifying the voices of those with direct understanding of the experience of abortion. On Tuesday evening, August 2nd, please join us for “Our Stories, Our Bodies, Our Torah” – a space where our stories are centered alongside pastoral holding through this time of fear and trauma, mourning and anger.
Our goal is simple. We want to lift up some beautiful and powerful voices of pastoral leadership so that we can all find the compassion we need. We want to make sure each of us feels seen and understood in this moment of upheaval. And we want to broaden our appreciation of the different facets of this moment and how others are experiencing it. We hope you will join us.
There will be pastoral Torah, there will be stories, and there will be opportunity to be heard and hear others. Most importantly – there will be choice. You will be able to decide what speaks most to you and take from our gathering exactly what you need.
We are grateful to be offering this gathering in tandem with Hadar’s Yom Iyyun on Wednesday, August 3rd, “Real Torah/Real Life: Abortion, Beyond Law.” Their exceptional lineup of sensitive and thoughtful teachers will further this communal conversation after our more intimate women*-only gathering space. Sign up for more information about Hadar’s day of learning here. (More details below) We greatly appreciate the opportunity to work with Hadar to think through how best to hold everyone in this moment.
It's hard to say “we look forward to seeing you” for this one, but we do. As always, you make our table feel full. We need your voice in the room.
RSVP below so we can make sure to follow up with more details very soon.
Sending hugs your way,
Ariele and Aliza
As always, our learning is incomplete without you.
Please invite someone you think might want to be with us, too.
Join us Tuesday 8/2 @ 7:45-9:45pm EST
and with Hadar on Wednesday 8/3
Click on photos to learn more about each of our educators
What story do you bring to this moment? What Torah do you need to hear in this moment?
We have much to learn from each other. Explore this Story Wall of personal stories, consider sharing yours. All entries are completely anonymous.
Our stories are more critical than ever. Click here to share yours anonymously — let’s learn from each other.
HerTorah gathers together a diverse community of Jewish women to connect over our shared heritage, explore our collective wisdom, and elevate our communal experience in learning with and from one another.
HerTorah is directed by Rabbanit Aliza Sperling, made possible in part by support of the Aviv and Covenant Foundations and inspired by each one of us.
This gathering welcomes women* 12+ and learners of all backgrounds.
SVIVAH is dependent on the generosity of those who choose to invest in a powerful community of women. As always, cost should never be a barrier to anything SVIVAH, but if you can, please help us show respect to our speakers/facilitators for their time and expertise. www.svivah.org/donate
Questions about ZOOM or about this gathering? Email connect@svivah.org
*SVIVAH defines "Jewish woman" as anyone wishing to be included in a circle of Jewish women. If you want to be here, we want you to be here. And, welcome.
Co-Sponsors
Real Torah / Real Life:
Abortion, Beyond Law
August 2-3 | Online
In a time when the dignity and agency of people navigating realities of pregnancy is being denied, there is much work to be done. Alongside taking action, it is also a moment to reach for the narratives and theologies that strengthen us in this work. Embracing our Jewish tradition, we can find a much-needed religious voice of care and compassion towards experiences of abortion.
Join us and learn from sensitive teachers who bring our rich tradition to encounter the complexities of people’s real lives, in theory and in practice. We will lift up a vision of Torah that can hold us - as individuals and as a society - as we do the beautiful, hard, and messy work of filling the world with life, work which has always included life, loss, and decisions to end pregnancies.
We will begin this exploration with a women's-only space* for study, reflection, and community support on Tuesday evening, August 2, presented by SVIVAH and HerTorah. In-person sessions in New York City will be announced in the coming weeks.
“Real Torah / Real Life: Abortion, Beyond Law” is presented in partnership with SVIVAH, HerTorah, the Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan, and the JTS Hendel Center for Ethics and Justice.