Gila Fine, lecturer of rabbinic literature at the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies, discusses the Talmud’s profound moral teachings with Rabbi Shoshana Boyd Gelfand.

Women in the Talmud are usually marginal and almost always anonymous. Gila Fine – called “one of the great Talmud teachers of our time” by Lord Sacks – explores the six exceptions: Yalta (the shrew), Homa (the femme fatale), Marta (the prima donna), Heruta (the madonna/whore), Beruria (the over-reacher), and Ima Shalom (the angel in the house). While their epithets suggest anti-feminist archetypes, careful re-reading reveals more to their stories than initially meets the eye.

This event will last approximately 1 hour, without an interval. 

About the speakers:

Gila Fine is a lecturer of rabbinic literature at the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies, exploring the tales of the Talmud through philosophy, literary criticism, psychoanalysis, and pop-culture. She serves on the faculties of the Nachshon Project, Amudim Seminary, the Tikvah Scholars Program, and the London School of Jewish Studies, and has taught thousands of students at conferences, campuses, and communities across the Jewish world. As editor in chief of Maggid Books, Gila edited and published over a hundred titles of contemporary Jewish thought, including several bestsellers and eight National Jewish Book Award winners. Her work has been featured in the BBC, Haaretz, The Jerusalem Post, The Jerusalem Report, Tradition Journal, Jewish News, and The Jewish Chronicle.

Shoshana Boyd Gelfand is a rabbi, author, radio broadcaster and leadership trainer for clergy of all faiths. She currently serves as Director of Leadership and Learning at Pears Foundation in London, where she lives with her husband and three children. She has written several books that strive to make Jewish tradition accessible to people of all faiths, including The Barefoot Book of Jewish Tales and Scholastic’s All About Hannukah.