#rabbi danya ruttenberg

[hachama]

[gatheringbones]

[“One factor in our cultural resistance to the work of repentance has to do with the post-Enlightenment move toward individualism and how this took shape in the United States. The French diplomat Alexis de Tocqueville warned, in his 1835 tome Democracy in America, that our country’s extreme form of individualism would cause people to feel that they “owe no man anything and hardly expect anything from anybody. They form the habit of thinking of themselves in isolation and imagine their whole destiny is in their own hands.” And indeed, our society, as the influential international law scholar Louis Henkin has noted, focuses on rights afforded to the individual, rather than on our obligations to one another, and on limitations to what the government can do to the individual, rather than what the government is required to offer its constituents. This, then, impacts how we interact with one another, particularly when there is a violation of trust or safety.

When a harm is perpetrated, the “rugged individualism” of American culture (as Herbert Hoover famously put it) has the potential to leave people alone, nursing their wounds in solitude, without support. We lack a sense of collective responsibility, a communal ethos or process that might help hold victims’ pain and urge perpetrators to hold themselves accountable. “Just let it go,” can become an adaptive strategy in a culture that doesn’t have other meaningful mechanisms to offer after a rupture of relationship or care.”]

rabbi danya ruttenberg, from on repentance and repair: making amends in an unapologetic world, 2022

[a-queer-seminarian]

The "Conquest of Canaan" and Palestine Today

A little bit ago an anon asked about how to deal with parts of the Bible that depict the Israelites violently removing the original inhabitants of Canaan in order to settle in their promised land, particularly in light of how those texts are used to justify the modern state of Israel's occupation of and violence against Palestine today.

I did my best to respond — and then @imusthavebecomesomething replied to let me know that Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg recently explored the same exact questions in her newsletter, Life Is a Sacred Text!

Naturally, she articulated her points much better than I. So I'm back to recommend her piece, which delves into:

the historical context of Israel's founding vs. the political narrative the biblical authors formed around it

the atrocities that narrative has been used to justify (from the Crusades to European colonialism to today's atrocities in Gaza)

why it's still worth reading these stories ("shake them and shake them until the insight falls out")

She ultimately concludes that (the following is an excerpt from her article):

Israelites and Canaanites were likely basically the same peoples, with different customs. They were not "ethnically" different in any way, except that they eventually became a separate "ethnos" in the hiiiighly academic sense of "having a common national or cultural tradition," belonging to different peoplehoods, with different religious-tribal customs, different ideas about what made you an insider and outsider, etc. But were they "ethnically" different, in the way that we use it today? Nauxpe. Nope. Nawp. Which means...

Both Israelites/Jews and Palestinians have existed on that patch of land as far back as history goes, and

Those of us who have wayback Jew ancestry (see above: you can be part of the Jewish ethnos/people without being an ethnic Jew, dig) are related, genetically, to Palestinians. Surprise, surprise? (To whom, exactly??) And it also means that

The "God gave us this land to conquer and encouraged us to genocide the locals" narrative was originally a political fabrication and it has since been used for innumerable horrific political ends, including now.

There's way more in her actual article, which is absolutely worth reading in full — so here it is!

[demongrocer]

I found this post meaningful / useful today. Sharing in case others do as well

[dowsingfordivinity]

Be like trees

In the early 1990s when I was first starting out on my witchy path, I was taught that, whilst the Age of Aquarius (or whatever you want to call the post-capitalism world) is at hand, the old order won’t just disappear: it will fight tooth and nail to retain its grip on power. We are seeing that now: the genocides happening everywhere, the right introducing anti-trans laws, the overturning of Roe…

[wherekizzialives]

Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg’s book, On Repentance and Repair: Making Amends in an Unapologetic World, is an excellent source on this subject, in case anyone would like some further reading.

I think one of the most important things most goyim don't understand about Judaism is that there's a process for forgiveness, but forgiveness isn't required. And even then, the process of teshuvah requires more than just a simple apology.

It requires that one recognize that they have done something wrong, it requires that one regrets those actions, it requires that one strives to do better, it requires that one changes themselves to be a better person as to not repeat the mistake, it requires one to face the person they have wronged, admit their misdeeds, and declare their intention to do better.

If the offender's apology isn't serious enough, they repeat the same offending deeds, or something else happens where it's clear the apology was not sincere or the offender hasn't taken concrete steps to become a better person, forgiveness isn't required.

And even in the case where the apology is seen as sincere enough, the minimum required amount of forgiveness is "mechilah," which simply forgives a debt (physical or metaphorical) that is owed because of the offending actions. But the crime still exists. The crime is still there.

And EVEN THEN, one is not halachically obligated to offer mechilah. They may be morally obligated to as a sign of good faith, but in no way are they required to.

This is Jewish forgiveness. It is a process that takes time, energy, and trust. Sometimes, it's not granted, but when it is, it's granted because there is faith that the offender will become a better person and not repeat the crimes of their past, at least not intentionally (although that is a whole other topic).

[ifimakemybedinhell]

this is excellent, but ngl it's worth the read just for footnote 8 on dr michael cook's theory about judas, damn

[shadowweaver06]

Just found out that Neil Gaiman and Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg are gonna have a discussion about her latest book ('On Repentance and Repair') on FB live in a few weeks and of *course* I'm gonna pop on go on and listen to that conversation.

(I am a big fan of books and topical writings by them both, so I am very excited to hear this discussion - Neil Gaiman is one of my favorite fantasy authors, and Rabbi Ruttenberg's educational tidbits on Twitter and one of her earlier books was entirely foundational to the beginnings of my explorations into Judaism).

I'm probably more excited than I should be but I'm really interested in this conversation.

[riylcast]

Episode 585: Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg

The bad apology has become a major feature of modern American life. “I’m sorry to anyone I might have offended” more often than not boils down to “I’m sorry I got caught.

Are the impacted obligated to forgive? And more importantly, what is the process for earning such forgiveness?

Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg draws on the teaching of 12th century philosopher and Torah scholar Maimonides for her latest, On Repentance and Repair, which explores the steps for repairing mistakes, both large and small.

In addition to her rabbinical practice, Ruttenberg is a prolific author an popular online champion of progressive politics. She joins us to discuss her journey and to reflect how far we’ve come as a society – and how far is still left to go.

[nesyanast]

"Jewish law teaches that the person harmed is certainly not obligated to forgive a perpetrator who has not done the work of repentance. And even if repentance is wholehearted and demonstrable, if apologies have been offered and amends made, how and when forgiveness factors in is not always straightforward. Is forgiveness something the victim can choose to do at any point? Definitely. Can it sometimes be a useful part of the healing process? For sure. Is a victim obligated to forgive? Well, as we rabbis are fond of saying, that’s a whole other conversation. It’s worth mentioning that forgiveness isn’t the same as reconciliation—returning to some sort of relationship that will continue into the future. Regardless, I want to spell out that, in Judaism, a person can do real, profound, comprehensive repentance work and even get right with God—experience atonement—even if their victim never forgives them. Repentance and forgiveness are separate processes." On Repentance and Repair by Danya Ruttenberg

[traincat]

i was trying to explain to my mom how the harry potter game is antisemitic (we are not jewish) and she didnt really seem to get it. she was like "i mean if they were wearing yarmulkes i would be like yeah, the goblins are supposed to be jewish". do you know of a good source that i could send her that would break down the jewish stereotypes and how they arent just coincidence? if you dont have a good source dont worry about it but i saw you reblog stuff about it so i thought you might. thank you for your time!

I have a few resources I'm linking in my reply here, but I'm probably not going to be answering other questions about this because, to be honest, as a Jewish person in fandom, it's stressful. I'm reblogging stuff about Hogwarts Legacy because I'm Jewish and the antisemitism in the game is vile to the point where it feels irresponsible for me not to address it in some way, and because it ties into a lot of the other antisemitism I've personally faced in fandom when speaking about anything Jewish. I feel like your mother may have some trouble grasping the antisemitism because she seems to be viewing Judaism solely as a faith, when Judaism is an ethnoreligion -- a religion, an ethnic group, and wide and varied culture, and so stereotypes about Jewish people don't have to involve religious symbols and very often involve specific physical features, ie, big noses. The goblins in Harry Potter are short, ugly, and they have huge noses -- these are all features commonly associated in antisemitic caricature with Ashkenazi Jewish men. The idea that the goblins would only be valid caricatures of Jewish people if they were wearing a specific piece of clothing is troubling because it invokes the yellow stars Jews were made to wear by the Nazis. (For the record, my uncle wears a yarmulke full time, but the other men on my mother's side of the family do not. This does not make them less Jewish.)

But if your mother needs a symbol associated with the Jewish faith to help her understand, it's been noted that the game features a "goblin horn" that is very clearly a shofar, an important piece of Judaica which is used for religious purposes. (There's also a link between the date the horn is given in the game and a very brutal pogrom; more info in the twitter thread linked. If you want to get an idea of how virulent antisemitism is in fandom, the response to this thread and others like it are A Lot.) Like I can't say enough how blatant this is, and the reason it's getting by so many people are 1) a lot of non-Jewish people are at least on a base level, if not actively antisemitic themselves, basically okay with antisemitism, because antisemitism is so present in our culture and 2) uneducated on Jewish matters.

It's also important to note that in the Harry Potter world, goblins are specifically bankers. This is how they are first introduced to readers and this is their primary association in world: the goblins are literally guarding the gates on huge piles of wizard gold. This is an antisemitic stereotype, as Jews are often perceived as being money grubbing and greedy, as well as "secretly controlling" the greater world's wealth. More info in this wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_antisemitism. This thread by Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg also breaks down the connection between the "greedy Jew" stereotype and the historical precedent for Jewish moneylenders, a profession that was foisted on them because it was distasteful to Christians: https://twitter.com/TheRaDR/status/1057333224538624001. Harry Potter is not unique in these depictions. There is an example of this in, say, Star Trek, where the Ferengi are a race of greedy, money-obsessed aliens who have exaggerated "ugly" features and who are often depicted as oversexed, especially when it comes to women of other, more classically attractive alien races (this is another antisemitic stereotype of Jewish men). But the Ferengi are also all played by Jewish actors, and in the show where they feature most, Deep Space 9, they're protagonists. So while the Ferengi are rooted in antisemitic stereotypes, the involvement of Jewish creatives and their role in the story makes it a more complicated, nuanced situation. This is not what is happening in Hogwarts Legacy.

It's not a coincidence that the goblins in Harry Potter have always been depicted as bankers right from book one. While you can theoretically separate the series from Rowling's transphobia (although, y'know, you shouldn't), the antisemitism is baked into the series. Hogwarts Legacy just takes it to a whole other incredibly overt level. The point of the game is violence against Jews, and we see that because it's revealing just how many people out there are fine with demonizing Jews specifically and the level of violence Jewish people often face in fandom when they speak out about antisemitism.

[kivrin]

As shared by Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg in her newsletter.

[gatheringbones]

Hey I was reaching out cuz I remember u have read what seems like a good amount of recounting of 60’s/70’s coalition organizing, I remember u used to talk in tags under selected quotes abt the rifts n dynamics whiteness brought into those spaces. Bought a Mab Segrest book cuz of u - wondering if u have any titles off the top of ur head that were either good for illuminating the way whiteness can fracture or strain organizing, or any titles where these tensions were sat with and worked thru. Teeny tiny autonomous org I’m in is going thru growing pains and trying to be more proactive abt anti-racism, I wanna do all I can to ensure things don’t crumble and feel like looking to the past would be useful

thanks, I deleted a bunch of those thoughts because I thought they were inappropriate. re: your request, a few books came to mind, not all of them are immediately applicable to your topic but they have a lot to do with group tension and how to channel it, the bus one specifically is one that I think is essential reading for anyone who wants to interface with the public, same for the one on actually making amends

the revolution starts at home: confronting intimate violence within activist communities, edited by ching-in chen, jai dulani, & leah lakshmi piepzna-samarasinha

the empowerment manual: a guide to collaborative groups by starhawk

the lines that make us: stories from nathan’s bus, by nathan vass

on repentance and repair: making amends in an unapologetic world, by rabbi danya ruttenberg

[deseretgear]

Lilith

recently I saw a post where someone was claiming that since Lilith is traditionally in Jewish mythology a demon associated with death of children, death in childbirth, etc that its wrong to do modern feminist re-imaginings of her, as if it's like a white cultural appropriation that doesn't support Jewish interpretation

And this felt off to me but since I haven't really been a religious Jew (I'm a cultural/ethnic Jew) I didn't comment. But the thing is: Jewish feminists have recognized for YEARS the subversive potential of re-interpreting Lilith. There is even a feminist Jewish magazine named after her. As a general rule, while its important to be careful of modern appropriation and interpretation of other religions, its also important that especially with Jewish religion and culture that people don't fall for the idea that there is this monoculture or single set of interpretations, or that the ability to recognize subversive or feminist or suspect aspects of a story are like uniquely modern/white/western traits. Jews have been interpreting and reinterpreting our own stories for as long as we've had them and plenty of rabbis talk about reinterpreting Lilith through a feminist and sex-positive lens.

Another very interesting aspect of the Lilith story is that Lilith originates/was codified in the medieval text the Alphabet of Ben Sirah, and seems to have been created to explain why there are 2 creation 'stories' listed in Genesis; Genesis 1:27 describes god creating humans in male and female forms, and Genesis 2 describes god again creating eve from adam's rib (or side) because he was lonely. (Again I'm mostly reporting from what Rabbis like Danya Ruttenberg and others have said). Lilith is one of those figures who is not accepted as a real part of the mythology by all Jews, and her presence in the actual Torah and writings of the prophets is mostly by 'implication' or interpretation. There is a lilith mentioned in Isaiah in a more generic way, but this lilith appears to be treated more as a generic demon if i recall. Again, there are plenty of modern scholarship that also criticizes the use of Lilith as a feminist icon, and there are good reasons for both positions! But I do want to push back against the idea that somehow Jews are not a part of our own modern midrash.

[apatosaurus]

Some very important insights and resources on where we go from here by Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg

[tieflingkisser]

A Jewish Harvard student hung Yom Kippur protest posters. Campus Hillel called the cops.

Emotions are high in the wake of the Oct. 7th anniversary. But will this create a chilling effect on young Jews looking to engage?

On Monday, October 7, 2024, a student affiliated with JStreet U, the university arm of the liberal pro-Israel Jewish nonprofit JStreet, allegedly used the printing resources of the campus Hillel to produce copies of posters without permission. The student was later identified in a self-published statement as Meredith W. B. Zielonka.

The printable posters were produced by Halachic Left, a grassroots Jewish organization. They featured a variety of images depicting death and suffering in Gaza over the past year juxtaposed with Hebrew and English translations of the “Al Chet,” a list and confession of sins recited throughout Yom Kippur services.

These posters were hung outside the campus Hillel center and discovered by staffers early Tuesday morning. The staffers then called the Cambridge Police Department because, according to a statement, “the flyers contained graphic content they felt was meant to be intimidating.”

The Crimson, Harvard’s student newspaper, reported Tuesday that Harvard Hillel “temporarily suspended” JStreet U because of their actions, though it remains unclear from what they were suspended and what authority Hillel has over JStreet U.

I reached out to JStreet’s national organization Wednesday, who informed me the following day that they no longer have an official chapter at Harvard and that a student—now identified as Zielonka—who had been affiliated with them in the past was the one who printed the posters. They said she “engaged in activity that was in violation of both Hillel's affiliate agreement and J Street U's own standards for our campus chapters.” I asked JStreet for specifics as to how Zielonka violated their standards, but they declined to comment further.

JStreet also shared with me a letter their president and directors sent to Rabbi Rubenstein profusely apologizing for Zielonka’s actions. “We are committed to developing genuine J Street U leadership on campus that represents our values and mission, specifically providing a safe space for students to hold nuanced views without compromising their pro-Israel values,” they wrote.

Thursday evening Rubenstein published his letter in response to the situation. He likened the posters to antisemitic propaganda—both historic and recent—that depicts Jews as dangerous vermin who should be met with violence. In his view, the posters “stigmatize” a type of Jew (IDF soldiers enacting violence in Gaza) and even if they’re not necessarily an attack, create “the potential to engender conflict between different elements of our community”. He wrote: “The saturation of public spaces, and the minds of an increasing number of Americans, with images of Jews as heinous, is real, and dangerous, and requires - just like testing and masking during COVID - that we curtail some public freedoms to protect one another.”

[...]

“Jewish institutions have a tremendous amount of power, and it hurts my heart that they so often use it to gate-keep and exclude rather than enfranchise,” Rabbi and author Danya Ruttenberg, who publishes the newsletter Life is a Sacred Text, told me. “That Harvard Hillel decided to engage law enforcement on a matter of...postering (never mind that they were posters with...our sacred liturgy? Inviting us to collective moral reflection?) speaks to just how profoundly some corners of our institutional life have lost the thread here.” A Jewish Harvard student I spoke with Friday morning, whose name I’m not sharing to protect their privacy, pointed out that the situation could have turned out even worse had the JStreet U-affiliated student been a person of color. They felt that involving the cops rapidly escalated the situation, when it could have easily been an opportunity for community building handled privately between groups.  And, as Ruttenberg pointed out, there was no actual crime was committed.