Welcome to the Partnership Minyanim Google Group!
Elana Sztokman
JOFA has created this group in order to provide a space where all those wonderful people involved in partnership minyanim around the world can share ideas, challenges, dilemmas, and milestones. We have found that there are a lot of similar conversations happening in many different places about partnership minyan, and we think it's valuable for us all to learn from one another, connect with one another, and share wisdom. We are not alone in our efforts to make positive change in religious life. We are all part of the same rubric. And we think that there is value in reminding ourselves of that and using these connections to give us all more strength in our work and religious lives. It's empowering and enlightening, and helps us be part of a broader network of community.
All comments, questions and queries are welcome in the spirit of positive growth, change, and conversation. If you have any questions or comments or questions for the moderators, feel free to contact me any time. elana.s...@jofa.org
And please tell all your parntership-minyanim friends about us. Kol hamarbe, harei ze meshubach -- roughly translated as "the more the merrier".
All the best, and see you online!
B'vracha,
Elana Sztokman
Executive Director, JOFA
elana.s...@jofa.org
Author of The Men's Section: Orthodox Jewish Men in an Egalitarian World
Ellie Ash
Hello all,
I am a PhD student at Boston University, and I am working on dissertation research about partnership minyanim in North America. I’m currently working on a chapter about the history of what became known as the “partnership” format, and I hope people on this listserv might be able to help me out.
I’m trying to compile a list of all partnership-format minyanim in the US and Canada, current and former. As a heuristic, I’m listing any minyanim that require at least ten men for a quorum and where women get aliyot and/or lead parts of the service. I am especially interested in learning about two categories I haven’t heard much about yet: 1. Services that fit these criteria that took place on or before 2002, and 2. Established synagogues that offer partnership minyans as one of their own services (such as the Friday night partnership minyan at the Tremont Street Shul in Cambridge, MA).
Here is a list of the North American partnership minyanim that I am currently aware of, with the basic information I’m hoping to compile: location and start and end dates. If you have information to contribute, you can comment on the google doc or email me at ea...@bu.edu. I greatly appreciate all help! You can learn a little more about my project on my facebook page, and feel free to reach out with any questions.
Thank you,
Ellie