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Books, books, books.

There are no books written directly to a practicing Jewitch. There are, however several good books that explore the feminine in Judaism and the pagan roots of Judaism. Additionally, the Kabbalah is a mystical aspect of Judaism that bears looking at, particularly for the emphasis on the Shekinah as the feminine face of God.

I'd also look at the Shabbat ritual itself and try to personalize it as a ceremony between you and Shabbat as a goddess. See where it takes you.

So: A short list of reading recommended by me and other Jewitches. If you have some books to add, please, send me an e-mail and let me know!

Recommended Reading
       
 

The Alphabet Versus the Goddess: The Conflict Between Word and Image, by Leonard Shlain

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

God is a Verb: Kabbalah and the Practice of Mystical Judaism, Rabbi David Cooper

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

The Goddess Celebrates
An anthology that Includes passages by Jewish Witches. Out of print.

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

Guide To Jewish Holy Days, by Hayyim Schauss
An older text that mentions the pagan origins for each holy day

 
       
     
   
 
 
  The Hebrew Goddess, by Raphael Patai
Explores the idea that the feminine cannot be suppressed and how it has remained and been retained in Judaism.
 
     
   
 
 
 

In the Wake of the Goddess: Women, Culture and the Biblical Transformation of a Pagan Myth, Tikva Simone Frymer-Kensky
A great scholarly work about the pre-biblical goddesses of the Middle East, written from a feminist perspective

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

Lilith's Cave: Jewish Tales of the Supernatural , by Howard Schwarz
An excellent collections of Jewish folktales

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

Lilith's Fire: Reclaiming Our Sacred Lifeforce, by Deborah Grenn-Scott
(from the Publisher) In Lilith's Fire, Grenn-Scott examines why and how modern women are still demonized-identified as "bad" for actions perceived as reasonable for men, through techniques used for thousands of years-and how women have started to reverse this tendency by redefining right and wrong.

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

Miriam's Tambourine: Jewish Folktales from Around the World, by Howard Schwarz
An excellent collections of Jewish folktales - the story of Miriam's Tambourine still brings me to tears

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

Miriam's Well: Rituals for Jewish Women Around the Year, by Penina V. Adelman
A book written for and by Jewish women who wanted to have their own rituals

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

The Mystic Quest: An Introduction to Jewish Mysticism, by David Ariel

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

On Being a Jewish Feminist, by Susanna Heschel

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

Origins of the Kabbalah, by Gershom Scholem
An excellent text for a classical understanding of Jewish Kaballah

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

The Red Tent, by Anita Diamant
A fictional novel told by Dinah, revolving around her experiences in the "rent tent" where the women gathered during menses, birth and illness.

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

Sefir Yetzirah: The Book of Creation, by Aryeh Kaplan
An excellent text for a classical understanding of Jewish Kaballah

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

The Sabbath in the Classical Kabbalah, by Elliot K. Ginsburg
Start to see the Sabbath as the Bride of God, treat her as a priestess and you'll sense her presence as a goddess in her own right

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

Standing Again at Sinai: Judaism from a Feminist Perspective , by Judith Plaskow

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

Voices of the Matriarchs: Listening to the Prayers of Early Modern Jewish Women, by Chava Weissler
Written by a feminist scholar who researched the Tkhines written by women in the 18th and 19th centuries, such as the Tkhine imrei Shifra, as well as female scholars of the time, such as Leah Horowitz

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

The Way of Flame: A Guide to the Forgotten Mystical Tradition of Jewish Meditation, by Avram Davis

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

Weaving the Visions: New Patterns in Feminist Spirituality , by Carol Christ and Judith Plaskow

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

The Women's Haggadah, by E.M. Broner w/Naomi Nimrod
Not wonderful, but an interesting attempt to write a more feminine Haggadah for Pesach

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

WomanSpirit Rising: A Feminist Reader in Religion , by Carol Christ and Judith Plaskow

 
       
     
   
 
 
 

Yentl's Revenge: The Next Wave of Jewish Feminism, by Danya Ruttenberg (Editor), Susannah Heschel
A collection of essays by Jewish feminists, and there's one or two essays about Jewish Witchery.

 
       
     
       
   
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