Jewish Tales of Holy Women

What is a "holy woman," or a holy man for that matter? According to the Jewish mystics, a holy person is someone who has not lost the holiness that every baby is born with. A holy person is someone who fulfills it. Stories about Jewish holy women have rarely been collected in such an engaging and entertaining form. The tales display a specifically female Jewish spirituality, giving us a peek into a world of devotional beauty that focuses on kindness. These stories of laughter and tears, humility and bravery, striving and trance, have an appeal spanning the denominational spectrum: they are spiritual nourishment for the soul. The rabbis say there are both male and female angels and angels are on earth as well as in heaven. These tales enhance our appreciation of the female angels on earth.

Auteur
Yitzhak Buxbaum is a maggid, a traditional Jewish storyteller and teacher, who specializes in mysticism, spirituality, and Hasidic tales. He is the author of nine books including Jewish Spiritual Practices, Storytelling and Spirituality in Judaism, and An Open Heart: The Mystic Path of Loving People. Yitzhak teaches at The New School University and resides in New York City.

Texte du rabat
A Beautiful Collection of Stories About Spiritually Powerful Women
"Yitzhak Buxbaum has performed an act of vital reclamation, lifting the veil that has concealed the holiness of so many Jewish women from previous centuries to the present. These stories redeem their simple piety and command our respect for their noble acts of faith." Ellen Frankel, author, The Five Books of Miriam, editor-in-chief of the Jewish Publication Society "Written in the style of Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach's soulful stories, Jewish Tales of Holy Women fills a gap in placing the saintliness of women at the center." Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg, author, The Beginning of Desire, The Particulars of Rapture, and Genesis

"Buxbaum's tales allow us to enter the hidden world of Jewish holy women. Deep, simple piety and generosity of spirit breathe through these pages. Our soul the 'holy woman' in each of us finds delight in these tales of virtuous realities." Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi

"These stories of holy women are pure light. From the simplest ones to the most miraculous, they radiate the particular kind of warmth and healing power that so many of us crave." Rabbi Tirzah Firestone, author, With Roots in Heaven

"These wonderful stories are for men, women, and children of all backgrounds and all religions. They open the heart, inspire us to be better people, and fully honor the holy legacy of Judaism. Thank you, Yitzhak Buxbaum." Melinda Ribner, author, Kabbalah Month by Month and New Age Judaism

"Yitzhak Buxbaum has performed a great service in compiling these beautiful stories of saintly women who expressed their deep connection with the Shechinah (Divine Presence) in private prayer and in manifold acts of loving kindnessfeeding the poor, healing the sick, and escorting the dying. The tales show that even in times when gender roles were restricting, there were always outstanding women who excelled in the sanctified realms of study, teaching, prayer, and charity." Rabbi Leah Novick

Contenu
S'micha as a Maggid. Acknowledgments.

Note to the Reader.

Preface.

Introduction.

THE TALES.

Sabbath Candle-Lighting Prayers.

Tears Before Candle Lighting.

In the Merit of the Sabbath Candles.

A Prayer over the Challahs.

The Taste of the Garden of Eden.

Healing Food.

Watching at the Market.

Two Pious Peddlers.

Are You Not Our Father?

Riveleh the Tzaddeket.

Holy Spirit.

Deeds Great and Small.

How I Envy You!

A Fence to Wisdom.

A Saving Prayer.

Insulting Her Husband.

Rebbetzin "Devorah Cohen".

A Hidden Tzaddeket.

The Hot Water Heater.

It Must Have Been Hard!

If It's Difficult, It Must Be Good.

Using Every Device.

The Shofar.

An Angel for the Poor.

A Generous Wife.

A Blessing.

Yenta the Prophetess.

Loud Davvening.

All Prayer.

Edel, Daughter of the Baal Shem Tov.

The Sleeping Child.

The Gates of Divine Help.

Trust in God!

Elijah's Cup.

The Screaming Baby.

Have Faith!

The Bris.

A Special Gift.

A Covenant in the Flesh.

The Clotheslines.

The Guest.

The Sound of Her Blessings.

The Water Barrel.

Even Her Taking Was Giving.

A Reward for Kindness.

One Flesh.

At His Wife's Death.

How to Accept Suffering.

Great Love.

Tzedaka as a Cure.

A Fifth.

Standing Up for Herself.

No Joke Needed.

The Boldness of Rebbes.

Thank God!

Serving a Torah Scholar.

Her Share in the World to Come.

After the Fact.

How to Give Birth.

Facing God.

The Passing of a Woman Who Had the Holy Spirit.

My Time Has Come.

The Dress.

The Homely Lesson of a Patch.

Rebbetzin Malka of Belz.

More Than a Helpmate.

Sitting with the Rebbetzin.

Good Advice for Healing.

How to Eat.

How Much to Eat.

A Questionable Rebbe.

Malka Saves the Poultry.

They Are Clapping in Heaven.

Rebbe Edel of Brody.

Her Greatness.

Healing by Faith.

Doubtfully Kosher.

Rebbe Miriam Hayya of Shatz.

Preparing the Coffee.

A Miracle-Working Partne.r

How She Became a Rebbe.

Rebbe Sarah of Chantshin: A High Soul.

Sarah Shneirer.

Tzedaka in Secret I.

Tzedaka in Secret II.

Alive.

Good Pay.

The IOU.

The Quality of Voice.

A Favor.

A Devoted Heart.

Under All Conditions.

From Heart to Feet.

Why Did the Milk Boil Over?

Sensing Others' Troubles.

Pawn.

Coins That Sparkle.

A Disregard for Wealth.

A Glass of Water.

In the Merit of His Mother.

A Mother's Tears.

Be like My Mother.

Ungrammatically Correct.

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