Blog
Bais Yaakov, Orthodoxy, and Punk Rock
During the March 20-21, 2023, [or 27-28, Adar 5783] conference “Bais Yaakov in Historical and Transnational Perspective,” I was suddenly immersed in the world of Bais Yaakov scholarship. Submerged in the intricate semiotics of this
Remembering Sarah Schenirer in the Gazeta Żydowska
The brief article in the Gazeta Żydowska marking the seventh anniversary of Sarah Schenirer’s death, on Adar 14 (which fell on March 3 that year) is not unusual in itself. The writer, Chaim Storch, praised
Heroines of the Bais Yaakov Journal
The story of the 93 Bais Yaakov girls from the Krakow Teachers’ Seminary who committed suicide rather than be taken as prostitutes by German soldiers is well known in Orthodox circles. But before it was
Ka-Tsetnik as a Yeshiva Boy: Yechiel Feiner’s early writing in the Bais Yaakov Journal
Among the many writers of the Bais Yaakov Journal, one name caught my eye – Yechiel Feiner. Feiner was famous—even infamous—as a writer, but under another name at a different time. But that was only
The Earliest Bais Yaakovs in North America
Among the strange aspects of researching Bais Yaakov is that it is much easier to understand its early history than figure out what it is today. Bais Yaakov lacks a central office or archive, and
Sara Imejnu, the Graphic Novel
Just in time for her eighty-seventh yahrzeit, Sarah Schenirer is recognized for what she was–a SUPERHERO! Krakow now has its very own Jewish, female comic book hero. Though her superpowers differ from Superman’s or Wonder
Bais Yaakov, My Mother, and Me
A few days ago I visited my mother for the first time since the pandemic began. On previous visits, we’d pull out the Scrabble board and play a game or three. But since I began
Suicide or Accident:
A Tragic Mystery at the Krakow Seminary
Among the new offerings in the relaunched Bais Yaakov Project website is a section devoted to Polish press coverage of Bais Yaakov in the interwar period. But what can we discover about the movement from
התחייה הפמיניסטית של ט”ו באב
האם מייסדת תנועה לחינוך חרדי של בנות היא האחראית לתחייתו של חג האהבה העתיק ביערות פולין
Remembering the 93
The story of the 93 Bais Yaakov girls from the Krakow Teachers’ Seminary, who killed themselves rather than be taken as prostitutes, appeared in the New York Times on January 8, 1943, about six months
The Many Faces of Sarah Schenirer
She loomed large, a touchstone on the way into the corridors of Bais Yaakov Academy. Her face radiated a time-worn charm, and the simplicity of her dress, nary a stitch reflective of modern sensibilities, was
Did Bais Yaakov and Sarah Schenirer Revive Tu Be’Av?
קרא בעברית למטה Do a quick Google search on Tu Be’Av, and two sorts of material will appear. The first describes a festival dating back to late antiquity, in which, according to Mishnah Ta’anit 4:
Ways of Looking at a Class Photo:
The Photo as Mystery
It might seem that the classroom photo is as simple, transparent, and conventional as a photograph can be. Its arrangement, with the students ideally all visible and facing forward, the teachers arrayed at the side,
A Bais Yaakov Haggadah: When Girls Write Like the Talmud
We take a break from Naomi’s series interpreting class pictures, in part due to the disruption that COVID-19 has caused to our daily and weekly schedules. Instead, in a timely post, we are highlighting a
Ways of Looking at a Class Photo: Nature, Props, Grins
In last week’s blog post, I wrote about the conventions of the class photo, with their straight rows and unwritten rule that each face must be visible, as expressing the double values of unity and
Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Class Photo
Among the sixty-two photos of Bais Yaakov assembled on this site, over half of these are class photos. When we were deciding on photos for my book on Bais Yaakov, the publisher at Littman Library,
The Secular Jewish Press on Orthodox Women’s Conferences
The last few blog posts documented the founding conference of Neshei Agudath Israel, the women’s organizing of the Agudah. 1929 saw other women’s conferences, including the Lodz conference for the Bnos Agudath Israel, the youth
On the Occasion of our World-Congress [1929]
Over the past few weeks, we’ve blogged about the founding of the Neshei Agudath Israel. We’ve translated coverage of the event from the Bais Yaakov Journal and from Der Israelit. This week, we present Sarah Schenirer’s own words,
Der Israelit: From the Women’s Conference (Neshei Coverage Part 2)
Last week’s blog post translated Yiddish coverage of the founding of Neshei Agudath Israel in the Bais Yaakov Journal. This week, we present translation of German coverage from Der Israelit, a long-running newspaper founded by Rabbi
The Founding of the World Organization of Orthodox Women
At the Second World Congress of Agudath Israel in 1929, Bais Yaakov was represented by various activists, and the Neshei Agudath Israel, a women’s branch of the organization, was founded. The Bais Yaakov Journal covered the