Israel National News spoke to Rabbanit Shira Marili Mirvis at the IAC National Summit in Florida.
The role of a rabbanit is “very delicate,” Rabbanit Mirvis, of Kehillat Shirat HaTamar in Efrat, explains.
“I’m a rabbanit, I’m a woman rabbi. I have a congregation in Efrat. We’re a young congregation. We were established three years ago. We didn’t have a rabbi, it’s not like I pushed someone aside to become the rabbanit. We had no one as a community. As we grew slowly, the people in my community knew I was learning halakha, and they started asking me questions, and they started asking me to talk. I see my role as the person who is in charge or wants to make halakha and Torah relevant, accessible to everyone. It’s very important to make Torah accessible and relevant in our life.”
What does she say to those critics who say that while what she is saying now is okay, it’s too much like Reform, something outside of the regular Orthodoxy.
“The slippery slope has two sides. The one side could be very dangerous. And we should be very much aware and to stay within the lines of Orthodoxy – it’s very important to me to stay within the lines of halakha," she says. "I’m a woman that is obligated to halakha. I consider myself completely Orthodox and I don’t want to break through those boundaries. On the other hand, the slippery slope has another side. And the other side scares me as well – that Torah and halakha won’t be relevant to the next generation. And I want to try to think how we make Torah and halakha accessible, relevant to our generation and to the generations to come who live in a modern world, who live in a world with a co-ed society, women can be prime ministers and presidents, whatever they want. In the halakhic world, it’s very important that there are women who are knowledgeable and are able to take part in the halakhic discussion.”
She adds: “I understand that his is something very delicate that we are doing. And I think we should be very careful of the boundaries of what is halakhic and what we can we do. But on the other hand, we also have the responsibility to make halakha and Torah accessible and relevant to everyone.”
Rabbanit Mirvis is attending the IAC Summit to speak on a panel about Jewish identity and Israeli identity.
“The conference is dealing with the question of identity. And the identity of the Israelis who immigrated to come and live in a different country. What will happen to the next generation? And will they be smart enough to build an identity," she says.
"They need to find their own definition of Jewish identity, Israeli identity. And how will they do that?”