A surprising new halachic ruling issued by Orthodox
rabbinical organization Beit Hillel allows women, for the first time, to say
the Kaddish prayer in memory of their deceased parents.
After probing the issue in the past few months, the
organization's rabbis, both men and women, found halachic sources allowing them
to permit an act which has been considered a taboo for hundreds of years.
"The goal of the Kaddish is to benefit the soul of the
deceased, and that is also a mental coping method," explains Rabbi Ronen
Neuwirth, Beit Hillel's director-general. "Many women, both religious and
secular, are interested in saying Kaddish today, and there is no reason why
they shouldn’t be able to do it.
"In the United States it's common – but in many
synagogues in Israel, if a woman wants to say Kaddish she will be silenced. We
want to make it a standard in every community interested in it, especially in
cases where women have no brothers. I have no doubt that we'll be criticized,
but it's all based on the Halacha (collective body of Jewish religious
laws)."
The halachic ruling is issued on behalf of the
organization's 170 male and female rabbis, stating that a woman may say the
Kaddish prayer in any forum of 10 men over the age of 13 (a quorum).
"The orphan may say Kaddish even if she is not the only
person saying it," the ruling states," but it would be appropriate if
one of the men joined the Kaddish reading even if he is not obligated to do
so."
Moreover, according to the ruling, "There is room for
saying Kaddish by a woman even during a funeral or memorial service."
The rabbis reject claims that they are violating the
prohibition stating that "the voice of a singing woman equals
lewdness" (as it may distract one from prayer).
'Avoid conflicts over issue'
Addressing the possibility of a dispute erupting in the
synagogue as a result of a woman saying Kaddish, the rabbis rule that
"there is no reason to protest against it. On the contrary, such a protest
contains defamation of God and slander." Nonetheless, the ruling's authors
recommend avoiding conflicts over the issue.
The question of women saying Kaddish was first discussed in
the 17th century. A book called "Havot Yair" told of a man who asked
that upon his death 10 men would study in his home every day, and that
following the study his daughter would recite the Kaddish prayer. The book's
author, Rabbi Yair Bachrach, stated that a daughter's Kaddish would benefit the
dead person's soul, but ruled against it as it "contradicts Jewish
customs."
In the past 300 years this complex issue has been reviewed
several times, yet there are hardly any Orthodox communities today in which
women are permitted to say Kaddish.
Beit Hillel's halachic ruling will be distributed in 60,000
copies in synagogues this Saturday. Earlier, on Thursday, the rabbinical
organization plans to establish a public council which will include more than
100 public leaders who will work together to facilitate religious-secular
relations.
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