WRJ Voices: Mikeitz

In Parashat Mikeitz we learn that Jacob elevates Joseph’s sons who were born in Egypt. Jacob sees Manasseh and Ephraim, his grandsons as his sons because they displayed a true sense of faith and character while living in a strange land. Each son was chosen to lead one of the tribes of the Israelites. With strength and commitment, they maintained their own flags and received separate portions of land when the land of Israel was divided among the Israelites.

It is the strength of character and commitment to the Jewish people that we choose to evoke when we place our hands upon the heads of our children and ask god to make our sons like Manasseh and Ephraim and make our daughters like Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah.

The blessing of our daughters to be like our Matriarchs is a modern construct. Yet there are other heroines and amazing female role models in the Torah that we seem to forget. While we bless our daughters to be like our Matriarchs we must also remember other strong women in our rich history such as Ruth, Esther and Miriam.

Since its creation over 100 years ago WRJ has worked to educate and elevate women to become great leaders. Leadership can be seen in our sisterhoods in many forms. While we strive to develop competent leaders, we must also recognize the sisterhood women who take on smaller, but equally important roles. It is our job as leaders to recognize all the women in our sisterhoods. The women who run a holiday bazar, cook for the local soup kitchen, or host a donor event are as important to the success of a sisterhood as are its leaders. The acknowledgment of these women is vital to the growth of our sisterhoods and women’s groups. These women will become the mentors for new sisterhood members. Be it a luncheon, certificate or article in a sisterhood or district newsletter, recognition of service may be the key to dropping the cliché of “this is the way we have always done things” and encouraging the development of new ideas. Not every woman has the goal to be a matriarch, but we all can be leaders in our own right.

We must continue to stress the important part sisterhood women play at home, in our synagogues, and in the Jewish community. When we offer leadership training and public speaking seminars at our conventions and conferences, we are encouraging new women to learn what makes a great leader. When we invite our experienced leaders to run our workshops we are using their knowledge to inspire others.

As the women of WRJ, it is up to us to educate and engage our sisters, daughters, granddaughters, friends and neighbors about the fundamental role they play in the success of our organization. WRJ helps us do this in many ways, including for example, by partnering with other Jewish women's groups such as JWI or Jewish Women's International, whose work to educate women and girls to develop healthy relationships, and realize their potential in safe living environments empowers all women to have a say in their destiny.

The scribes who wrote our ancient texts may not have remembered to recognize the many female leaders we have in our history. But we do, and we honor them, and our matriarchs, by continuing to promote the mission of Women of Reform Judaism. Our goal must be to empower all Jewish women to be a part of this amazing organization. We can accomplish great things when we all work together.

Ellen Wagner is a member of the WRJ Executive Committee, a past MidAtlantic District president and a past sisterhood president of Congregation Beth Emeth in Wilmington, Delaware.