Page 17 - HaMizrachi Purim 5783 USA

Rabbanit Shani Taragin giving a shiur at the opening of the new Matan Snif in Ramot Bet, Jerusalem. (PHOTO: COURTESY)

It was a halacha shiur; long, complex and Women in their early twenties sit next to for the return of the Beit HaMikdash and
utterly fascinating. My house was filled and study with women in their nineties. the revelation of the Shechinah. May we
to the brim with women who had come Women who have engaged in high-level merit to see it with our own eyes!
out to learn from Rabbanit Shani, and learning over a lifetime study together
the house was silent as everyone pres- with women who have come to it later in
ent absorbed her words. The room was life and dedicated their golden years to
transfixed. Torah study. It is not only the Torah that
is enthralling, but the engagement of the
In the middle of the shiur, I received a
text from my daughter, who was sitting class. The questions, answers, and ideas
flowing throughout the room, weaving a
across the room. “Ima, I understand now.”
Afterwards, she remarked to me that she web of community between us all. It is a Shira Lankin Sheps,
community born from the well of Torah.
had felt it, that spark. I turned to look at MSW, is a writer, photographer, and
her; I watched her follow the complicated We are in the final stages before the ulti- clinically trained therapist. She is the
halachic process and the ins and outs of mate redemption, a redemption which creator and publisher of The Layers
the biblical narrative that was offered the Torah tells us will come in the merit Project Magazine, an online magazine
alongside it. I saw her absorb the mean- of righteous women. I believe I have met that explores in-depth insights into the
ing that enriched our understanding of a these righteous women, the teachers, challenges and triumphs of the lives
halacha that was previously taught to us students, and community pillars who of Jewish women. She is the author of
by rote. When it was over, I embraced her will lead us to that hallowed moment in “Layers: Personal Narratives of Struggle,
Resilience, and Growth From Jewish
and whispered, “This is how I learned to time. They are the continuation of a long Women” published by Toby Press in 2021.
fall in love with Torah, too.” line of role models who have opened the She facilitates The Layers Writing Work-
doors for women’s Torah study and have
When the doors are opened for women brought Tanach, halacha, and Gemara shops, and has written with hundreds
to engage the Torah with both our minds alive for Jewish women. of women over the years, helping them
and souls, we come running. When I explore their personal narratives, discover
sit in the auditorium in a Matan class, I feel blessed to be a part of this movement, meaning in their struggles, and share
I am surrounded by women of all ages. as we raise each other up in preparation their stories in a safe and healthy way.

Left: Shira Lankin Sheps and Gloria Kramer studying in the beit midrash at Matan. (PHOTO: COURTESY)
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