Can the demand for change in the status of women be halakhically legitimated

(21.)This piece of advice also serves as a crucial antidote to the previous passage, which makes peace with some "breaks with the law" committed by non-observers, by making a distinction between how the law-abiding Jew is to relate to those breaches that have already been established by illegitimate means, as opposed to how he is to relate to potential reforms that he might initiate personally.

(22.)From the context of the above-quoted passage, it would appear that the issue that concerned Harav Kook here was the relationship of the observant Jew to secularism in general and to the Zionist movement in particular.

(23.)Mishneh Torah, Shoftim, Hilkhot Mamrim, chapter 2, halakhah 2.

(24.)See J. Katz's Sabbath Goy (Jerusalem: The Zalman Shazar Center, 1983) for an exemplary illustration of this theme.

(25.)The anthropologist might well interpret the rabbinic paradigms of role specialization between men and women as an effective way of ensuring preservation of the species, by sociologically re-enforcing the biological tendencies of the male -- aggressiveness and pursuit of the female -- through man's work, study and ritual roles, while assigning to women the child-rearing role. According to this view, any confusion or ambiguity in roles, and any role reversal, would risk inducing "feminization" and passivity in the male, with adverse impacts on this process and objective. The establishment of basic gender distinctions in Jewish law does not require rigid imposition on all fronts; a woman is allowed to observe positive time-bound commandments if she so wishes. But a rock-bottom paradigm is nevertheless set by not obligating her to do so. Such psychological or anthropological findings only serve to enhance possibilities for a sympathetic interpretation of the traditional point of view.

(26.)An example of such optimistic faith in the ability of halakhah, via the help of Divine Providence, to relate to the vicissitudes of history and the ever-changing demands of human civilization, is provided in the second passage of Harav Kook quoted above.

(27.)See the exchange between Michael Broyde and Judith Hauptman in this issue.

(28.)Reservations are being expressed, however, regarding the insistence of Jewish women upon mimicking male forms of spirituality, which reflect the debate in the feminist movement at large as to whether "equal" means "same" -- see Joel Wolowelsky's paper in this issue.

(29.)This suggestion now has, in principle at least, the chance of becoming common practice in veiw of the recent decision adopted by the Rabbinical Council of America to require the use of prenuptial agreements in all marriage ceremonies.

(30.)See M. Sotah 3:2.

(31.)This is according to oral testimony. See also his Likkutei Halakhot on Sotah, 20a.

(32.)See the RaN on Shavuot, beginning of third perek.

(33.)See Shut Mishpetei Uziel, siman 6, page 34.

(34.)As related by Blu Greenberg in "The Feminist Revolution in Orthodox Judaism," Lillith (Summer 1992): 11-17.

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