Scholars and rabbis affiliated with Svara, the 20-year-old queer yeshiva based in Chicago, are working on the first collection of Jewish legal opinions written by and for trans Jews.
Queer yeshiva to publish first-ever collection of Jewish legal opinions written by and for trans Jews jta.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from jta.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Abigail Fisher
May 16, 2021
In honor of Shavuot, a holiday celebrating receiving the Torah, I spoke with Rabbi Becky Silverstein and Laynie Soloman about the ways they are helping queer and trans Jews receive and create Torah in new ways.
The Trans Halakha project, which is housed at Svara: a Traditionally Radical Yeshiva, aims to provide trans Jews with a framework within which to develop meaningful Jewish practice that affirms their identities as trans folks. Silverstein and Soloman share the ways that Jewish learning that includes queer and trans Jews not only enriches the lives of those individuals, but ripples outward to strengthen surrounding communities. The word Halakha itself comes from the hebrew root