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Anne Elman used her directing talent1984
Carleton Street, Saint John, New Brunswick
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From cradle to grave, our lives are marked by passages from one stage to another. For Jewish women in Saint John, the series of religious gateway through which all pass have evolved as a result of the change of the community from Orthodox to Conservative observance. Where once women were prevented from practicing the rituals of faith reserved for boys and men, women have over the past twenty years broadened the scope of their observance to include full Bat Mitzvahs and participation in Synagogue rituals.Even in traditional Orthodox Judaism, the life of Jewish women was still heavily steeped in faith. Women could still pray and participate in the celebration of the holidays and were obviously full participants in the wedding ceremony. Girls went to Hebrew School with the boys, but their education in their faith was supposed to lead them onto different paths. This has changed and is still changing.
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Hebrew School (Chedar) 19241924
Saint John, New Brunswick
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Hebrew education began in Saint John in 1899, with classes held in the Ahavith Achim Synagogue after public school. After Hazen Avenue Synagogue was formed in 1907, the school served both congregations. With the establishment of the Shaarei Zedek Congregation in 1919-1920, the Hebrew School had its own Talmud Torah building (the old Ahavith Achim). There was a Hebrew school taught by the Rabbi and other men and a Sunday school for children under six, taught mainly by women.5
The Ahavith Achim Synagogue included classrooms and the Mikvah (ritual bath).1940
Carleton Street, Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada
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Minnie Goldman, President of the Saint John Hadassah1940
Saint John, New Brunswick
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Some of these teachers were Minnie Goldman, Rebecca Jacobson, Jennie Brownberg, Gloria Gomberg, Lila Mogelon, Erminie Cohen, Marcia Koven and Barbara Everett Gross.8
Hebrew School students in front of Jewish Community Centre1960
Wellington Row, Saint John, New Brunswick
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The Hebrew and Sunday Schools were moved into the Jewish Community Centre in 1951. Though the number of children in now quite small, the Hebrew and Sunday Schools continue to function.10
Children of the Hebrew School prepared this mural under the guidance of their teacher in the 1990s.1992
Carleton Street, Saint John, New Brunswick
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Lighting the Sabbath Candles1990
Bloomfield, New Brunswick
12
One of the central responsibilities held by women was the lighting of the Shabbat (Sabbath) candles at twilight on Friday, which marks the beginning of Shabbat. The tradition continues to have prominence in Conservative observance.13
Preparing for Sukkot1966
Saint John, New Brunswick
14
Women and especially children have always taken part in the festivities surrounding most of the holidays in the Jewish calendar. |
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