Gender in Judaism and Islam

Jewish and
Islamic histories have long been interrelated. Both traditions emerged from
ancient cultures born in the Middle East and both are rooted in texts and
traditions that have often excluded women. At the same time, both groups have
recently seen a resurgence in religious orthodoxy among women, as well as
growing feminist movements that challenge traditional religious structures. In the
United States, Jews and Muslims operate as minority cultures, carving out a
place for religious and ethnic distinctiveness. The time is ripe for a volume
that explores the relationship between these two religions through the prism of
gender.






Gender in Judaism and Islam brings together
scholars working in the fields of Judaism and Islam to address a diverse range
of topics, including gendered readings of texts, legal issues in marriage and
divorce, ritual practices, and women's literary expressions
and historical experiences, along with feminist influences within the Muslim
and Jewish communities and issues affecting Jewish and Muslim women in
contemporary society. Carefully crafted, including section introductions by the
editors to highlight big picture insights offered by the contributors, the
volume focuses attention on the theoretical innovations that gender scholarship
has brought to the study of Muslim and Jewish experiences.
At a time
when Judaism and Islam are often discussed as though they were inherently at
odds, this book offers a much-needed reconsideration of the connections and
commonalties between these two traditions. It offers new insights into each of
these cultures and invites comparative perspectives that deepen our
understanding of both Islam and Judaism.

Firoozeh Kashani-Sabet is Robert I. Williams Term Professor of History at the University of Pennsylvania, where she currently serves as Director of the Middle East Center. Kashani-Sabet’s most recent book is Conceiving Citizens: Women and the Politics of Motherhood in Iran, which won the 2012 book award from the Journal of Middle East Women’s Studies.Wenger Beth S. :

Beth S. Wenger is Professor of History at the University of Pennsylvania, where she currently serves as Chair of the History Department. Her award-winning books include The Jewish Americans: Three Centuries of Jewish Voices in America and New York Jews and the Great Depression: Uncertain Promise.

Deborah Dash Moore,Frederick G.L. Huetwell Professor of History, University of Michigan:
Firoozeh Kashani-Sabet and Beth S. Wenger are to be congratulated for assembling a compelling collection that illuminates a wide range of issues around gender in Judaism and Islam drawn from discussions of Muslim and Jewish law to analyses of contemporary feminism to crimes of passion and 'honor killings' in the modern Arab world. Written by eminent scholars in accessible prose, these powerful pieces carry us beyond stereotypes and politics toward mutual understanding and shared knowledge.

While this collection of essays is most useful for those with some background on the topics, it will also appeal to scholars hoping to expand their knowledge on many different aspects of Judaism and Islam. The essays do a great job of bridging ideas of the past with those of the present, making this volume valuable for scholars of history and current cultural trends as well as for researchers in anthropology, sociology womens health, media studies, Middle East studies, legal studies, literary studies, and more.

This volume is a solid beginning to a serious scholarly treatment of the topics surrounding gender in Judaism and Islam, It fills an important gap in the scholarship and promises to open the field to further critical studies. It addresses similarities and differences in womens issues and experiences within Jewish and Islamic national, religious, and ethnic identities.

The book could be helpful for graduate students hoping to think theoretically about gender in religion and history. With its succinct and compelling introductions for each part as well as an afterword by Scott and a glossary, the book is also made highly useable for undergraduates or novices.