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A unique collection of Yiddish tkhinot entitled Tkhine Imrei Shifre was published
in late 18th-century Galicia. While it is difficult to verify the identity of
the author with absolute certainty, it is generally assumed that this was the
creation of Shifre Bas Yosef. Interestingly enough, this publication includes an
introduction in the style of rabbinic haskamot that describes the author as an
important and educated woman; her husband, Ephraim Segal, was a rabbi serving in
the rabbinic court (either of Brody or Poznan).
The couple was supposedly
planning to depart for the Holy Land, but Shifre was encouraged to publish her
prayers beforehand. This declaration stated that there were so many rabbis and
scholars in favor of her publication that listing them all would simply take up
too much room! Chava Weissler informs us that this is the only time known to her
in which such a statement appeared advocating the publication of a woman’s
writings in Yiddish (Voices of the Matriarchs, 1998).
Shifre displays a
penchant for mysticism and an expertise in Kabbalism during a period of
religious ferment which ranged from Hassidism and anti-Hassidism to
post-Sabbateanism and Frankism. One wonders how she had access to the Zohar as
it is a difficult Aramaic text. However, as Weissler discovered, a Yiddish
version or paraphrased edition of the Zohar entitled Nahalat Zvi appeared on the
scene in 1711. While it was published with a male readership in mind, this would
not have prevented an educated or motivated woman from gaining access to it.
Shifre apparently was strongly influenced by the images and motifs she
encountered there and quite possibly by other mystical works as
well.
Imrei Shifre, dated to some time after 1770, contains four parts:
one tkhine dealing with the themes of exile, repentance and redemption; a tkhine
intended for everyday use; a special prayer for Shabbat; and a moral repudiation
(tokhaha) intended specifically for Shabbat. Shifre was convinced not only that
Shabbat observance was of utmost importance for women, but that their prayer was
essential.
Women must not be slack in their Shabbat observance, for
everything has a special significance.
She blatantly rejects one of the
traditional stances which claims that women must light candles every Friday
night as a punishment for Eve’s sin in the Garden of Eden, a sin which darkened
the world, creating something like a blackout. Shifre adapted her knowledge from
the Zohar which enabled her to enlighten the readers of her tkhine. She
explained that women are kindling a light in the lower world in conjunction with
what is occurring above. When the priest in the Temple lit seven lamps there, he
caused a similar illumination in the heavens above. Thus by lighting two
candles, one for the regular soul and a second for the extra soul one possesses
on Shabbat, a Jewish woman can also arouse the world above. Besides, this
activity has additional benefits such as encouraging one’s children to learn
Torah, bringing peace to the world and granting one’s husband
longevity.
Candle-lighting thus gained a new and profound significance
for women reading this tkhine. While her readers were unaware that the author
had relied upon kabbalistic writings in order to present this interpretation,
their lives were being understood from a new perspective in a way that granted
them spiritual depth. This innovative use of sources via a mystical
interpretation combined with the author’s personal stance metamorphosed the
woman into an active participant of a regularly enacted weekly
activity.
The fact that this collection was heartily approved by rabbis
and scholars is impressive. One wonders about their motivation: To support the
wife of their rabbi? To promote a creative writer? To expose women to
kabbalistic ideas? The answer eludes us, and while it is assumed that Shifre was
the actual author, whoever indeed composed these prayers was a creative thinker
who respected women’s minds and sought to enrich their spiritual
lives.
The author is a professor of Jewish history and dean at the
Schechter Institute as well as academic editor of the journal Nashim. She has
published books and articles on Sephardi and Oriental Jewry and on Jewish women.
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