Introduction ; Supporting Characters, Opposing Voices: ; Reading for Devoted Resistance ; Chapter One ; "But I Grieve for My Mother": ; The Betrayal of Iphigenia and Isaac ; Chapter Two ; "It is Not In Heaven!" and Other Hurtful Words: ; Circling the Snake Oven ; Chapter Three ; "Beruriah Said Well": ; The Many Lives (and Deaths) of a Talmudic Social Critic ; Chapter Four ; Are You Not a Man of God? ; Hannah, Hysteria, and the Roots of Jewish Prayer ; Conclusion ; Canonical "Back-Talk": ; Supporting Characters as Social Critics ; Bibliography ; Index ; Notes

their imaginative and critical approaches to a traditional and much-read text, are a welcome step in encouraging Jews of all stripes to engage with texts that hold values we wish to live by, and to find those values there.

"Their imaginative and critical approaches to a traditional and much-read text, are a welcome step in encouraging Jews of all stripes to engage with texts that hold values we wish to live by, and to find those values there." --Tablet "Are You Not a Man of God? breaks new ground in our understanding of culture and social criticism. By showing how resistance to religious authority arises within a tradition, in part out of devotion to the tradition, Hartman and Buckholtz encourage us to listen to the 'supporting characters' in iconic stories and hear the voices of resistance that arise within their personal relationships to powerful authority figures. Love and relationships, rather than impediments to moral courage and clarity, are sources of deep cultural insight and moral strength. This book is also invaluable in demonstrating how to read and listen within a patriarchal tradition to the voices of mothers, wives, daughters, and sons." --Carol Gilligan, author of In a Different Voice and The Birth of Pleasure "This is a work of psychological insight and cultural challenge. It is also a book of political justice and moral power. Through their original approaches to classical Jewish texts and the oft-marginalized voices of ancillary protagonists within them, Hartman and Buckholtz display the ways that these texts can guide our relationships and our institutions in an age where hierarchical structures too often lead to abuses of power. It is a rare achievement!" --Rabbi David Ellenson, Chancellor, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion "A work of erudition, insight and compassion, Are You Not a Man of God? glows with the Rabbinic passion for justice." --Rabbi David Wolpe, Sinai Temple in Los Angeles, author of Why Faith Matters

Tova Hartman is a professor of education, psychology, and gender at Ono Academic College. She is among the founders of Shirah Hadasha, an Orthodox feminist synagogue in Jerusalem, and more recently, Shma Koleinu, an institute for prayer Charlie Buckholtz is a rabbi and coauthor of several books. His writing has been featured in The Washington Post, The Daily Beast, and Tablet, and he blogs at http://badrabbi.tumblr.com/.