The View from the Kitchen: Women’s ‘Official’ Life in the Family

This chapter covers official domestic practices. Orthodox Judaism is firmly rooted in the world of everyday action: several central commandments and their halakhic elaboration include activities such as the preparation and consumption of food, the observance of the weekly sabbath and numerous festivals, dress, education, and the recital of blessings before and after eating and in other daily contexts. The home is explicitly designated as a sacred sphere, to a greater extent than in Christian and general British culture. The conception, nurturing, and education of children are often seen as central to the Jewish woman's role, even though no formal commandments are entailed. Most Orthodox women see their domestic role in very different, more nuanced, and complex terms, viewing it as central to their identity and to Jewish continuity, but not as the only sphere in which they should be active religiously. Many of them, particularly the Modern Orthodox, have indeed internalized feminist arguments and seek to extend their religious lives outside the boundaries of the home, and to take a more active religious role within it, but they all share the conviction that the creation of a Jewish home and the raising of children to be good human beings and faithful Jews is a task of vital importance.