Deracheha’s name was inspired by a pasuk in Mishlei: “Deracheha darchei no’am, ve-chol netivoteha shalom.” “Her ways are pleasant ways and all her paths are peace.”
In this pasuk, the Torah’s ways are “her ways.” Deracheha.org is the meeting point of the Torah’s ways and a woman’s.
Purpose
Jewish women, and our communities as a whole, need greater understanding of halachot pertaining to women.
Understanding Halacha has a positive impact on halachic commitment and practice, and raises the level of our communal discussion.
Halacha is a guide for living, rich in nuance and alive to its adherents. It is responsive to religious intuitions and spiritual aspirations. It is much more than a black or white bottom line.
Deracheha presents Halacha accurately and respectfully, in a woman’s voice.
We explore a range of halachic voices as clearly and thoroughly as possible, leaving room for each reader to find a place within it.
We don’t advocate, we educate. We are passionate about informing you about Halacha, without telling you what to think.
Read more about why we think its important for women to engage directly with halachic texts in our Introduction.
Goals
To grant women access to halachic discourse.
To build a community of learners.
To raise the caliber of halachic discussion and mitzva observance.
This Site
Our content grows regularly, with topics organized in four sections:
For each topic, the IN BRIEF tab provides a summary.
The IN DEPTH tab presents guided source study and textual analysis to help readers understand the issues on a deeper level. By clicking on highlighted questions, readers access discussion of different perspectives on the issues, to help relate the sources under discussion to real life practice.
The SOURCES tab provides a source sheet to further facilitate learning.
Q&A contains common questions and answers.
The PODCAST tab provides an audio shiur and related episodes from our Kol Deracheha Podcast.
Our Ask and Q&A pages provide opportunities for visitors to the site to add to this discussion and learn from each other. Stay tuned for more interactive features to come…
Unless otherwise noted, site content has been drafted by Site Director and Head Writer Laurie Novick, and reviewed by at least one member of our editorial team and by Halacha Editor-In-Chief Rav Ezra Bick.
To learn even more about the thinking behind Deracheha, check out this video podcast with Aish Uk!
Deracheha Team
Left to Right: Shayna, Laurie, Rachel, and Ilana
Laurie Novick, SITE DIRECTOR and HEAD WRITER
Laurie Novick, Director and Head Writer of Deracheha, has taught at Nishmat and worked as a Yoetzet Halacha since Fall 5763. Laurie is a member of a pilot cohort of Yoatzot Halacha who have received advanced training in fertility issues and Halacha. She has degrees in Bible, Jewish Education, and Talmud and has also done graduate work in Counseling.
Ilana Elzufon is a graduate of Yale University and was among the first Yoatzot Halacha. She spent several years in Toronto, where she was a popular teacher and lecturer. She has taught at Nishmat and other midrashot and is the editor of Nishmat’s English Yoatzot Halacha websites. Ilana and her family live in Jerusalem.
Shayna Goldberg teaches Tanach and Halacha in Migdal Oz to both Israeli and American students. Before making aliya in 2011, she worked as a Yoetzet Halacha for a number of synagogues in New Jersey and taught Halacha in Ma’ayanot Yeshiva High School for Girls. She lives in Alon Shevut with her husband, Judah, and their five children.
Rachel Weber Leshaw is the Director of Digital Content at Deracheha and a Gemara Ram at Midreshet Lindenbaum. She is a graduate of Nishmat’s Keren Ariel yoetzet halacha training program, as well as Yeshiva University’s Graduate Program in Advanced Talmudic Studies. She has taught Torah throughout the US and Israel, and online through WebYeshiva. She lives in Efrat with her husband and three children.
Debbie Zimmerman graduated from the first cohort of Hilkhata – Matan’s Advanced Halakhic Institute and writes for Matan’s Shayla. She is a multi-disciplinary Jewish educator, with over a decade of experience in adolescent and adult education. After completing a BA in Social Work, Debbie studied Tanach in the Master’s Program for Bible in Matan and Talmud in Beit Morasha.
Rav Da'vid Sperling, EDITOR
Rabbi Da’vid Sperling, Rosh Beit Midrash of Nishmat, was born in Sydney Australia. He studied at Yeshivat Machon Meir for several years, and then studied for over a decade at Yeshivat Ateret Kohanim under the tutelage of Rabbi Shlomo Aviner. Rabbi Sperling received advanced rabbinic ordination from the Chief Rabbinate of Israel, as well as from Rabbi Yehuda Henkin. Rabbi Sperling has taught at Nishmat for many years, as well as at Yeshivat Machon Meir. He has published a wide range of halachic articles in journals and on the internet. Rabbi Sperling lives in Jerusalem with his wife and children.
EDITORS-AT-LARGE: Dena Freundlich, Myrna Stawski Mann, Sarah Rudolph
Sarah Rudolph is a freelance Jewish educator, writer, and editor. She has been sharing her passion for Jewish texts of all kinds for over 15 years, with students of all ages. Sarah’s essays have been published in a variety of internet and print media, including Times of Israel, Kveller, Jewish Action, OU Life, The Lehrhaus, TorahMusings, and more. Sarah lives in Cleveland with her husband and four children, but is privileged to learn online with students all over the world through www.TorahTutors.org and www.WebYeshiva.org.
FELLOW:Atara Kelman TORAH RESEARCH INTERN:Sara Krishtul SOCIAL MEDIA INTERN:Hannah Kaplun
DEVELOPER AND SITE MANAGER: Susan Suna
Susan Suna of David’s Consultants (R.G.A) has over 20 years of experience in web design and development for small to large organizations. Susan created this site in WordPress, including custom coding and xml. She starts her day with Daf Yomi, studies in the Advanced Halacha Program at Migdal Oz, and truly believes in the importance of Deracheha.
