Transcestors: Gender in the Jewish Tradition

Even though we’ve been told that they don’t, trans and genderqueer people have always existed in Judaism – in the origin stories of its sacred texts, in the extensive Rabbinic tradition of text commentary, in its poetry, and in its people. Come learn about the bigenderedness of the first human in the Torah, created in the image of a multigendered God; the six genders discussed in the Talmud; some 18th century Ladino poetry about our trans biblical ancestors; and prayer and blessings that sanctify liminality and the undefinable.

This event is an offering from a Montreal trans Jew on their learning journey to other trans and queer Jews, but is open to all – anyone interested is encouraged to join!

There will be time for (optional) breakout groups with guided questions to share thoughts and feelings in smaller groups*, and there will also be time for a Q&A at the end with daph.

Live closed captions will be provided throughout the event and in breakout rooms.

Jewish calendar date of event: ערב י»ד בשבט תשפ»א / Eve of 14th of Shvat, 5781

Registration is necessary to receive the Zoom link!  Register for tickets here

*There will be an option for a closed queer/trans breakout group. You’ll receive instructions for how to access it during the event (Zoom magic!).

daph ben david is a gender/queer educator, activist and stage manager born and raised on the unceded Kanien’kehá:ka and Anishnaabe territory of so-called Montreal, Quebec. They are a child of first- and second-generation immigrants, from Israel-Palestine and Romania, and grew up in the liminal space between modern Orthodoxy and secular Canadian-Israeli culture. They have spent the past year wrestling with prayer and Jewish community building while being a trans diasporic Jew, and are an aspiring rabbinical student.

The Museum of Jewish Montreal would like to thank the Community Investment Fund and the Morris and Rosalind Goodman Family Foundation for their generous support of this program