Rabbi Jule Schonfeld delivers her "Pearl of Wisdom" at Jewish Women International's Women to Watch

Each year, Jewish Women International honors ten Women to Watch, exceptional Jewish women leaders from across the United States. Each fall issue of JWIs Jewish Woman magazine profiles the years Women to Watch, whose achievements are inspiring change in range of disciplines including culture, community, business, politics, family, science and spirituality. Since 1998, the roster of honorees has grown into a diverse group of talented, dynamic visionaries. In addition to appearing in the fall issue of Jewish Woman, the women are honored at the annual Women to Watch celebration in Washington, DC a gala luncheon, awards ceremony and vibrant honorees discussion panel.

Julie Schonfeld, New York, NY, is a rabbi; executive vice president of the Rabbinical Assembly, the international membership association of Conservative/Masorti rabbis; the first woman to professionally lead a rabbinic organization.

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Nonprofits & Activism

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• Women to Watch
• Jewish Women International
• JWI
• Pearl of Wisdom
• Rabbinical Assembly

[RabbiAssembly]

@therealchella Thanks for your questions. As Jews we work all week to help bring about a world where all humans can experience Shabbat. But you’re right, in Judaism, there is an idea that where there is a life threatening circumstance, one should not sit in repose but they should be saved. This is why you’ll find rescue workers, police officers and fire fighters, and doctors (to name a few examples) who don’t spend their Shabbat in repose, but who work to ensure public safety.

[therealchella]

I also see a potential logical conundrum; on Sabbath you are supposed to be "in repose", lighting candle, drinking wine ... so if you are in repose, how is it that you can assure that other people enjoy a day of safety and repose? How can you be in total relaxation when there is somebody to be saved somewhere? I think that it's not logically possible to actually do what you are saying here. If somebody would answer my questions .. I do want to understand our first religion of Abraham.

[therealchella]

re: Sabbath "whole human community deserves it merely because they are a person" is this true? (serious question, somebody please help) OR is it, "deserves it merely because they are a Jewish person". Which one is it, please?