Hadar Cohen — Judaism Unbound Episode 426: Sephardi and Mizrahi Identities - Beyond Ashkenormativity
Hadar Cohen is an Arab Jewish scholar, mystic and artist. She teaches spirituality and Jewish mysticism at Malchut, a mystical school teaching direct experience of God, creates art focused on shifting societal narratives, such as Prostrations and The Selichot Project, and writes about Judaism through the lens of intersectional feminism, as seen in her Feminism All Night project. She joins Lex Rofeberg for a conversation conversation about her upcoming UnYeshiva class, which delves into the cultures, traditions, and stories that make Sephardi and Mizrahi communities unique.
Hadar Cohen is teaching a course in the UnYeshiva this semester, diving into everything from customs and languages to rituals that set Sephardic and Mizrahi experiences apart from the more well-known Ashkenazi Jewish traditions. Learn more about and register for her class, Sephardic and Mizrahi Identities: Beyond Ashkenormativity!
[1] Stay up-to-date on Hadar Cohen’s work via her podcast, Hadar’s Web, her Substack blog, and her Instagram, @HadarCohen32.
[2] Cohen shares about her trip to Andalusia, Spain, which inspired her Sephardic Mystical Retreat in 2023. Learn more about the impact of her journey in her Hey Alma article, "A Mystical Pilgrimage to Andalusia Helped Me Connect with My Sephardic Jewish Identity".
[3] Cohen mentions that Sephardi Jews have prayerbooks distinct from those of Ashkenazi Jews.
[4] Cohen references this article by Egyptian Jewish feminist Vicki Shiran.
[5] Lex cites Palestinian American scholar Edward Said as the progenitor of the term “Orientalism,” as made famous by his 1979 book, Orientalism, which critiques Western historical, political, and cultural perceptions of the East. For more on Said’s Orientalism within the context of American Judaism, check out his previously unpublished letter to American Jewish intellectuals, and Peter Beinart’s article, "Answering Said’s Call," both published by Jewish Currents.
[6] Cohen states that Rambam (Moses ben Maimon or Maimonides, the 12th-century Egyptian rabbi who is one of the influential Torah scholars of all time) had a son who was a Sufi-Jewish mystic. See these scholarly articles, "The Philosopher and the Mystic?" and "Abraham Maimonides: A Jewish Sufi."
[7] Lex shouts out our past episode with Shawn Lichaa, Episode 264: Karaites: Bible Only, Please because it dismantled some of his assumptions about rabbinic Judaism as normative.
[8] Cohen brings up her art show, "Prostrations", which explores Sephardi and Mizrahi devotional practices. Check out this video of the show, and deep-dive into Cohen’ research via this guidebook.
