Her name is Talia Mashiach (pictured). And indeed she does have it all.
And I was glad to see that she didn’t Kvetch about how difficult it is for her to fulfill her role as a Jewish woman and have a successful career at the same time. She seemed to revel in her
success at both. More about Talia later.
This is not to say
that Ms. Mendelsohn doesn't make some valid points. She does. But whenever I read
one of these feminist based articles, it always seems like someone is Kvetching
about how hard it is for a woman to be successful in a male dominated society
in general and in Judaism in particular.
Ms. Mendelsohn mentioned the things she has to do in order to be more fulfilled as a Jew while raising
children. Like taking turns with her husband going to Shul for Kol
Nidre in alternate years. She talks about breaking barriers of stereotypical male
female roles in the workplace and in Judaism.
To that end she advocates flextime for parents in the workplace to
enable better parenting for both.
And then - as is
common among some feminist types - she implies that Rishonim like the Avudraham
and later the Shulchan Aruch that reflect his views were influenced by the misogyny
of their time. Albeit praising them for
recognizing that indeed no one can really have it all - which is why in Judaism
women are exempt from most of the time bound positive Mitzvos.
However, in the current spirit of egalitarianism she says that women should be given greater roles in
the synagogue while men should be encouraged to become more domestic. Kind of a
role reversal.
Right. That is what
Judaism is all about. Role reversal. I have heard this argument ad nauseum. Is this what is now demanded?! In order to achieve
some sort of parity with men, women need to go to Shul while men
stay home with their children?! I guess
so if one follows the example of the Mendelsohn household. This seems to be the current trend in Orthodox feminism. Push the envelope so far that men
take on the traditional roles of women so that women can take on the
traditional roles of men… All within the parameters of Halacha of course.
I am not even going
to attempt to argue the point here. Been there and done that. I just want to
contrast that with a woman who probably has more of what Ms. Mendelsohn seeks than
she ever will and does so without the need to change Orthodox Judaism as we
know it.
Talia Mashiach is
one of the most successful career women in the Orthodox world. I know her and her husband. They are day
school and yeshiva educated Orthodox Jews who send their children
to Arie Crown Hebrew Day School. She not only has a successful career in
business, she has a successful career as a mother. An Orthodox mother that does
not ignore her children or her Judaism.
At age 35, Talia Mashaich
is a self made millionaire. She has created many successful businesses and is
about to corner the market on corporate event planning by digitalizing every
aspect of it online. Her business acumen has attracted some big name venture
capitalists and they have not been disappointed with the returns on their
investments. She loves what she does and is highly respected in the corporate
world. She does what’s necessary to succeed without sacrificing one iota of her
Judaism. She has made sure of that.
As her husband Shmuel said in the Tribune article, she is as good a mom and wife as she is in business.
Talia organizes her
schedule so that she can be home by the time her children come home for school.
Fridays she generally works out of her house. Evenings are spent with her
family. She hires household help to take care of cleaning and cooking allowing
her to maximize her time with her family.
Weekends are hallowed
time for the Mashiachs and on Shabbos they often host friends and family for
Friday night and Shabbos morning meals. And of course she is unplugged from all
technology. That – she says – rejuvenates her for the new work week.
She does it all without
Kvetching about how Judaism has somehow failed women spiritually.
Before anyone
accuses me of being insensitive to those women who feel they need “more” in
order to express their spirituality than mainstream Orthodoxy gives them,
please don’t bother. I get it. Some people (men as well as women) feel they need more to express their
service to God than Judaism requires of them. My point here is that this is
certainly not the case for all. Jewish women need not seek Shul participation
in order to be fulfilled as a Jew or as
a woman. Ask Talia.
That said Talia freely
admits that what she does is not for everyone - certainly not everyone has her
skill set. But she is living proof that an Orthodox Jewish woman can indeed have
it all. Without the need to eat, live, and breathe the feminist clarion call
of egalitarianism. There was not a hint of that in this very beautiful article
in the Chicago Tribune.
At age 35 she has
succeeded in business in ways that would make many even successful men envious.
If things keep going her way, she could be the next Mark Zuckerberg. All while
maintaining her role as the quintessential Jewish woman without sacrificing one
iota of her Judaism. My hat is off to her.
*(Unfortunately one
must be a subscriber to the digital version of Chicago Tribune to see the article
online. But it is a front page story in the business section – print edition.)
