Vincent pointed to the rabbinic story of Rachel and Leah, Jacob’s sister-wives who were pregnant at the same time, as a key nonbinary narrative in Jewish tradition. “It has been revelatory to find all these traces of gender-bending figures in our tradition that make me feel affirmed and connected to my ancestors,” they said. The result has been a discerning and luminous genderqueer theology that considers midrash, metaphor and language. Vincent looked intensively at Jewish tradition to advocate for their nonbinary identity. “I realized what felt true was that sometimes I felt really at home in a female body, and sometimes I felt really at home in a male self that had been waiting for me to inhabit it since early childhood,” they said. There’s a lot of resonance with ancient Jewish rituals in that, and Shuva aims to offer a Jewish lens.”įive years ago, Vincent felt a pressing need to address another “giant unnamed thing taking up space in my life.” Their quest began when their spouse asked them a simple question: What if part of you is male? The answer brought on an epiphanic moment for Vincent. Everyone must work together to resolve things. “This includes gathering all the stakeholders, from the perpetrator to the victim to the community.
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“The idea of not just punishing a person but making things right when wrong moves me,” they said. The root of shuva, which means “repentance” in Hebrew, also connotes “to return.” They also found that the notion of restorative justice further inspired their Shuva model. Vincent further elaborated that they wanted to offer Jewish perspectives and rituals that “speak to the way trauma can be held in community and can be an invitation for spiritual transformation.” To that end, Vincent founded Shuva, an organization that focuses on apologies. It’s important to my life and in my relationship to God.” “I wanted to sanctify what I had been through for me and for others. “It wasn’t enough for me to heal,” they said. Reuniting with their Judaism has also been an opportunity “to examine a life that has been heavily shaped by trauma.” Addressing and healing from their trauma has been influenced by the Jewish concept of mikadesh-to sanctify. Vincent recently completed their first year in the ALEPH Rabbinic Program of the Renewal Movement. Consequently, I felt a calling to go to rabbinical school-to step into the role of spiritual guidance and leadership.” “Judaism has always included a multiplicity of portals into that tradition.
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“Re-engaging with my Judaism, I realized I had something to offer that tradition and it had something to offer me,” they said.
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In taking a long view of their Judaism, Vincent said it astonishes them how narrow and particular their Judaism had been. Vincent pointed out that many of their peers “were passionate about their perspectives on Judaism and identity.” OTD stands for “off the derech”- derech is the Hebrew word for “path,” and people in the group banded together after leaving ultra-Orthodox Judaism. Twelve years ago, Vincent’s life changed again when they joined the emerging OTD community. Along the way, some of the stops included spending time in Buddhist circles and, for a time, joining the Sufis, a mystical Islamic community.
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Soon after, Vincent embarked on a spiritual journey. Increasingly uncomfortable in their new body, they had no framework to understand why they felt at war with their body. I was always a devout child, and I had this enormous spiritual life that had no community to hold it.” Vincent said that going through puberty in their Haredi community, they encountered unsettling biological and social expectations associated with their gender role assigned at birth. As recounted in their memoir, they told JewishBoston they “had been pushed out of my family. Vincent’s personal and internal walls came tumbling down when they left ultra-Orthodoxy as a teenager.