What do we do when we come across texts that hurt us or put forth claims that go against fundamental truths we hold about the world, Torah, justice, and even God? Learning from the practices the early rabbis used when they encountered such texts, we can make space for inclusion of all Jewish people within the bigger questions about our tradition that these dilemmas surface.

Laynie Soloman is Associate Rosh Yeshiva and Director of Transformative Leadership at SVARA, an institution whose mission is to empower queer and trans people to expand Torah and tradition through the spiritual practice of Talmud study. Laynie holds a M.A. in Jewish Education from The Jewish Theological Seminary, is a Schusterman Fellow (Cohort 5), and received the Covenant Foundation’s 2020 Pomegranate Prize for Emerging Jewish Educators.