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The study of the matriarchs in these conferences is design- ed to fill the void of biblical il- literacy, Zeff said. "Biblical scriptural study is a new thing for many Christians, especially Catholics who only began to really study the text after the Second Vatican Council," She recently guest- taught a religion class and said the students found it "amazing" that one can look at the text and pick apart and question the story. The strongest feminine models are in the Torah, she added. Rachel's story will be told to the conference participants by Marjorie Saulson, who will chant several prayers from that Torah portion and then translate into English. She will also chant a reference to Rachel from Jeremiah, and sing a song written after the Six-Day War when Rachel's Tomb in Bethlehem was liberated. The chorus of that song contains a direct reference to Jeremiah. "I plan to explain cantilla- tion and give some background on the chant," Saulson said. "I'll cover what constitutes Hebrew scripture and the characteristics of scripture — the gift the scrip- tures give us of the concept of God as loving and just, the concept of honest weights and measures, of love thy neighbor as thyself, the 23rd Psalm, and how much certain passages mean to us, even those who are not particular- ly religious. "Many Christians do not realize that these concepts they think of strictly in Chris- tian terms actually came from the Hebrew Bible." Another point Saulson plans to stress is the impor- tance of taking care of which translation one is using if one is not reading the text in the original Hebrew, because dif- ferent interpretations color the translations. She said that just as Christians use the text as proof of Jesus' coming, she has been told by a Muslim of a text he felt pro- ved Mohammed's coming. Tikva Frymer-Kensky, formerly of Ann Arbor, will present the session, "Rachel Imenu: The Myth of Mother Rachel." She is presently director and professor of biblical studies of the Reconstructionist Biblical College, and was a keynote speaker at last year's conference. Former Detroiter Esti Pastor will lead one of the 15 concurrent sessions, entitled: "Rachel, Psychological Aspects on Feminism and Family." Metal sculptor Suzanne Benton has created a special Rachel mask for her dance performance. Native American healer Celia Perez Booth and Thea Bowman, who was featured on "60 Minutes" several years ago, will also give presentations. Social justice issues will be explored by Geneva Smither- man and Rev. Sandra Ed- wards will discuss women in the pulpit. Many films will be highlighted, including a new film, The Fruit of Her Hands, a re-enactment of the lives of famous Jewish women over the ages; a repeat of last year's film by Esther Broner Miriam's Daughters Now — featuring ceremonies such as a feminist seder, a naming ceremony for a girl and a tashlich ceremony filmed at the Hudson River. Other films include one on South African women opposed to Apartheid; From Sun Up, about African women organizing to support themselves and their families both monetarily and spiritually without men, because that is how their culture works; Small Hap- piness, a focus on Chinese women taken from the saying that when a boy is born it is a great happiness, when a girl is born it is a small happiness, and Courage to Care, Sister Carol Rittner's award- winning film about the righteous gentiles. More than 120 registrations from across the country have been received so • far. At- tendees are not just from academia, Zeff said. Psychologists, those in social service who work with families, battered women and - substance abusers will also attend. Students may attend at no charge, and scholarships are available. "This is not a religious con- ference," said Zeff. "We are looking at images of women in their traditions and the political and social justice issues involved." — ❑