Purity

Taking a rare peek into the world of Jewish religious married life and sexuality, Anat Zuria's Purity focuses on the strict religious laws involving family purification rituals that are an integral aspect of Jewish religious law. Zuria, and friends Natalie, Shira, and Katie candidly reveal their personal struggles in coming to terms with the idea of family “purity,” particularly the ritual "mikveh" bath that Jewish women are required to undergo following each menstrual cycle (according to strict Jewish observance, a man may not touch his wife until after the mikveh, which requires close physical scrutiny by a female religious clerk). Each of the women interviewed by Zuria have had distinctly different experiences, yet all continue to view themselves as adherents in the Jewish faith. Natalie, a single mother, rebelled against the purity laws, which she believed were a gross invasion of privacy; her nonconformity destroyed her marriage. Shira is a young, independent-minded bride-to-be whose personal views about the importance of family purity clash with her mother's beliefs. Katie's irregular menstrual cycle sometimes lasts six to eight weeks, but she nevertheless makes a wholehearted effort to live within the dictates of mainstream Jewish Orthodoxy. And Zuria herself alternates between hope and despair that religious laws will ever improve for women. A solid, well-rounded profile of female rebellion within the venerable Jewish religious world that nimbly weaves together multiple viewpoints on a complicated and controversial subject, this is highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (A. Cantú)