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Reinventing Tevillot
Project type
Research Thesis
Role
Author
Date
May 2007
Location
Atlanta, Georgia
University
Emory University
Reinventing Tevillot: An Exploration of Non-Traditional Mikvah Use
Overview
Reinventing Tevillot: An Exploration of Non-Traditional Mikvah Use examines how Jewish women reimagine and reclaim the ancient practice of mikvah immersion (tevillot) for contemporary, nontraditional purposes. Through analysis of public discourse, this honors thesis identified and categorized emerging uses of the mikvah across three primary themes: fertility, lifecycle transitions, and healing. Drawing on ritual theory, the thesis argues that these adaptations represent a meaningful and deliberate invention of tradition—one that speaks to larger questions of identity and religious agency among Jewish women today.
This thesis was completed through Emory University's Honors College program, an invitation-only research track for students pursuing original, faculty-mentored scholarship, and blends the fields of Jewish Studies, Religion, and Anthropology.