ABSTRACT
Reform Judaism has been responsible for several revolutions within the ancient traditions. Perhaps the most visible, and one of the main principles upon which it was founded, has been the assertion of the absolute equality of men and women in religious obligations. 1 Out of this conviction came the notion of women as rabbis. Although it took well over one hundred years to actualize, the ordination of women as rabbis and their acceptance as cantors were two of the many factors that have allowed gays and lesbians to be welcomed and returned to the Jewish community through the Reform movement. The notion of the liberation of women, so fervent in the late 1960s and early 1970s, was a part of the larger picture of the so-called sexual revolution of the era. By bringing women into the circles of decision making, as well as smashing our notions of God and gender, the atmosphere was ripe for other innovations as well.
