Ritual baths and the construction of Jewish identities

This article aims to explain the construction of Jewish identities (both male and female) through the practice of entering the mikveh - the ritual bath. The mikveh, a seemingly unimportant day to day go-to emerges as a new kind of sacred space, a bridge between the sacred and profane worlds of Jewish existence where uncleanness is shed and purity is achieved. Disputed in the field of Jewish studies as either a discriminatory practice, that mainly affects women, or a measure of pride for them, the immersion in the mikveh remains a 4000-year old tradition that encompasses Judaism’s view of the world. The article also defines ritual cleanliness (or purity) and uncleanness (or impurity) from a theological perspective and sheds lights over some of the symbolic meanings of the mikveh-associated rituals. The explanations that are given here always refer back to the Jewish classical tradition as it is found in the fundamental texts of the Tanakh and of the Talmud while also including modern interpretations in regards to the construction and continuity of the ritual.