There is a belief in the Lubavitch movement of Hasidic Jews that the coming of the Messiah is imminent. But before the Messiah can transform the world into a paradise, the Shekinah, the feminine aspect of God, must rise. Women will lead the way into the new era.
Shekinah Rising offers a rare opportunity to understand the lives of largely misunderstood orthodox women and the challenges they face in their early years of womanhood. The film brings us to Ste. Agathe, Quebec, to a seminary for young Hasidic woman; to Crown Heights, New York to hear a Hasidic alternative-rock women’s band; to Jerusalem for an orthodox-Jewish-feminist spoken word performance; to Paris where four Jewish hostages were murdered in a kosher grocery; to London to revisit a seminary student who is considering whether she should remain in the fold; and to a gathering of over 3000 community leaders, teachers, artists and pioneers committed to bringing peace and tolerance to Earth for all people. One more good deed, they believe, may be all that’s needed.
The Jewish mystics say the Shekinah is rising. The times are changing and these women are taking their rightful place in the new era.
