WLCJ Remembers Dr. Ruth, z”l

Contributors: Wendy Greenberg, Razel Kessler, Cory Schneider, Lois Silverman, and Rabbi Ellen S. Wolintz-Fields

Women’s League for Conservative Judaism mourns the loss of renowned sex therapist Dr. Ruth Westheimer z”l, who died on July 12, 2024, at age 96. She was a friend to Women’s League for Conservative Judaism, and a longtime supporter of Jewish organizations.

For those of us who met her, she was memorable. Several of our members recall “Dr. Ruth“ displaying her outgoing personality at Women’s League events. 

“Women’s League’s relationship (with Dr. Ruth) goes back at least to 1987 when WLCJ leadership was together with her at a RIAL (Religion in American Life) Conference,” recalls Cory Schneider, Past International President and current Archives Chair. 

Below is a photo of Dr. Ruth in Women’s League Archives, at the RIAL conference with Women’s League leader Ruth Rosenfeld and Rabbi Joseph Glazer.

“When I was Women’s League president and on the Board of JTS (Jewish Theological Seminary), I spent time with Dr. Ruth in 2007 at Chancellor (Arnold) Eisen’s inauguration. She was a bundle of energy and very approachable, talked fast and wore a smile,” writes Cory.

“Dr. Ruth” had the honor of being the closing speaker at the Women’s League Convention in Philadelphia in 1998. Lois Silverman was moderating, she recalls, but adds, “Let me correct that–I tried to moderate, since she took over.” She notes, “The word ‘sex’ was first used at a WL Convention, and some of the old timers looked like a cross between shock and disbelief.”

Lois wrote in a newsletter at the time: “She was wonderful and I relaxed as soon as she started using the language of her field—words like ‘sex’; who would have thought just a few years ago that such words would be heard at a WL Convention?”

On another occasion, in 2014, after a Women’s League trip to the National Yiddish Theatre-Folksbiene, Dr. Ruth was the guest speaker to “discuss sexual power and sexual knowledge in the Purim story.” Razel Kessler reports that she heard Dr. Ruth speak at her synagogue, and even sang at a concert at her synagogue Hebrew School.

Dr. Ruth was a passionate advocate for keeping the horrors of the Holocaust alive, and as such, was a member since 2004 of the Board of Trustees of the Museum of Jewish Heritage In New York City.

Born Karola Ruth Siegel in Frankfurt, Germany in 1928, she was separated from her family when she was sent to a Swiss orphanage after Kristallnacht, and never saw her family again. After the war she went to Palestine and joined the Haganah. She studied in Paris, and came to the United States in 1956, where she received her Ed.D. from Columbia University. A  guest appearance on a radio talk show led to a show of her own. Soon she was appearing on prime-time news and late-night talk shows, writing best-selling books, and communicating her message that sex is a wholesome part of the human experience.  

The Auschwitz Jewish Center Foundation honored Dr. Ruth in 2016, and the Museum of Jewish Heritage more recently honored Dr. Ruth at its annual Generation to Generation benefit in 2019, for her role in ensuring that the lessons of history continue to shape a more just and compassionate future.

Rabbi Ellen S. Wolintz-Fields recalls that when she served as the JTS Rabbinical School Student Organization President in 1996, she had the pleasure of being seated with Dr. Ruth at a Sukkot evening meal in The Adele Ginzberg WLCJ Sukkah at JTS. “It was such a great honor to sit with Dr. Ruth. After we finished washing our hands, when one traditionally does not speak until we have completed saying the HaMotzi, prayer for the challah, Dr. Ruth gave out a loud sigh and said, ‘It was so hard staying quiet!’ She was so real and personable. In 2011, I saw Dr. Ruth at a JTS commencement and introduced her to my daughter Cameron, who was 7 at the time. I told Cameron that Dr. Ruth helps people with their relationships, and that I would explain more to her when she got older. Cameron was just excited that she was taller than Dr. Ruth. The last time I had the privilege of seeing Dr. Ruth was when she waved to the crowd at the Israel Day Parade in 2023, while sitting in a convertible. She sat with strength and dignity as she continued to wow the crowd, way into her 90s.”

May the memory of Dr. Ruth Westheimer z”l, continue to be a blessing. Not only did she drive an important conversation in her field, but did so in a way that upheld the Jewish values of kindness and respect in relationships. She was a beloved figure and known for revered work. Women’s League is proud to have known her as we did.

Shabbat Shalom,

Contributors: Wendy Greenberg, Razel Kessler, Cory Schneider, Lois Silverman, and Rabbi Ellen S. Wolintz-Fields

Comments may be sent to: ewolintz-fields@wlcj.org