A midrash is “a story about a story in the Torah” (or the Tanakh, or Hebrew Bible). One of the oldest forms of Jewish commentary, midrash moves beyond the “literal” reading of any text to bring imaginative and creative interpretations. While midrash often “fills in the blanks” in a narrative or offers the “backstory,” it also is a path for the ancient commentators to complicate, nuance or even question the Biblical story.

• Part I (May): the classic midrashic texts of the rabbis (3rd - 9th century)
• Part II (June): modern poetry and midrash; feminist midrash

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