jerusalem | Pnina Peli, considered by many to be the founder of Orthodox feminism, died in Jerusalem on Oct. 26 at the age of 74. She was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease a year ago.
Peli was born in New York. In her youth she was active in Hashomer Hadati, an American religious Zionist youth movement.
The Pelis immigrated to Israel in the early 1970s and Pnina started a women’s prayer group in her home, a revolutionary idea at the time.
She also was active in working toward solutions for agunot, Jewish women unable to remarry because their husbands will not agree to a divorce.
Peli leaves behind four children.