Dr. Sarah (Sari) E.G. Fein is Visiting Assistant Professor in Jewish Studies at Smith College in Northampton, MA. She received her PhD in Near Eastern and Judaic Studies from Brandeis University and an MTS in Hebrew Bible from Harvard Divinity School. Her book Conceiving Motherhood: Biblical Mothers and the Birth of the Jewish People is forthcoming from Oxford University Press.
Last Updated
March 18, 2026
Books by the Author
Articles by the Author
The Bible portrays YHWH as in control of opening and closing the womb. Yet biblical narratives and other ancient evidence show women seeking fertility through plants, rituals, amulets, and midwifery practices—revealing a world in which divine control and human agency coexist in the pursuit of conception and safe birth.
The Bible portrays YHWH as in control of opening and closing the womb. Yet biblical narratives and other ancient evidence show women seeking fertility through plants, rituals, amulets, and midwifery practices—revealing a world in which divine control and human agency coexist in the pursuit of conception and safe birth.