Olivia Devorah Tucker

( they/them )
Program Coordinator

Olivia Devorah Tucker fell in love with Talmud when the local Moishe House asked them to lead a Unicorn themed Shabbat. They couldn’t resist the deep dive into Judaism’s supernatural creatures and have never resurfaced – the books on Jewish myth, magic, and mysticism never make it back to the bookshelf! Olivia sees recovering our ancestral knowledge of angels, demons, dreams interpretation, and the many witchy practices peppered throughout the Talmud, both as exciting gateways to ancient texts and powerful lenses for viewing and healing the world in unconventional ways.

A lifelong Pittsburgher (Shawnee land), they take part in vibrant theatre and leftist Jewish organizing, play tabletop role-playing games, collect queer sci-fi comic books, and bake challah inspired by the weekly Torah portion (“All Challahs Are Beautiful”). They always have their eye out for a machmir Bechdel-Wallace Test pass, especially when it comes to Talmud. Follow Olivia Devorah’s teaching and performance work at their website: www.TalmudMagic.com ✨Olivia puts trans in translation and the femme in ephemera. Stay hydrated!

Blog posts by Olivia Devorah Tucker

Mishnah Yoma Chapter 2 Mishnah 7 Pt. 1

פַּר קָרֵב בְּעֶשְׂרִים וְאַרְבָּעָה הָרֹאשׁ וְהָרֶגֶל הָרֹאשׁ בְּאֶחָד וְהָרֶגֶל בִּשְׁנַיִם A bull is sacrificed by twenty-four [priests]. For the head…

Mishnah Yoma Chapter 2 Mishnah 5 Pt. 1

תָּמִיד קָרֵב בְּתִשְׁעָה בַּעֲשָׂרָה בְּאַחַד עָשָׂר בִּשְׁנֵים עָשָׂר The daily offering is sacrificed by nine priests, ten priests, 11 priests,…

Mishnah Yoma Chapter 2 Mishnah 2 Pt. 1

מַעֲשֶׂה שֶׁהָיוּ שְׁנֵיהֶם שָׁוִין וְרָצִין וְעוֹלִין בַּכֶּבֶשׁ Once it happened that there were two [priests] who were equal as they…

Mishnah Yoma Chapter 2 Mishnah 1 Pt. 5

וּמָה הֵן מוֹצִיאִין אַחַת אוֹ שְׁתַּיִם וְאֵין מוֹצִיאִין אֲגֻדָּל בַּמִּקְדָּשׁ And what fingers do [the priests] bring out [for the…

Mishnah Yoma Chapter 1 Mishnah 6 Pt. 4

זְכַרְיָה בֶּן קְבוּטָל אוֹמֵר פְּעָמִים הַרְבֵּה קָרִיתִי לְפָנָיו בְּדָנִיֵּאל Zekharya, son of Kevutal, says, “Many times I recited before [the…

Mishnah Yoma Chapter 1 Mishnah 6 Pt. 1

אִם הָיָה חָכָם דּוֹרֵשׁ וְאִם לָאו תַּלְמִידֵי חֲכָמִים דּוֹרְשִׁין לְפָנָיו If [the High Priest] was wise, he expounds [upon Torah].…

Mishnah Yoma Chapter 1 Mishnah 5 Pt. 4

וְאַתָּה שְׁלוּחֵנוּ וּשְׁלִיחַ בֵּית דִּין …and you are our agent, and the agent of the court. We’re still making our…

Mishnah Yoma Chapter 1 Mishnah 2 Pt. 1

כָּל שִׁבְעַת הַיָּמִים הוּא זוֹרֵק אֶת הַדָּם וּמַקְטִיר אֶת הַקְּטֹרֶת During all seven days [of the High Priest’s sequestering before…