The Talmud states “the spirit of prophecy departed” when the prophets Zechariah, Malachi and Chagai passed away. A novel by Evonne Marzouk raises the question: What if prophecy still exists?
“The Prophetess” (Bancroft Press), which tells the story of a 17-year-old Jewish girl summoned to join a secret society of Jewish prophets, is the debut novel from author Evonne Marzouk. Set in Baltimore’s Pikesville Jewish community, protagonist Rachel connects to her Jewish roots and God upon discovering her own superpowers. It mirrors Marzouk’s own path as a baal teshuva in Baltimore while exploring mystical Jewish teachings and what it means to have faith. The Journal spoke with Marzouk about her book and what kind of prophecy, if any, we still have today.
Jewish Journal: Where did your idea for “The Prophetess” come from?
Evonne Marzouk: I was struggling a lot as a teen and young adult with the question of whether God still talks to people. I wanted a personal relationship with God and I had worked to develop one, but I found it rare to hear about that in my own, quite secular Jewish upbringing. I didn’t really know what it meant to be connected to God in a Jewish context.
When I started to become more religious, I heard often that prophecy ended thousands of years ago. It was as if God had given up on us and now we were on our own. I began to play around with the question, “What if God didn’t stop? What if the messages just went underground? What if prophecy was really a secret passed on through the Jewish generations?” That question enabled me to explore more deeply what Jewish tradition really says about having a meaningful connection with God, and work that actual Jewish wisdom into the book so it could provide clearer answers for Jewish teenagers like I was then, and for everyone else who could also be inspired by it.
JJ: Did you weave any of your personal experience as a baal teshuva into the story?
EM: Yes. I became religious in Baltimore and some of my first traditional Jewish experiences, like Rachel’s, took place in Pikesville’s Orthodox Jewish community. The invitations that I received to enter that community were very powerful. Like Jake says in the story, “I didn’t know you could just walk in.”
Rachel answers that she wore a skirt. For me, I was surprised to discover that the skirt — plus the fact that my mother was Jewish — was the only access card I needed to enter an entire world where I had previously assumed I’d never be accepted. Rachel’s experience of going from an outsider to an insider with a community of religious Jews is modeled after my own experience.
JJ: How does Jewish mysticism play into your book?
EM: It was very important to me that the book be based in what Jewish tradition actually says, not inventing a new religion — especially not if it was going to be about the Jewish community. The first meaningful answers I got to my questions about God came from learning Jewish mysticism. Finding this material in Jewish tradition was very important to me. I felt I was finally getting answers I’d been asking for more than a decade.
JJ: What kind of research did you do for your book?
EM: I began learning “Inner Space” [by] Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan and “Seeing God” [by] Rabbi David Aaron with my chavruta not long after my mother passed away. Shortly thereafter, I was connected to Rav Avraham Sutton, a student of Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan, with whom I have learned for more than three years. I also learned from Rabbi Doniel Katz to develop some of the themes of the book.
I heard often that prophecy ended thousands of years ago. It was as if God had given up on us and now we were on our own. I began to play around with the question, “What if God didn’t stop? What if the messages just went underground?
JJ: Did you discover why we don’t have prophets anymore?
EM: I can’t exactly say why. I take at face value the Jewish teaching that some higher form of communication in the form of prophecy does not exist right now. However, I don’t think that should stop us from trying to hear what God is trying to say to each of us. I think a meaningful relationship with God, and with the higher levels of our own souls can be one of the most empowering and cleansing experiences in life − indeed, in Jewish life. The main thing is not to let that teaching about “prophecy ended” get in the way of that.
JJ: What does Rachel learn about Judaism in her journey?
EM: She learns that she doesn’t have to rely on her grandfather and ancient family traditions to have a connection with her heritage and with God. She can create it for herself, if she’s willing to step into the destiny calling her, not just from the past but now, on this very day.
JJ: What do you hope people get out of your book?
EM: I hope they will be inspired to consider what gifts they haven’t yet grown into, and find the courage to grow into their own gifts.
JJ: Do you believe there could be “underground prophets,” like there are in your book?
EM: I believe it could happen in some form, certainly, if God wanted it to. But one thing I do believe, and have experienced, is that as more people work toward connection with God and with our own souls, we can receive more and more light, and more and more Ruach Hakodesh, divine inspiration. That is certainly available to us now.
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