On November 20, 2016, Associate Professor of Jewish Studies Rebecca Lesses presented a paper on “Gender and mysticism in ancient Judaism.” She spoke in a panel organized by the Mysticism, Esotericism, and Gnosticism in Antiquity section.
Her paper discussed the ancient Jewish novel Joseph and Aseneth and focused on the portrayal of Aseneth. Aseneth gains knowledge of heavenly mysteries when the supreme angel appears to her after a period of fasting and self-deprivation. The portrayal of a woman having a revelatory experience is very unusual in the literature of ancient Jewish mysticism.
https://www.ithaca.edu/intercom/article.php/20170102223437155