Voices of WRJ: Sh'mini

Parashat Sh’mini, meaning “eighth,” refers to the eighth day of the priestly ordination of Moses’ brother, Aaron, and his sons. We have nice gory, detailed descriptions of the ritual offerings for Aaron, his household, and the entire community. The depictions of these animal sacrifices are very visual, rather dramatic, quite violent, and awe-inspiring for all—women included—to witness: “Fire came forth from before God and consumed the burnt offering and the fat parts on the altar. And all the people saw, and shouted, and fell on their faces” (Leviticus 9:24). This parashah also discusses Aaron’s sons', Nadab and Abihu, ill-conceived offering of incense in their fire pans to God. God reacts swiftly and kills the two promising newly ordained young priests by a flash fire. With 2016 eyes and understandings, I cannot presume to understand God’s particular reaction to their action of offering uncalled-for fire to God. Instead, these behaviors cause me to think about the intent of one’s actions. Perhaps the intentions of Nadab and Abihu were not holy in that moment and that place. Perhaps they were so caught up in the excitement and the drama of what was occurring on the eighth day of the ordination of their father and themselves as priests, that they were not thinking and acted out of hubris—like Icarus flying too close to the sun—and as God was present, not too smart on their part. Perhaps they were too focused on themselves and not the welfare of the community they were supposed to be serving and God. As we go about our daily lives, do we consider the true intent of our actions: are they holy, are we sufficiently aware of our surroundings, and are we making proper choices? Following these violent episodes, we are now presented with a list of proscribed dietary laws and restrictions regarding the animals that cannot be eaten and those that are allowed—what are the boundaries between these prohibitions and holiness? The laws of kashrut presented in this parashah that deal with diet and purity are re-imagined in the 2011 WRJ Resolution “Sustainable Consumption and Production: Learning to Live Together.” In Leviticus we will shortly read: “But the land must not be sold beyond reclaim, for the land is Mine; and you are but strangers resident with Me. Throughout the land that you hold, you must provide for the redemption of the land” (25:23-24). In 21st century terms, what are we talking about? Sounds to me like climate change, resource scarcity, and conflict over resources. We are talking about the foods that we eat, their production and consumption. Lisbeth Fried, the editor of this parashah in the WRJ publication The Torah: A Women’s Commentary, observes:

This unit has special relevance for women. The ancient Israelite diet consisted mostly of grains—supplemented with milk curds, cheese, yogurt, wine, olive oil, legumes, and fruits and vegetables. In ancient Israel preparing these foodstuffs was the domain of women; it was they who typically supervised or performed the tasks such as building the fire, drawing water from the well, grinding the grain, kneading the dough, forming the cakes, milking the sheep and goats, making the cheese and yogurt, gathering the olives and dates, and treading the grapes.  Phew! As a result, we can assume that women were responsible for maintaining the dietary laws. (The Torah: A Women's Commentary 624)

Is it any wonder, then, that we, being women of Reform Judaism, are any less concerned today than our foremothers were 2000 years ago about what we eat, sustainable practices, food and water shortages, equitable distribution of food? The women of WRJ are already doing holy and spiritual work, several, indeed, related to food. Here are three examples of our sisterhoods’ good works, which were recognized with WRJ Or Ami "Light of Our People" Awards for excellence in programming: Dinner for New Moms, put on by Sisterhood of Temple Emanu-El in Dallas, TX, is a program designed to provide a warm Shabbat dinner to families with a new little one in the house. The program has fostered community among the WRJ members arranging and cooking the meals, and introduced WRJ to many new families. For the Greenbriar Project, Indianapolis Hebrew Congregation Sisterhood of Indianapolis, IN teamed up with a local public at-risk elementary school to provide food and books. They have provided each of the 90 students with hunger issues with take-home bags filled with non-perishable food for three holiday breaks. All 800 students received a book. Feeding the Hungry was inspired by a Temple Beth Emeth Sisterhood, Ann Arbor, MI member's experience volunteering in Ghana, after which she was eager to instill in the congregation’s youth a sense of responsibility to help the hungry. This sisterhood, along with the social action committee and religious school, has an on-going program to collect food and provide tours to help the Back Door Food Pantry, which shares a property with their congregation and feeds the hungry in their community. The women of Reform Judaism are acutely aware of their surroundings and act with holy intention to create caring communities. May we find holiness this Shabbat as we nourish both our bodies and our souls in the quiet of our homes and in our communities. Shabbat shalom from the WRJ Southeast District Kallah in Atlanta, GA!