WRJ Voices: Ki Teitzei

by Marina Polinovsky This weekly Torah portion is bursting at the seams with commandments. Many of those commandments shed light on gender relations and the place of women in society, in ancient Israel and in the modern world. In this commentary I would like to delve into an in-depth discussion of one of those commandments: Deuteronomy 24:8-9. In this commandment, Israelites are forewarned of defiling skin diseases, and required to follow the instructions of priests with regard to their treatment. They are also required to "Remember what the Lord your God did to Miriam along the way after you came from Egypt". Miriam was punished with tzaraat – a skin condition (Numbers 12:10-13) – for speaking against Moses's leadership. Prof. Judith Plaskow, in her commentary to this weekly portion in the Torah: A Women's Commentary pp. 1187-88, points out that this requirement to remember only Miriam's transgression and subsequent punishment, and not her achievements and her role as a leader, effectively silences women's voices and narratives. Miriam's transgression is no longer an act of one, specific woman; this act is attributed to womankind in general, as an archetypal female sin of gossip mongering. In Dvarim Rabbah commentary on this passage, commentators enumerate the inherent characteristics of women: women are gluttonous, eavesdropping, jealous, lazy, ill-tempered gossip mongers. Why gossip mongers? Well, if even a woman as righteous as Miriam used to gossip, clearly it is in every woman's nature. Sadly, at the time this commentary was written, no gender politics courses were available. Rabbis did not understand that if they do not allow women to take part in public decision-making processes, women would have to resort to alternative information gathering and dissemination tactics. This kind of gender stereotyping is not just a thing of the past. Even today women taking leadership roles are fighting an uphill battle, their every word scrutinized, their successes ignored or attributed to men, and not to their own dedication and hard work. And yet women persevere. We reclaim our right to take the central stage and not just work behind the scenes. From space stations to Olympic pools, women laugh in the face of prejudice and carry on. To honor these women of valor, I would like to offer a different reading of this commandment. This commandment teaches us that freedom of speech is a precious gift, to be exercised judiciously. Those who are afflicted with tzaraat for their spiritual transgressions, like slander, are isolated from society, and cannot continue to share their ideas with others anymore. For instance, when we criticize our leaders, we should focus on issues and actions, not on their looks. The other important message of this Torah portion is that while today there are no priests - men who had come by their leadership position by birthright - there is no shortage of other positions of power that remain predominantly a male domain, and no shortage of those who seek to "shush" women's voices. It is therefore our moral imperative to speak up against injustice. We must raise our voices, loud and clear, on any issue that concerns women. With WRJ, our voices are amplified, and will, eventually, break through any wall and shatter any glass ceiling. We are blessed with the opportunity to encourage future generations of Jewish women to lend their voices to this powerful chorus, whether by writing a Torah commentary, studying for bat mitzvah or honing their leadership skills within their sisterhoods. Stronger together. Never again shall we cower, whispering, behind a partition. Marina Polinovsky is the Chair of WRJ-Israel. She also serves as a Board member of IMPJ and of Congregation Shirat Hayam-Carmel, Haifa, Israel.