Pinchas: Confrontation

Stories of confrontation stand out in Pinchas. Two prominent stories are those of Pinchas and the daughters of Zelophchad. These two stories have an interesting point in common: Moshe is dumbfounded by the situation

In the story of Pinchas, Moshe, as the leader should have been the  one to act upon the outrageous licentious idolatry, but he was too ambivalent. Moshe is clearly uncomfortable with capital punishment. We see that both the violator of th Sabbath (possibly Zelophchad) (Bamidbar 15;32) and the blasphemer (Vayikra 24;10) required consultations with the Almighty before a death sentence was handed down.  The course of action is not clear enough to Moshe; to Pinchas it is!
Pinchas kills both parties - the man from his father's people, and the woman from his  mother's.  Nachath from Pinchas.

How this story confronts the American in us is left for the reader.

Another major confrontation involves the daughters of Zelophchad (DoZ). Their father's name means shadow of fear.  I can imagine the fear that these women overcame to present their case, to inherit the land along with their male relatives, before the (all male) elders. Here again, Moshe doesn't know, he has to look it up - consult Gd.  Gd tells  Moshe that the cause of the DoZ is just. They have a right to the legacy of their father. Assertiveness is rewarded. Assertiveness is always in the shadow of fear.

Balak: perspective

Balak: perspective

Is not Balak justified in his fear that Israel will conquer his land?  From his perspective, they have just vanquished two of the most powerful armies in the region and smitten their heroes: Sichon and Og. Those Jews are too powerful and they control the media. Is this justified xeno- aversion or is it antisemitism?  Is it a matter of perspective?

When Bilam travels to his job with Balak, the donkey sees the threatening, obstructing, Satanic angel, but, at first, Bilam does not.  It is the lowly, humble point of view of the ass  that sees the danger; Bilam's haughtiness needs to broken by pain before The Seer can see what is right in front of him. Perspective.

When Bilam praises and blesses the Israelites he has been hired to curse, Balak takes him to different viewpoints.  Seen through a different lens, praise can become damnation.  The Jews are smart - they cheat; they keep to themselves - they are clannish,  they support liberal causes - they are Communists;  They are rich - they control Wall Street.

But Bilam is a medium for Gd's truth, and it is expressed as praise for the Hebrews. We all know it could have been otherwise.  More than once Gd offered to destroy the People and build Moses into a nation.  But that is only for internal consumption, to our enemies, Gd wears the mask of love. Perspective.

Chulath: Gd's rule

 The parsha opens :  זֹאת חֻקַּת הַתּוֹרָה

 This is the chok: the statute  of the Torah, it is a rule independent of your understanding, it might be arbitrary (or it might not), but it is THE LAW

The red heifer is not the unfathomable rule, it is the problem for which the red heifer is needed -  that is the chok - it is death.

Death is the ultimate, inevitable, unjust , arbitrary  verdict that awaits all people, all living things.  Life is lived in its shadow, it makes every moment precious . 

In the parsha there is a cascade of death.  Miriam dies and there is thirst ( her  name was mayim  with a Raish stuck in the middle).  The misinterpretation of the Divine instructions on obtaining water ( aqua vitae) brings a death sentence upon Aharon and Moshe.  Aharon  ( whose name includes Har, the mountain) dies on Har Hahar ( hardy har har).  We know that Moshe's death is not far off. 

Aharon's death is interesting in that it is planned, it is death with  dignity.  The inheritance of the precious priestly garments is arranged.  Aaron ascends the mountain ( of his fate), but does not return... The actual mode of death is not specified in the text.   Very modern?

To die, —to sleep;—
To sleep! perchance to dream: —ay, there's the rub;
For in that sleep of death what dreams may come,
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,
Must give us pause: there's the respect
That makes calamity of so long life;

 

William Shakespeare, Hamlet, Act III, Scene I

Korach:Conflict

This is a tough parsha, especially for an Orthodox, American Jew. 

To read the parsha from an Orthodox viewpoint is anti- Democratic, anti-American.  How can the elite alienate the aspirations of the people?  What is all this exclusivity?

But Gd chooses those who may  ( and those who may not) approach. People have a right to choose the nature of their interactions with other people, Gd seems to have that right, too.  Korach and his group do not have license to force their way into the Holy Service. 

Furthermore, the Holy Service is dangerous.  It is always a trespass ( avon) whose consequences  the designated ( Cohanim) are immunized from.  It is for their own good that others are banned form the Holy Service. 

So what should I think about the Women of the Wall?  Are they the Democratic mob trying to approach the (dangerous, sacred, holy) place where  they don't belong?  Are the Haredim protecting them from spontaneous combustion and the hungry earth?

 The tradition contains thousands of years of misogyny.  But much of that tradition is oral, subject to reinterpretation.  The tradition contains misunderstandings.  The two thousand year exile from Jerusalem led to the sanctification of a Herodian retaining wall. Nether men nor women of the Orthodox persuasion ascend to the Temple Mount itself. 

The wall is a battle for its own sake, a testament to misogyny, and hopefully the battle is a first step toward the correction of that problem.