B"H
Two
Major Errors in Judaism:
Prozbul and Place of Women
There are two major misunderstandings in Judaism that need to be overcome. When
they do, please God in our time, the Messianic Age will begin.
The first problem in Judaism, Prozbul, created the distortions in the
socio-economic world variously encapsulated in what we call
"Capitalism". If the socio-economic world is to be corrected, Prozbul
will have to be nullified.
The second problem is graver. It may be a reason
why the decision of Prozbul was taken. It is the fact that Jewish men do not
know their place in creation vis-a-vis Jewish women. They imagine that they are
capable of understanding a woman's nature and they imagine that they can
dictate to Jewish women what our place is. They imagine that Halakhah can be
decided by men alone, including Halakhah that relates to women. They imagine
that they are able to interpret Torah without feminine input and they imagine
that they are capable of understanding the depths of the mitzvot that relate
specifically to women. This is a most grave error and the provenance of untold
misery.
It is wholly unfitting for a lesser being to
presume to know the nature of a higher being and it is presumptuous foolishness
for a lesser being to imagine that it can describe the parameters of the
actions of a greater being and legislate for a higher being.
The second problem is the provenance of the
complete misunderstanding of Chava is and what her relationship to HaMashiach
(the men call him a serpent in their blind inability to see that HaNachash *is*
HaMashiach). They imagine that they are able to understand Chava's intentions,
motivations and plumb the depths of her decision and action and its
consequences. This misunderstanding is, therefore, also the provenance of the
Xian error that Mashiach is one male. It is the provenance of the errant
rulings regarding Aginut. It is the provenance in the lack of undertaking to
resolve the matter of Mamzerut. The Rabbis do not see that ממזר is equal to the word רופא and they are not working on resolving that in favor of healing.
The delusion that Jewish men are able to rule for Jewish women is the
provenance of much marital misery. It is the provenance of the pathetic attempt
to restore balance and justice on the part of those who do not know Torah
called "Feminism". It is the provenance of many Rabbinical rulings
which, taken in the absence of the input of feminine wisdom, came to various
distortion and untenability. Some have gone so far as to teach that it is forbidden
to teach women Torah! תורה IS את הרה. Torah IS the paradigm of Jewish female wisdom and fecundity.
Only Jewish women can plummet the deepest depths of Torah because Torah is most
like our being. This is why we say:
ברוך
שעשני כרצונו
We say כרצונו, not לפי רצונו or ברצונו because Jewish women are *as* HaShem's Will, *like* HaShem's
Will. We are the closest embodiment of the Will of HaShem in Creation – not a
being come into existence by God's Will to create a specific being – but God's
Will Itself, which is identical to God. We Jewish women are *like* HaShem's
Will in Body as well as in Soul.
That is why we give birth to living beings whose destiny is to learn Torah and
act in accordance with Torah. That is the Act of God.
It is not enough to give lip service to the fact
that Sarah was greater than Avraham and Choni HaMe'agel's wife was on a higher
level of compassion than he, thus her prayers were answered first. It must be
recognized that this is *generally* the case in Jewish marriages. The dependence
of Barak upon Devorah is not a one-time occurrence in history or an anomaly. It
is paradigmatic of Jewish relationships. While no woman likes it, as Devorah
did not; this is the reality and we must act appropriately.
As are all of the 'stories' in Torah, the story of the Daughters of Tzlofchad
(whose name literally means 'shadow of fear'), is a truth occurring in every
generation, repeating itself in this or that configuration, but being a
constant.
Even so great a figure as Moshe Rebeinu was not, of his own accord and
initiative, sensitive to the plight of the Daughters of Tzlofchad. He did not
turn to HaShem with a plea for their welfare.
However, when the Daughters of Tzlofchad were brave enough to act despite the
shadow of fear under which women live in male-dominated cultures and exerted
their right to an inheritance not only did Moshe see the merit of their plea at
once, astoundingly; HaShem not only acquiesced to their wisdom, HaShem created what
appeared to be a new precedent in Torah, but which was actually always written
in Torah.
7 'The daughters of Tzlofchad speak truly: you shall surely give
them a possession of an inheritance among their father's brethren; and you
shall cause the inheritance of their father to pass unto them.
8 And you shall speak unto the children of Israel, saying: If a man die, and
have no son, then you shall pass his inheritance unto his daughter.
9 And if he have no daughter, then ye shall give his inheritance unto his
brethren. – Numbers 27
This is the Way of Torah. Understand this! Women actually activate the
revelation of the deepest and truest and most just interpretations of Torah,
but if and only if we exert our rights. If we do not Torah seems to read as
though the Law discriminates against women. It does not. The truths relating to
women in Torah are the deepest truths and the most just. But we must assert our
rights to the revelation of those depths.
It must be understand what the Hebrew concept 'nachalah', rendered imperfectly
and partially into English as 'inheritance' means. It is not only a right to a
parcel of land. The Torah itself is the ground from which Humanity is created. To
have a 'nachalah' in Torah is to have a portion in Torah – to have a presence
in Torah and to have one leave one's mark on creation by having interpreted
Torah.
If we understand that Torah is what is best described in modern parlance as a
'fractal' and a 'hologram', it is understood that a portion in any part of
Torah is a portion in all of Torah and a portion in Torah is a portion in the
Creation itself – in all of creation.
Why HaShem has only granted this right to women if we overcome our natural
reticence and assert our right to learn Torah and have a full portion in it is
a wisdom beyond my ken, but I do know that this is the case and is a constant
in every generation. With that, the precedent has already been written in
Torah, plainly and without the need for gematriot to reveal it. This means that
women are entitled to a portion in learning Torah, interpreting it and thereby making
their mark on the entire creation.
Happy are the minority of men who know this is true
and act accordingly with their Wives and fortunate are their Wives and
Daughters and Sons. But even they regard Halakhah as a solely male undertaking.
This is a terrible error having terrible consequences upon Creation.
For the world to know peace the Jewish world must
involve a cooperation on Halakhic rulings by women and men of Torah learning.
In some ways, women's wisdom is too high for this world and needs to be
filtered down through men's lower understanding. However, the inspiration for
rulings must have the feminine reach into the highest realms.
The men in the Torah world must realize that Jewish
women are greater than they and act appropriately to that fact and Prozbul must
be nullified at once. It is the worst of the rulings Jewish men made on their
own presumption.
When these two gross distortions of true Judaism
are overcome, the Messianic Age can begin.
There
are many men who see the failings of Feminism and take shelter for their error
in those failings thinking: 'You see?! This is what comes of it when women do
not assume a position inferior to that of men!"
What they do not understand is that Feminism exists in
a world that is being created out of the dominance of Jewish men learning Torah
almost exclusively.
The Creation cannot correct itself. It can only cry out
to its Creator to have compassion and that Creator is the Jews learning Torah.
HaShem has granted the Jews learning Torah the gift of
Creation itself. Understand this and bend yourself under this wonderful and
terrible yoke.
If we Jews do not learn Torah properly and do not act
properly on that proper understanding of Torah, the entire world will be
distorted - and We, together with the Gentiles and all of the other creatures,
will be trapped in the Creation of Our making.
The distortion in Judaism between men and women is also the provenance of that
most terrible coven - the Social Workers. It is also the provenance of the
proliferation of corrupt female judges. Feminism, the Social Workers and the
proliferation of women in the legal professions are all attempts of the
Creation to correct the error in the practice of Judaism that is giving rise to
gross distortions in the fabric of the relations between men and women and the
balance of power. But, again, the Creation cannot correct itself. It can only
cry out to us to listen to their plight and bring ourselves into greater line
with what HaShem intends.
We are taught that in Mitzrayim one of the most
terrible punishments is that men were forced to do women' work and vice versa.
Know that this describes our present plight in Torah learning. Understand this!
May we have mercy upon Ourselves and upon the Creation.
Doreen Ellen Bell-Dotan, Tzfat, Israel
Dordot2001@yahoo.com
