Shabbat Shalom from Rabbi Eitan Weiner-Kaplow
Shabbat Beha’alotecha
Torah: Numbers 8:1 - 12:16 / Haftarah: Zechariah 2:14 - 4:7
“Color-Blind”
Dear Friends,
Does the Torah actually make a comment about racial prejudice? Indeed it does! In this week’s Torah portion, Miriam and Aaron criticize Moses from marrying a Cushite woman. The land of Cush is in Africa south of Egypt, essentially northern Sudan and Ethiopia. So, presumably the woman was of darker skin color. We cannot be certain who the Cushite woman was. She might have been Tzipora, Moses’ wife. However, Tzipora was the daughter of a Midianite priest, who probably came from northern Arabia. The Cushite woman might have been a second wife, or she may be from a different story tradition regarding Modes’ wife/wives.
Most commentators believe that Miriam and Aaron’s criticism was about the woman’s dark skin color. Because of the outburst Miriam is punished with leprosy. Both Moses and Aaron intervene with God on her behalf, with the famous words, El na refa na lah– heal her God and she will be healed. Miriam is sent from the camp for seven days and eventually she recovers.
The Torah text is sending us a message from more than 3,000 years ago. We may not judge a person based on the color of their skin, their country of origin, or their marital status. There is a better way. It was the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King who summed it up best, “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.”
Zay a mentsch – be a good person.
Shabbat Shalom,
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