James Brown sang, “It’s a Man’s World,” and that certainly applies to much of what we see in the Torah. Our job is to unpack, to understand it and, frankly, to dismantle the patriarchal structures we have inherited in our Jewish tradition.

 

We get a chance to do this at our Nafshenu Torah study on Thursday, July 8, 7:30 p.m. on Zoom. Register to receive the Zoom link by clicking the button above!

This week’s double portion, Matot Mas’ei (מטות-מסעי) ends the book of Numbers. It contains passages on women’s rights and obligations. Moses tells Israelite tribal chiefs that a man must honor his vows, but a woman is exempt if her father or husband objects. It reflects that there can’t be responsibility without authority, and a woman may lack the means to keep a promise.

 

The Bible’s most famous woman’s vow comes in Samuel 1, when the childless Hannah promises to give her son to God’s service should she have a boy. Hannah conceives, and her son Samuel becomes a leader who picks Israel’s first kings. We’ll look at Hannah and other women’s empowerment texts at our discussion with student rabbi David Goodman. Please join us!

 

Please join us for a relaxed, spiritual outdoor service - either in person or virtually this Friday evening at 7:00 PM. Services led by student rabbi David Goodman and music leader Noah Levine will be followed by kiddush, motzi, and Shabbat dinner. We'll be meeting at the home of a member of Nafshenu's core team -please register to receive the address and Zoom link, and let us know if you're planning on attending virtually or in-person (so we can get a rough head count for dinner). Hope to see you there!