November 5th: Toldot
THIS WEEK IN THE TORAH
Rabbi David E. Ostrich
Last week, I referenced the work of the Biblical Scholar, Carol Meyers of Duke University. Part of her work involves seeking the hidden/unrecorded significance and agency of women in Biblical times. In one very interesting article, she accomplishes this by reframing our modern thinking. While many of us may think that the preparation of food is something relegated to those with lesser significance, Meyers makes the point that this task is among the most important. Remembering that our ancestors lived with what we might call “food insecurity,” the members of the family or tribe entrusted with the preservation, storage, allocation, and preparation of food had perhaps the greatest responsibility. In subsistence agrarian settings, the grain harvested in the Fall must last until the next Fall. Eating too much, or letting it spoil, or allowing mice to eat it can prove to be fatal for the family. Likewise, cooking. If one of us spoils a cake, we simply get another bag of flour and another dozen eggs and try again. Not so the ancients whose supply of food was quite limited—and who did not live ten minutes from a supermarket with full shelves. In addition to matters of taste, there was the real challenge of adequate nutrition, and whoever was given this responsibility would have had high status.
In other words, the understanding of women’s social inferiority may need to be mitigated by an awareness of the ways that power was granted and exercised in family, village, and society. Though the written records focus on the status and power of men, it is worth wondering about the way that women participated in the ancient flow of power.
Female agency certainly seems to be at play in this week’s Torah portion. While Isaac seems intent on giving his Patriarchal blessing to Esau, Rebekah thinks that the leadership should go instead to Jacob. Who is in charge? On one level, Isaac is the man and is thus in charge—in which case, Rebekah’s rebellious actions need justification. This seems to be the goal of many Midrashim which “find” in the text hints that Esau is bloodthirsty, impious, and impulsive, and that Jacob is pious, studious, and extremely righteous. Due to Isaac’s failure to understand his sons, Rebekah is forced—for the sake of God’s mission—to intervene and manipulate Isaac’s power. While these Midrashim justify Jacob’s choice as leader, they also justify Rebekah breaking the rules and subverting her lord and husband’s will.
On another level, however, why should not Rebekah have a say in the future of Judaism? She is the mother of both young men, having raised them and seen how they developed. She is a Matriarch and is in just as strong a position to evaluate her sons’ abilities and proclivities as their father—especially since Isaac seems to be experiencing visual and cognitive degeneration. Though he is the one who must ritually/officially give the blessing, she seizes the responsibility of making sure that the leadership is entrusted to the son with the better leadership potential.
From the profound to the comedic, this Biblical story reminds me of the scene in My Big Fat Greek Wedding, where the main character’s mother is explaining female agency in a male-dominated tradition. Toula Portokalos, the daughter complains, “Ma, Dad is so stubborn. What he says goes. ‘The man is the head of the house!’” Her mother, Maria Portokalos, then explains, “Let me tell you something, Toula. The man is the head, but the woman is the neck. And she can turn the head any way she wants.” In our Biblical story, Isaac might be “in charge,” but Rebekah has a mind and a variety of techniques to wield in effecting her opinions.
A third way to view this story is less conflictual—at least in terms of the marital dynamic. What if this were not a struggle between Isaac and Rebekah, but rather a strategically orchestrated and mutual plan? The story seems to present the idea that Isaac is fooled by Rebekah’s and Jacob’s chicanery, but there are hints that he is not. When Jacob shows up, all adorned in Esau’s clothing and goat skins on his arms, presenting Isaac with goat disguised as venison, Isaac is surprised at the speediness of the hunt. “How did you succeed so quickly, my son?” Jacob’s response, according to the Midrash, is a dead giveaway: “Because the Lord your God granted me good fortune.” (Genesis 27.20) Esau would never give God the credit for a speedy hunt. He would have bragged about his great skill, and Isaac would have known this about his son. Then is the more obvious tell: Isaac recognizes Jacob’s voice! “The voice is the voice of Jacob, yet the hands are the hands of Esau.” (Genesis 27.22) Then there is a bit of confusion in the text. The Torah says that Isaac “did not recognize him, because his hands were hairy like those of his brother Esau,” but this is unbelievable. Think about it. Is Esau really as hairy as a goat? I have not done an extensive scientific study of human hairiness, but I have seen lots of hairy people—and no one has ever come close to the hairiness of goats. I cannot imagine our shepherd ancestor Isaac being fooled by the goat skins. There is also the matter of a game-lover like Isaac thinking that pastured goat tastes just like wild venison. He would know the difference and would not be fooled. In other words, a case can be built on the notion that Isaac knows whom he is blessing.
Perhaps, then, what we have is a plan shared by Isaac and Rebekah—a plan contrived to explain why they were breaking precedent and awarding the leadership to the “younger” son. There is also the possibility that they are fearful of an angry and violent Esau who will not simply accept their decision. Given that Isaac is infirm—visually impaired and on his death bed (see verses 2-4 of the chapter), he is at Esau’s mercy, and Rebekah is vulnerable because she feels the need to stay near her ailing husband. Only Jacob is in a position to flee the wrath of Esau and then return later. A plan is then hatched: they pretend that Jacob fools old blind Isaac and receives the leadership blessing—and then Jacob can visit the family in Syria until Esau cools down.
Family stories are often messy, and everyone is not always happy. May we manage the many and competing issues in our own families—giving respect and agency to all members and trying to be understanding when things do not go our way.