As we are celebrating the Pride in Brussels this week, let's start Shavouot studies with LGBTQI questions in Jewish Text. Open to anyone with or without any knowledge! Let's keep the discussion active and interesting. After each part of the text study, we will bake a cheesecake to all enjoy at the end of the event.
Ingredients for a Good Shavouot:
- 400g package speculos, crushed
- 3 eggs, separated
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 250g sour cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 (250g) package cream cheese, softened
- 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
- One Delphine Horvilleur
- One Abby Stein
- One Sefaria
PART I - CHECKING THE BASE
COOKING TIME!
GENESIS: The base.
- Preheat an oven to 175 degrees C. Wrap the exterior of an 8-inch springform pan with aluminum foil, then spray the interior with cooking spray. Spread the speculos crumbs over the bottom and sides of the pan, pressing firmly to adhere.
וַיִּבְרָ֨א אֱלֹהִ֤ים ׀ אֶת־הָֽאָדָם֙ בְּצַלְמ֔וֹ בְּצֶ֥לֶם אֱלֹהִ֖ים בָּרָ֣א אֹת֑וֹ זָכָ֥ר וּנְקֵבָ֖ה בָּרָ֥א אֹתָֽם׃
(27) And God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them.
(יח) וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ יי אֱלֹהִ֔ים לֹא־ט֛וֹב הֱי֥וֹת הָֽאָדָ֖ם לְבַדּ֑וֹ אֶֽעֱשֶׂהּ־לּ֥וֹ עֵ֖זֶר כְּנֶגְדּֽוֹ׃ (כא) וַיַּפֵּל֩ יי אֱלֹהִ֧ים ׀ תַּרְדֵּמָ֛ה עַל־הָאָדָ֖ם וַיִּישָׁ֑ן וַיִּקַּ֗ח אַחַת֙ מִצַּלְעֹתָ֔יו וַיִּסְגֹּ֥ר בָּשָׂ֖ר תַּחְתֶּֽנָּה׃ (כב) וַיִּבֶן֩ יי אֱלֹהִ֧ים ׀ אֶֽת־הַצֵּלָ֛ע אֲשֶׁר־לָקַ֥ח מִן־הָֽאָדָ֖ם לְאִשָּׁ֑ה וַיְבִאֶ֖הָ אֶל־הָֽאָדָֽם׃ (כד) עַל־כֵּן֙ יַֽעֲזָב־אִ֔ישׁ אֶת־אָבִ֖יו וְאֶת־אִמּ֑וֹ וְדָבַ֣ק בְּאִשְׁתּ֔וֹ וְהָי֖וּ לְבָשָׂ֥ר אֶחָֽד׃
(18) And the LORD God said: ‘It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make a help meet for him.’ (21) And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the place with flesh instead thereof. (22) And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from the man, He made into a woman, and brought her unto the man. (24) Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife, and they shall be one flesh.
TIME FOR QUESTIONS!
With your partner, discuss the following questions:
1/ Was this text known to you already?
2/ How do you understand the sentence "male and female created He them."
3/ Why do you think the same episode is told twice? What difference do you see in the two ways of telling the story?
4/Which symbol do you see in the Rib taken?
Extract from Delphine Horvilleur's Book "En tenue d'Eve"
TRANSLATION OF THE SELECTED TEXT
According to this thesis, developed especially in the main book of Jewish mysticism, the Zohar, the first Adam is a model of androgynous humanity, a bearer of both genres. This is the literal reading of the verse: "male and female he created them". A man with two faces and two genders would have been created in one body.
The rib also raises another question that deserves exegesis: why does the break affect only a lateral bone? Why would this separated feminine, the Eve in becoming, be precisely born from this part of the anatomy? And if all this was a misunderstanding with gigantic repercussions? And if it was just a wrong translation?
The Hebrew word used in Genesis and translated as "rib" in most Bible editions is "Tzela". But this word, used elsewhere in the Bible, is always translated as "side" and not "rib".
So God plunged the first Adam into sleep to separate the female side - and not the rib - from the male side. The difference in translations may seem trivial but it has serious repercussions.
TIME FOR QUESTIONS!
With your partner, discuss the following questions:
1/ What do you think about Delphine Horvilleur's writing about the translation possibilities?
2/ Does it change your approach to the text above?
PART 2 - INCORPORATE THE TALMUD
BUILD UP THE REFLECTION
COOKING TIME!!!
- Cream together the egg yolks and sugar in a large bowl. Stir in the cream cheese, sour cream, and vanilla extract until smooth. Beat egg whites until foamy in a large glass or metal mixing bowl. Add the cream of tartar, continuing to beat until stiff peaks form. Lift your beater or whisk straight up: the egg whites should form a sharp peak that holds its shape.
- Use a rubber spatula or wire whisk to fold 1/3 of the egg whites into the cream cheese mixture . Gently run the spatula through the center of the bowl, then around the sides of the bowl, repeating until fully incorporated. Add the remaining egg whites, folding just until incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared springform pan. Line a roasting pan with a damp kitchen towel. Place springform pan on towel, inside roasting pan, and place roasting pan on oven rack. Fill roasting pan with boiling water to reach halfway up the sides of the baking dish.
- Bake in the preheated oven for about 50 minutes. The cheesecake is ready when the edges have nicely puffed and the surface of the cheesecake is firm except for a small spot in the center that will jiggle when the pan is gently shaken. Turn off the oven, and allow the cheesecake to rest in the oven for 1 hour before placing into the refrigerator, and cooling 4 hours to overnight.
(ה) לֹא־יִהְיֶ֤ה כְלִי־גֶ֙בֶר֙ עַל־אִשָּׁ֔ה וְלֹא־יִלְבַּ֥שׁ גֶּ֖בֶר שִׂמְלַ֣ת אִשָּׁ֑ה כִּ֧י תוֹעֲבַ֛ת יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ כָּל־עֹ֥שֵׂה אֵֽלֶּה׃ (פ)
(5) A woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man, neither shall a man put on a woman’s garment; for whosoever doeth these things is an abomination unto the LORD thy God.
CROSS DRESSING: Talmud & Rachi's views.
• The Talmud says that what is prohibited is falsifying identity for the purpose of spying on the other sex. The great medieval commentator Rashi says that the prohibition is limited to concealing identity for the purpose of adultery. The Shulhan Arukh notes that cross-dressing is permitted on Purim because its purpose is simha (celebration, joy) and that it is forbidden if it is for the purpose of fraud. In limiting the prohibition to situations of fraud and deception, the talmudic and medieval rabbis indicated that cross-dressing in a way that is true to the cross-dresser’s identity is permitted.
(www.jewishrecon.org)
Time for Questions! (You know what to do)
1/ What do you think about Rashi's comment?
2/ Did it change the way you approached the original text?
PART III - TEXT TASTING,
HOW TO DISCOVER A NEW TEXT
HOW TO APPROACH TEXT? Rabbi Horvilleur to the Rescue
When some people still quote the indisputable writing, it is useful to remember that a text is sacred if one accepts that his message is not closed by its primary meaning, and if one refuses instrumentalization.
In this, the rigorous reading of religious sources is the one that requires the most flexibility. It is also the one that raises the most complex theological questions:
What are the verses whose literal truth we perceive as timeless?
Who are we to approach more humbly still?
An honest reading may be to never let the source be kidnapped by a priori, not to allow the text to be reduced to one of the senses, or to indecency.
Comment lire les textes? Rabbi Horvilleur à la rescousse
Quand certains aujourd’hui encore citent l’écrit indiscutable, il est utile de rappeler qu’un texte est sacré si l’on accepte que son message n’est pas clôturé par son sens premier, et si l’on se refuse à l’instrumentaliser. En cela, la lecture rigoureuse des sources religieuses est celle qui demande le plus de souplesse. Elle est aussi celle qui soulève les questions théologiques les plus complexes : Quels sont les versets dont nous percevons la vérité littérale comme intemporelle ? Quels sont ceux qui nous faut approcher plus humblement encore ?Une lecture honnête consiste peut-être à ne jamais laisser la source être kidnappée par un a priori, à ne pas permettre au texte d’être réduit ni à l’un des sens, ni à l’indécence.
שער הגלגולים, הקדמה ט'
גם דע, כי לפעמים יתגלגל האיש בגוף נקבה, לסבת איזה עון, כמו משכב זכור וכיוצא בו. והנה הנקבה הזאת שהיא גלגול נשמת זכר, אינה יכולה לקבל הריון ולהתעבר.
והנה האשה הזאת צריכה זכות גדול לשתוכל להתעבר ולהוליד, ואין לה מציאות אחר, זולתי שתתעבר בה איזו נשמת אשה נקבה אחרת בסוד העבור.
אמנם אי אפשר לה ללדת בנים זכרים לשתי סבות, האחת היא, לפי שהכתוב אומר, אשה כי חזריע וילדה זכר, אבל כאן האשה היא זכר כבעלה, ואינה יכולה ללדת זכרים אלא נקבות. הסבה הב' היא, לפי שכיון שאותה נשמה של הנקבה שנכנסה בה, לא נכנסה רק בסוד העבור לבד, כדי לסייעה שתתעבר ותלד, ולכן כיון שהאשה הזאת יולדת, אין הנשמה ההיא צריכה עוד להשאר שם בסוד העבור ללא צורך, ואז בעת שיולדת נכנס בה הנשמה ההיא של סוד העבור, ואז הולד ההוא יוצא נקבה ולא זכר:
Sha'ar Hagilgulim, Chapter 9
Sometimes a man may reincarnate into the body of a woman because of a sin, such as homosexuality or something similar. This woman who has received the soul of a man will not be able to conceive and become pregnant
This woman will need great merit to enable her to become pregnant and give birth. The only way it can be done is that some other feminine soul must enter her as an ibur.
However, she cannot give birth to sons for two reasons. The first is [as follows:] There is a verse that says, "…If a woman puts forth seed, and a male child is born" (Lev. 12:2). In this case, the woman is a male, just like her husband. She cannot give birth to boys, but only to girls.
The second reason is that the feminine soul that has entered her does so only as an ibur in order to help her become pregnant and give birth. Once this woman gives birth, that soul does not need to stay there any longer for no reason. At the time that she gives birth, that [feminine] soul enters into the fetus as an actual gilgul, and not as an ibur, like it was at first. That is why the child that is born must be female and not male.
ספר רזין דאורייתא, בשם הרבי ר' מיכל מזלאטשוב
אולם הכוונה, דנודע אשר יצחק נולד בנשמת נוקבא, וכמו שכתב בעל אור החיים הק', ועל ידי העקדה היה לו נשמת דכר להשפיע. ועל פי זה מובן למה לא נמצא באדם יותר עקרה מאשר מבבהמה, אשר בפסוק נשתוו זה לזה בברכה, לא יהיה בך ובבהמתך עקר ועקרה, רק זאת נודע סדר הגלגולים. ולפעמים נקבה תסובב גבר כי בסבת הגלגול נשמת נקבה תבוא בזכר, כאשר י'תרעם ה'גלגל ו'יתרעש ה'חוזר לבוא בגלגול שני ושלישי. ואם נקבה אשר תסובב בגבר, שני נקבות אינם מולידים, רק עח ידי מעשי הטוב מחליפין הנשמה, וליצחק החליפו הנשמה. לפיכך לו ולא לה, כי יצחק היה צריך לאותו דבר ולא רבקה:
18th Century Hasidus
It is known that when Issac was born, he was born with the soul of a female, as it is written in Or Hachaim, and through the akeidah (binding of Issac) he got a male soul that can influence (meaning, can impregnate). [With that we can understand why they more infertile humans than animals, even though that they both got the same blessing "It will not be within you and within your animals infertility".] But, this is known according to the Sod (Secret/Mysticism) of reincarnation - that at times, a female would be in a male body, because in the reasons of gilgal (reincarnation) the soul of a female would come to be in a male. ... that is why it says by Issac that Hashem answered to him and not to her (Rebecca), because he needed divine help to be bale to have kids.
Translation by Abby Stein
Time for questions!
Following the previous approaches on text. How would you approach this texts? What would you take from it?
A couple of definitions... just for Information.
Cisgender: Types of gender identity where an individual's experience of their own gender matches the sex they were assigned at birth.
Gender identity: The sense of “being” male, female, genderqueer, agender, etc. For some people, gender identity is in accord with physical anatomy. For transgender people, gender identity may differ from physical anatomy or expected social roles. It is important to note that gender identity, biological sex, and sexual orientation are separate and that you cannot assume how someone identifies in one category based on how they identify in another category.
Intersex: A person whose sexual anatomy or chromosomes do not fit with the traditional markers of "female" and "male." For example: people born with both "female" and "male" anatomy (penis, testicles, vagina, uterus); people born with XXY.
Queer: 1) An umbrella term sometimes used by LGBTQA people to refer to the entire LGBT community. 2) An alternative that some people use to "queer" the idea of the labels and categories such as lesbian, gay, bisexual, etc. It is important to note that the word queer is an in-group term, and a word that can be considered offensive to some people, depending on their generation, geographic location, and relationship with the word.
source www.stop-homophobia.com