Pinchas פינחס – It's a Man's World

In parshas Pinchas preparations are made for the second time for the acquisition of the Holy Land. In connection with this the men are registered for military service. Those that are listed will receive a parcel of land which will become an ancestral family holding. Upon hearing this the five daughters of Tslafchad protest. "Why should our father's name be tarnished in his family simply because he had no sons?" they ask, and request that they, his daughters, be given a portion of land along with their father's brothers (Numbers 27:4). In justifying their claim they state that their father died for his own sin and was not among those that rebelled with Korach. The Chumash in introducing the daughters of Tslafchad traces their lineage to Yosef. Their petition is granted, however it is on the condition that they marry a man from their tribe of Menasha, which they in fact fulfill.

The religious point of view is that women are primarily extensions of their husbands and slightly extensions of their fathers. A Jewish woman's prime task is maintaining a house and raising children. A Jewish man's prime task is the pursuit of wisdom of what is right and wrong, as well as being a testimonial to religious values. In connection with this a man's wife is his prime helper especially in earthly affairs. The Mishna lists various work that a woman is obligated to do for her husband which includes cooking, taking care of the children, housework, and making clothes (כתובות ה:ה). The previous Mishna teaches that whatever money a married woman earns comes under the control of her husband. In addition a man is cautioned against giving too much of his wife's work to servants lest she become bored or worse.

A man is greatly exhorted to devote his life to Torah study. To what extent is the subject of a debate in the Gemara Brachos 35b, with Rabbi Shimon taking the extreme point of view that it is to be an exclusive dedication, as it is written:

"Our Rabbis taught: "And thou shalt gather in thy grain" (Devarim 11:14). What is to be learnt from these words? Since it says, "This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth", (Joshua 1:8).  I might think that this injunction is to be taken literally. Therefore it says, "And thou shalt gather in thy grain", which implies that you are to combine the study of them with a worldly occupation. This is the view of R. Ishmael.

R. Shimon bar Yohai says: Is that possible? If a man ploughs in the ploughing season, and sows in the sowing season, and reaps in the reaping season, and threshes in the threshing season, and winnows when there is wind, what is to become of the Torah? Rather when Israel performs the will of the Omnipresent, their work is performed by others, as it says, "others shall stand and feed your flocks"(Isa. 61: 5).. And when Israel does not perform the will of the Omnipresent their work is carried out by themselves, as it says,  "you shalt gather your grain" [you specifically] (Devarim 11:13). Not only that, but you will do the work of others as well, as it says, "thou shalt serve thine enemy" (Deut. XXVIII, 48) .

Said Abaye, "Many have followed the advice of Ishmael and it has worked well while others have followed R. Simeon b.Yohai and it was not been successful."

In the final chapter of Proverbs a woman of valor is praised. She's a hardworking housewife, and excellent business woman, and skilled in handcrafts. She is wise, kind, and faithful. Concerning her husband, he is known and respected and reckoned with the elders of the land. This poem seems to express the ideal.

There also seems to be the idea of inheritance and transfer of mission and of characteristics. At times the Tenach considers an ancestral line to be effectively the same person. The daughters of Tslafchad are traced to Yosef. Based on this the commentaries say that they inherited his love of the land of Israel. They also say that their father died for his own sin and was not a follower of Korach. When Korach and his followers were destroyed not only were they swallowed up by the earth but their households (בתיהם) as well. According to the Ibn Ezra household includes wives, children, and babies. The idea is that not only was Korach's band bad but so too was at least a part of their progeny. In Psalm 109:8 one of the curses in that a person's mission should be taken by someone else. It seems that the daughters of Tslafchad are saying they did not inherit the bad of their father only the good. Therefore his name should remain and they should be the ones to perpetuate it. In addition it is similar to the Levi'im who assumed the mission of the first born based on their superior love of HaKadosh Baruch Hu.

At times the woman is the carrier of the tradition. The popular expression is that behind every great man is a woman. Rabbi Nachman is Breslav is the great grandson of the Baal Shem Tov by way of his mother and grandmother. Rabbi Moshe Tendler has much of the intelligence and character of his father in law, the gadol hador Rabbi Moshe Feinstein. In examining the line of the rebbes of Chabad we see that a number of times leadership was passed to the son in law who was also a relation. At times one will see the rebbitzin sitting in the front row of the shul, and her husband, the rabbi, is leading the congregation just the way she likes it. It seems that at times a daughter will have the merit of her ancestors and will find a man she can shape into the image of her father, particularly if he was a great man.

אזכור הכבוד של תורמים ליד יוסף

אבי מורי פיליפ שרייבר, יוחנן הולצברג, אברהם שמרלר

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