Disability in the Jewish canon

What do Jewish texts have to say about disabilities? If you've been wondering this, you're not alone. Let's explore the good, the bad, and the ugly of disability in the Jewish canon.

This text gives quite a list! Blindness, lameness, amputation and birth defects, broken bones, scars, illnesses, tumors, and sexual disability all disqualify a Kohen (priest) from giving priestly offerings. In fact, anyone with these disabilities is barred from entering into the central section of the Temple, as their presence will "profane" the sacred dwelling place of G-d.

This text gives an interesting set of comparisons. Priests who have lesions or blotches on their hands, feet, or face cannot give the priestly blessing (🖖), because it may cause the Israelites to do something they aren't supposed to do. This text assumes that it is unavoidable that people would stare at hands with blotches, even those from blue dye, so the only solution is to restrict the priestly duties to people without these blemishes.

The text goes on to add that priests and people from a certain region may not participate in these prayers, as they pronounce alef and ayin the same--an interesting note, since we do that today! Yet apparently the meaning of the prayers is distorted if you don't pronounce the guttural ayin sound... are we speaking Hebrew incorrectly now? Is there only one correct way to speak Hebrew, in order to effectively connect to the Divine?

Note: A "Cushite" is a ancient euphemism for a Black or dark-skinned person.

This text states that we should say a blessing that G-d "has altered His creations" when we see a person with dark skin, a strange-looking face, a disability or an elephant/monkey/owl.

How do you feel about this text's comparison between disability, racial variety, and exotic animals?

Yet, despite all of the problematic ways it talks about disability, the Torah reminds us that we should not be cruel to disabled people. This line adds, "you shall fear/be in awe of your G-d," as if to say that G-d will retaliate on behalf of the disabled.

So, this text is a little harder to parse, as it requires some referential knowledge. Essentially, the mishna says that one who is blind is welcome to participate in blessings and even to learn the Torah portion in their mother tongue rather than in Hebrew. Then, Rabbi Yehuda adds that someone born blind is not required to say the Shema in the morning with the rising sun, because they do not know what they are blessing (and maybe don't even really know when the sun typically rises). Yehuda adds that a blind person is not forbidden from saying the Shema--just not required--because a blind person could still understand the concept of the sun and feel inspired to bless it.

To me, this comes across as a pretty thoughtful accommodation. Blind people may learn Torah in a way that is more accessible to them, and are not required, like others, to say a blessing they may not understand.

When G-d selects Moses to lead the Hebrews out of Egypt, Moses protests that he is slow of tongue- meaning that he has a speech impediment or stutter of some kind. Yet G-d rebukes him: "Who gives humans speech? Who makes them dumb or deaf, seeing or blind? Is it not I?" G-d is aware of Moses's speech disability, and even gave him this disability intentionally, and yet still chooses him to speak for the Hebrews. In this passage, G-d does not seem to care that Moses is disabled- even though later, G-d cares whether a priest is disabled. How can we reconcile the two passages?

And then, to reassure Moses, G-d tells him to go with Aaron, his able-tongued brother, so that Aaron can speak when Moses falters. G-d does not just send Aaron alone. Because Aaron is not Moses: even with a a quick tongue, Aaron does not have what G-d is looking for in this role. Moses is special, despite his disability... Or perhaps because of it?

There are so many ways to read this scene between Jacob and the angel. They wrestle all night long, but as the sun starts to rise, the angel realizes it is not strong enough to win in a fair fight, so the angel breaks Jacob's hip. But Jacob still grapples this angel, because apparently even the most painful injury cannot slow Jacob down. This event forever changes Jacob: he becomes Israel, the angel-wrestler.

The angel injures Jacob's hip, or more literally, the dip in his thigh/loins. If you are already familiar with Jacob, this is a place he has previously and will again in the future that he uses for oath-making:

Why does the angel wound the part of the body that Jacob/Israel uses for oaths?

Perhaps one reading is that an angelic wound is a blessing of sorts. Does it leave a strange, alien scar on Israel's skin? Does the memory of the injury hum with holiness? Or is it more about the intimacy of the positioning- Israel offering the most intimate part of his body as a sign of truthfulness and then wrestling an angel with that same raw honesty?

Either way, there is something special about Israel's wounded leg. Not the only time a disability would define Jacob/Israel's life...

In this scene earlier in Genesis, Isaac is blind or low-vision. Isaac's wife, Rebekah, decides to use this to help Jacob steal Esau's birthright as the firstborn son, by dressing Jacob in furs to imitate Esau's hairy arms.

As a result of his father's disability, Jacob receives a blessing. So, twice in his life, Jacob receives a blessing because of a disability. Isn't it interesting to consider that disabilities could be the source of blessings?

In this final passage for our study today, Elijah the prophet tells Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi that the Messiah can be found sitting among the poor who are ill. Why would the Messiah be hanging out with the poor and sick? What does this tell us?