(א) וַתְּדַבֵּ֨ר מִרְיָ֤ם וְאַהֲרֹן֙ בְּמֹשֶׁ֔ה עַל־אֹד֛וֹת הָאִשָּׁ֥ה הַכֻּשִׁ֖ית אֲשֶׁ֣ר לָקָ֑ח כִּֽי־אִשָּׁ֥ה כֻשִׁ֖ית לָקָֽח׃ (ב) וַיֹּאמְר֗וּ הֲרַ֤ק אַךְ־בְּמֹשֶׁה֙ דִּבֶּ֣ר יהוה הֲלֹ֖א גַּם־בָּ֣נוּ דִבֵּ֑ר וַיִּשְׁמַ֖ע יהוה׃ (ג) וְהָאִ֥ישׁ מֹשֶׁ֖ה עָנָ֣ו מְאֹ֑ד מִכֹּל֙ הָֽאָדָ֔ם אֲשֶׁ֖ר עַל־פְּנֵ֥י הָאֲדָמָֽה׃ {ס}
(1) Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman he married: “He took a Cushite woman!” (2) They said, “Has יהוה spoken only through Moses? Has [God] not spoken through us as well?” יהוה heard it. (3) Now Moses himself was very humble leader, more so than any other human being on earth.
There is more hidden than revealed in this concise passage; only to be followed by a lengthy description of the three siblings being called out, Miriam punished, Aaron somewhat contrite and Moses praying for mercy.
Who was this Cushite woman? Was she Tziporah? Was she a second wife, from the Land of Cush, or a dark skinned woman? Were Miriam and Aaron "gossiping" or judging or complaining about the marriage or the woman?
And what about the second matter? Moshe's unique relationship with God? And why דווקא here do we learn that Moses was the most humble of humans? Which accusation will be the one that will receive punishment?
Only Miriam is punished with a skin disease of white scales. Are the white scales (leprosy) the apt punishment for speaking about a black woman? Moses does not argue with his siblings, he only intervenes, with a most beautiful petitionary prayer, when Miriam's punishment seems too harsh. Did God think the punishment was too harsh? Certainly, Bnai Yisrael were willing to give Miriam a chance to return to the camp, because without taking sides, they waited for her. (Masha Turner, The Torah; A Women's Commentary).
What are we to learn from this story? Is it about the dangers of gossip and jealousy, or a condemnation against racism? Is it about the power of sibling relations that can defy hurt and insult? Does Moses' prayer teach us about the necessity and urgency of prayer?
Or might it be a test of Miriam's leadership? As Miriam has been reclaimed and re-envisioned by Contemporary Feminism, we find this story quite uncomfortable. We prefer Miriam the midwife and protector of Moshe, leader of Women, the dancer, the source of sustenance with her magic well. We cringe at our Miriam, displaying bad behavior, to her own sister-in-law. Wasn't she the ultimate "Big Sister.?" Now suddenly envious of her little brother? Was there a double standard? We know Aaron as being the "conflict-avoider", or peace maker if you prefer? He was not punished for the Golden Calf, was he? Moshe will be punished when he hits the rock in front of all the people, defying God's decree to speak to it. But Aaron and Miriam, pass
(נאספים אל אבות)
in that Parasha Chukat as well, and they too will not reach the Land of Israel.
I prefer to offer that, this is indeed a story about Miriam's moment of humanity and yes, behaving badly. She should have known better. Was she jealous that Moshe (and Aaron) were married? There is no partner for Miriam in our Bible story. Only the midrash will find her husband. One candidate is Calev Ben-Yefuna, whom we will meet next week as one of the 2 scouts, with Yehoshua Bin-Nun. They will bring back a very different description of the Land of Israel, as compared to the other ten scouts. A counter-narrative perhaps.
We live in an age when truth telling, reliable reporting, conflicting narratives are everywhere. Was Miriam telling a different narrative other than the "official" one? Or was she actually concerned about the quality of her brother's marriage, as one midrash speculates.
We also live in an age of the proliferation of lies, libelous declarations and distortions of the truth. That is how a member of the Israeli Knesset, Galit Distel Atbaryan, can hurl the most vicious insults at Reform Rabbi and MK Gilad Kariv, for simply stating that women lay Tefiilin.
Since the current Minister of Education will allow boys to wrap tefillin in secular schools, Kariv wanted to make sure that his daughters can as well.
A shouting match ensued, with Kariv (!) being dragged out of the session and Distel Atbaryan screaming (and I will not repeat her despicable remarks here) except to say she ended with: "Please remove the enlightened Reform man, the Jews here want to continue."
Our foremother made a mistake, but she was willing to pay the price and be punished. Something almost unthinkable today for most leaders. She is still my feminist heroine!
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Rabbi Naamah Kelman was the Dean of HUC-Jerusalem and upon retirement has more time for activism and grandchildren!