Interfaith Marriage Creates Confusion for the Children
This week’s portion includes laws regarding the holidays as well as restrictions and instructions to the priests. The final section of the portion, however, begins with a rather unusual story:
Now an Israelite woman’s son, whose father was an Egyptian, went out among the people of Israel. And the Israelite woman’s son and a man of Israel fought in the camp, and the Israelite woman’s son blasphemed the Name, and cursed. Then they brought him to Moses. His mother’s name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan. (Leviticus 24:10-11)
The people then awaited God’s judgment of this man and it was swift indeed. God commands Moses to have this man stoned and then instructs Moses that the penalty for cursing God is death.
Following this story and the accompanying instruction is a series of punishments for various injuries. What I found particularly unusual in this section, however, is that the listing of laws for the various personal injuries, for murder and for cursing God, is embedded in an actual incident. And when the instructions are concluded, Scripture concludes with the actual implementation of the punishment, the stoning, in the particular incident described.
The story itself is told in an unusual way. We don’t know the name of the man who has cursed God but we know that his mother is an Israelite while his father is Egyptian. What is the relevance of this description? We are also told the name of his mother and her tribal affiliation. Why is this relevant?
The Midrash and later commentaries noted these difficulties. Rashi, the classic 11th century commentator draws from Midrashic sources to explain the entire situation. The man in question is the child of a mixed marriage – an Israelite mother and an Egyptian father. His mother’s name is listed in order to clarify her status – she has a family and is a member of the tribe of Dan. However, the tribal affiliation of a man is based on his father’s tribe and since this man’s father is an Egyptian, he is left without a tribal identity.
The Midrash fills in the details, based on these facts as mentioned in Scripture, as follows: The man in question wants to pitch his tent with the tribe of Dan but they don’t accept him since he is not of their tribe. He argues with a man of the tribe and they approach Moses for judgment. Moses decides against him – he is a man with no tribal status, as his father is not an Israelite. The man is furious and curses God. The result is fatal.
The personal status of the curser as described in the Scripture and as explained further by the Midrash is a difficult one indeed. The Midrash further points out that he has chosen to affiliate with the Jewish people, as noted by the words “among the people of Israel” (Leviticus 24:10). But he cannot invent a tribe for himself. Without an Israelite father, that tribal status is missing. For the generation which left Egypt and the next generation which will enter the Land of Israel, this status is critical for it determines the right to territory in the Land of Israel.
Of course none of this justifies cursing God, but it does present a profound understanding of the need for national identity and the difficulties which arise when there is a mixed marriage. National identity matters. And in Biblical times, tribal identity mattered. A man whose heritage is mixed is a troubled and frustrated man. It is no coincidence that it is this man who has cursed God. For he has not found himself in God. He is not sure of who he is and, therefore, he is unable to accept his place among God’s people.
Perhaps if the man in question had truly felt a part of the Jewish people and accepted his identity as an Israelite, he would not have cursed God but would have asked Moses to help him find an appropriate solution. But in cursing God, he also proved that he hadn’t fully shed his Egyptian identity.
In the modern world, when nationality is a much more fluid concept than it used to be, and people immigrate from country to country, mixed marriage is a rarely used term. But in Judaism, it is still critical. Judaism is not just a religion – it is a nationality. And it is a faith community. The child of a mixed marriage between a Jew and a non-Jew will always be confused, will lack a clear identity and will have trouble relating to God for he will not be coming to God as a member of one community.
Shabbat Shalom,
Sondra Baras
Director, Israel Office
CFOIC Heartland
Thanks for the lesson
I enjoy reading and listening to articles from you Sondra. You explain clearly, the interesting elements I have not been aware of as a non Jew. I learn much that I can meditate on in my quiet times. Thank you.
While I will not disagree with scripture I will not fully agree with the statement that those of mixed marriages will always be confused, as I read of Ruth from Moab who demonstrated greater devotion to the God of Israel than many of the Hebrews of that day. While Ruth may be an exception I would presume if there be one exception there will be others as well. The words of Ruth “Your God will be my God” says it all and that is the position of the statement and then the life must follow that statement.
There is also Rahab the harlot who entertained the spies in Jericho. I believe she eventually became King David’s ancestor. Nevertheless, the issue of tribal or national identity is important. This Scripture demonstrates to me that the Egyptian was, to all intents and purposes engaging in falsehood. There is a price to be paid in changing our identity and he clearly was unprepared, or ill-equipped to pay that price. In Christian circles, there is a statement: ‘be ye not unequally yoked (with an unbeliever).
Always enjoy!! Thanks for your unstinting the Word!!
Looking at this teaching, and some of the comments that follow, I am aware of the modern tendency to down ply national identity. The issue, for me, however, is not so much that of identity, as to whether the cost of the Egyptian wanting to be part of Israel was prepared to be paid, by the Egyptian (I do not mean financial but personal cost). I have known people who became ‘proselyte’ Jews who went through quite an initiating process, which they were prepared to undergo. Also with Christians, I have a wariness of ‘conversions’ that are too simply done, and wonder what is the state of the heart of the individual concerned. The Egyptian’s heart was clearly not right; if it was, he would not have, presumably, ‘lost it’ and cursed God. Everything about Faith is, ultimately, a matter of the heart and heart attitudes.
As always, thank you for your knowledge and teachings. I love how the written word and the spoken teachings are different. They are all contained in the reading. The written portion is permanent, and the spoken portion is fluid, from year to year. Thanks for the inspiration. May God continue to bless you and your family and nation.
The mixed marriages in my church here are not completely happy. There is always a distance between the believer and the unbeliever.
Thanks for sharing and the understanding of the situation.
By the way my wife is no longer among the living as she has gone home. She is missed