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PARASHAT NITZAVIM
DEPENDING ON THEIR MOTHERS
"You are placed this day all of you before the Eternal your
G-d; your heads of your tribes, and your elders, and your Court
officers, with all the men of Israel. Your little ones, your wives,
and your stranger that is in your camp
" (Devarim 29:9-10)
Hirsch notes that it states "your wives", without the
binding word "and". This implies that the wives are not
placed next to their children, but rather the children and the wives
are identical. G-d can only rely on the children as long as He can
trust their mothers. The spiritual future of the children is dependent
on how dedicated the women are to G-d.
SEPARATED IN HOLINESS
According to Malbim the Torah mentioned "Your wives"
in order to highlight that they were standing by themselves and
not mixed together with their husbands. At this holy moment when
Israel entered the covenant with G-d, everyone was positioned separately,
each in his or her own particular place. This was not a time for
a family picnic. Male and female energy was clearly separated. Why
is this segregation so central in Judaism? Why can I not sit at
my husband's side in the place of prayer? Men and women do not have
to separate during all our mundane chores. The Torah does not require
separate men's and women's hours in the store, so why can we not
remain together at our holiest moments?
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Presented by Midreshet B'erot Bat Ayin Wellsprings of Jewish Learning.
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