martillo@mit-athena.ARPA (Joaquim Martillo) (11/22/84)
Since morning blessings and paranoia came up in a single article and since many Jewish feminists have paranoia about Judaism as a patriarchal anti-women religion, posting the opinion of the bnei yisa(s)kar (a nineteenth century hassidic rebbe) is worthwhile (Rabbi Meir Horowitz pointed this opinion out to me during a talmud shi`ur in yibamot). The text says, "And God said -- let us make man in our own in image." Rashi (Rabbi Shlomo Yitshaqi) says God took council with the angels in order to teach modesty. Consequently, saying "that he made me a man" would contradict scripture. All we can be certain is "that he did not make me a woman." But when it comes to the creation of women, "And God made the rib which he took from the man into a woman." God takes no council with anyone. Therefore we are completely certain "than he made [a women] exactly according to his [favorable] desire." The different morning blessings express the merit of women.
smb@ulysses.UUCP (Steven Bellovin) (11/25/84)
The prayer giving thanks that one was not created a woman is part of a threefold group, giving thanks that one was not created a foreigner, a woman, or a slave. By some curious "coincidence", the Greeks had a similar threefold saying. The evidence indicates, in fact, that that prayer entered Judaism as part of the Hellenization of Judaism around 200 B.C.E.
mis@spuxll.UUCP (Meyer Steinberg) (11/26/84)
One the verse in Genesis 2:22 [And G-d make the rib that he took from
then man, into a woman...], the Talmud (I think Nidah 55) comments
that the Hebrew word for "made" used in the verse is "VaYeeven"
which is similiar to "Beenah" the Hebrew word for Understanding, intuition.
That Talmud goes on saying, from this we see woman was given more
intuition ("Beenah Yisayra") than man.teitz@aecom.UUCP (Eliyahu Teitz) (11/28/84)
> The prayer giving thanks that one was not created a woman is part of a > threefold group, giving thanks that one was not created a foreigner, a > woman, or a slave. By some curious "coincidence", the Greeks had a similar > threefold saying. The evidence indicates, in fact, that that prayer entered > Judaism as part of the Hellenization of Judaism around 200 B.C.E. The gemara in Menachot ( I think on page 44, I'M not positive ) lists three blessings which mus be said every day. That I was not made an idolator ( she'lo asani aku"m [ oved kochavim umazalot ]), that I was not made a slave, ( she'lo asani eved ), that I was not made an unlearned person ( she'lo asani am haaretz ). We, because of censorship, changed he first blessing from aku"m to goy, meaning a non-Jew, not a foreigner. The third blessing was also changed ( I don't remember why now but I'll look it up ) and we now say that I was not made a woman ( she'lo asani isha ). It would be interesting if we could find out where we got these blessings from, and if indeed we copied it from some other people. I tend to look rather skeptically at people who think we got everything in our religion from other groups. Why were these necessarily taken from the Greeks? Maybe we had them first. I don't know. Maybe I never will. Does anyone on the net have proof one way or the other ? Eliyahu Teitz.