This sheet on Genesis 38 was written by Avi Killip for 929 and can also be found here
Again and again the Torah calls our attention- in both law and story- to the widow. The widow is, categorically, marginal to society and that position makes her vulnerable, but that same marginal status affords her a unique form of power.
We see this unique marginal power play out through biblical images of the widow that appear in both story and law. There are two famous biblical widows-- Tamar and Ruth-- and I will highlight a third, less well known widow, a woman who feeds Elijah in the book of Kings I. Each of these women finds herself on the physical, and metaphorical, outskirts of the community. In the book of Genesis, Tamar sits at a crossroads between towns. Ruth finds herself among the poor, gleaning from the corners of a field. And the unnamed widow in the story in Kings is also found beyond the “gates of the city.”
The women’s physical locations drive home the point that they are indeed marginal to society. Yet, it is precisely these locations on the margins that offer each of them the ability to fly under the radar, break some rules, and become an active player in our biblical stories.
Judah, the patriarch and head of the tribe for which Judaism is named, is able to have sex with Tamar without seeing her or recognizing who she is. This seeming power of invisibility allows Tamar to construct a situation that opens Judah’s eyes to his failures-- the story ends with his declaration that Tamar is “more righteous than I. ” Similarly, Ruth becomes a hero of rabbinic imagination and the primary model after which we design the legal conversion process. Finally, the widow of Kings I is able to feed the prophet Elijah, who otherwise has no access to food. Because of her widowed status, she finds her herself in a unique position to sustain a central Jewish prophet.
Each of these women advance the story of their own narrative, but they also advance the story of the Jewish people. Tamar and Ruth are each designated by the text as ancestors to King David, and thereby to the messiah, who is said to come from the davidic line. And Elijah, we are told, is the prophet who will return to announce the coming of the messiah. Without widows, these stories teach us, we can never reach redemption.
Widows are marginalized and as a result, they need to be cared for, but they are not necessarily weak, pathetic, or powerless -- in fact, living on the margins offers a kind of power. People on the margins play a unique role in the fabric of society.
Today this framework, and the mandate of care that comes with it, may be expanded to include any group of people who are marginal but also empowered: The disability movement, the queer movement, and the women’s movements all embrace and find pride in the ability to cultivate power and make change from not-the-center.
We see this unique marginal power play out through biblical images of the widow that appear in both story and law. There are two famous biblical widows-- Tamar and Ruth-- and I will highlight a third, less well known widow, a woman who feeds Elijah in the book of Kings I. Each of these women finds herself on the physical, and metaphorical, outskirts of the community. In the book of Genesis, Tamar sits at a crossroads between towns. Ruth finds herself among the poor, gleaning from the corners of a field. And the unnamed widow in the story in Kings is also found beyond the “gates of the city.”
The women’s physical locations drive home the point that they are indeed marginal to society. Yet, it is precisely these locations on the margins that offer each of them the ability to fly under the radar, break some rules, and become an active player in our biblical stories.
Judah, the patriarch and head of the tribe for which Judaism is named, is able to have sex with Tamar without seeing her or recognizing who she is. This seeming power of invisibility allows Tamar to construct a situation that opens Judah’s eyes to his failures-- the story ends with his declaration that Tamar is “more righteous than I. ” Similarly, Ruth becomes a hero of rabbinic imagination and the primary model after which we design the legal conversion process. Finally, the widow of Kings I is able to feed the prophet Elijah, who otherwise has no access to food. Because of her widowed status, she finds her herself in a unique position to sustain a central Jewish prophet.
Each of these women advance the story of their own narrative, but they also advance the story of the Jewish people. Tamar and Ruth are each designated by the text as ancestors to King David, and thereby to the messiah, who is said to come from the davidic line. And Elijah, we are told, is the prophet who will return to announce the coming of the messiah. Without widows, these stories teach us, we can never reach redemption.
Widows are marginalized and as a result, they need to be cared for, but they are not necessarily weak, pathetic, or powerless -- in fact, living on the margins offers a kind of power. People on the margins play a unique role in the fabric of society.
Today this framework, and the mandate of care that comes with it, may be expanded to include any group of people who are marginal but also empowered: The disability movement, the queer movement, and the women’s movements all embrace and find pride in the ability to cultivate power and make change from not-the-center.
(יד) וַתָּסַר֩ בִּגְדֵ֨י אַלְמְנוּתָ֜הּ מֵֽעָלֶ֗יהָ וַתְּכַ֤ס בַּצָּעִיף֙ וַתִּתְעַלָּ֔ף וַתֵּ֙שֶׁב֙ בְּפֶ֣תַח עֵינַ֔יִם אֲשֶׁ֖ר עַל־דֶּ֣רֶךְ תִּמְנָ֑תָה כִּ֤י רָאֲתָה֙ כִּֽי־גָדַ֣ל שֵׁלָ֔ה וְהִ֕וא לֹֽא־נִתְּנָ֥ה ל֖וֹ לְאִשָּֽׁה׃
(14) So she took off her widow’s garb, covered her face with a veil, and, wrapping herself up, sat down at the entrance to Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah; for she saw that Shelah was grown up, yet she had not been given to him as wife.
Rabbi Avi Killip serves as VP of Strategy and Programs and Director of Project Zug at Hadar.
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