 |
|
 |
Parshat Vayishlach
2000
The Rape of Dinah
Sometimes the most difficult circumstances demand difficult choices. The kidnapping, seduction, and rape of Dinah sent shockwaves throughout the family of Jacob. Leah's daughter was in the hands - literally and figuratively - of a man called Shechem, the son of Chamor, the powerful leader of the Hivite clan. Curiously, Jacob's own reaction was initially one of silence and passivity. Jacob's sons had a different approach: The despicable act could not be tolerated! (Genesis 34:5&7)
With great chutzpah, Chamor and Shechem offered a peace plan, which proposed that Shechem marry his victim (Dinah), and that Jacob allow his family - the future Jewish people – to intermarry with the Hivites. Bizarre as the accord sounds, not a word is heard from Jacob. Instead, his sons present a counterproposal whereby Chamor and Shechem and the entire Hivite male population undergoes circumcision in order for the peace plan to work. Indeed, both sides had ulterior motives. Chamor and Shechem planned to take over the property of Jacob (Genesis 34:23), while Jacob's children anticipated attacking the Hivites, even as they suggested the circumcision plan.
(Bereshit Raba Midrash)
Picture the scene: some eight hundred men and boys recuperating from their circumcisions. The third day is the most painful (so I'm told). That's when the healing begins. Silently, in a swift and stealthy manner, two of Jacob's sons, Shimon and Levi, enter the city, and kill every male, including Chamor and Shechem. Then they rescue their sister Dinah, and leave. What drama!
But Jacob does not award them the medal of valor. Instead he admonishes them for giving him a bad reputation among the Canaanites and Perizites. Jacob worries that his small group is no match against a unified enemy attack. "My family and I will be wiped out," bemoans Jacob. (Genesis 34:30)
But Shimon and Levi hold their position and defend their actions. "Should he (Shechem or anyone) treat our sister like a prostitute?"(Genesis 34:31)
The argument ends. The brothers get the last word, however a tense debate over the appropriate response to anti-Semitism will continue for millennia: to remain quiet in the face of violent attack, hoping for calm and coexistence? Or to speak up, with words and with weapons, against persecution and terror? Thus, Jacob remains emotionally distant from his sons Shimon and Levi. And the argument is never fully resolved.
Torah Navigator
1. Dinah was first spotted by Shechem while hanging out with the Hivite young women. What was Dinah's motivation for socializing with them?
2. Under what circumstances would one be prepared to kill? Were Shimon and Levi justified?
3. What precedence is established through the Jacob-Shimon/ Levi argument? How does this play itself out in Jewish history?
A Final Thought
One cannot help but draw parallels between the drama of the parsha and the current situation in Israel. Among Jews here, many approaches are tabled. We feel that a trust has been violated. Now the question is: What do we do about it? Jacob is concerned about world opinion and violent reprisal. Shimon and Levi believe that without a tough militant response, a vulnerable Israel is continually subject to attack.
What do you think?
Prepared by Rabbi Shmuel Bowman, Director, The Ellin Mitchell Hillel Program Tel Aviv University
|
 |
|
 |