Saturday, September 03, 2005

Prologue to the Midrash

“Gentlewomen, it’s clear that we’ve all been victims of this editorial process called life. We’ve been left out and written out, disappeared, died, and been overshadowed (and not by the Holy Spirit!). Only a few of our stories have been told, and even then only in part, and only from the point of view of the men to whom we related or the men to whom the story was relayed. The whole of the people of Israel, and I dare say the whole world, has suffered and suffers still from the permanent lack and loss of our distinctive voices. Something essential about the character of God and the image of God has been tragically lost. For our own sake and for the sake of humanity, no longer should we allow what men say about us to be the final word!”

- Leah, to her fellow foremothers
(Suzanne Shaw, “Letters to the Editor of Genesis”)

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