Rabbi Howard Morrison

In today's Parsha, Miriam speaks to Aaron against Moses' life choices. "He married a Cushite woman." Our tradition identifies this woman as either Tzipporah, Moses' wife in Exodus, or perhaps a different wife from Egypt. Regardless, this woman is perceived by Miriam as being an outsider, looks different, and is not worthy of marrying Moses or being a member of the Jewish people. Whether it is her religion, color, orientation, or some other supposed fault, her "otherness" is too much for Miriam to accept.

While Judaism is a tradition based on boundaries, sometimes, we become too exclusionary in our attitudes when we need to be more inclusionary. Perhaps this is the lesson Miriam needs to learn in our Parsha today. As we read in the Torah text, Miriam is stricken with Tzaraat, the scaly skin ailment associated with the punishment for slander and gossip. Miriam was shut out of the camp for seven days, and the people did not march forward until Miriam was readmitted. Miriam was forced outside the very boundaries she was attempting to erect and enforce.

Perhaps the seven day exclusion of Miriam was meant to give her time to rethink her attitudes and to transform her experience of exclusion into a lesson of inclusion not only for herself, but for others who identify with the Jewish people, but who may be perceived by themselves or others as being "outsiders." For the Israelite community to move forward, it was not for Moses or his wife, but Miriam who had to temporarily leave the community - a lesson in radical inclusivity.

As we know, June is Pride awareness month. This month and today's Parsha contain lessons that all identified Jews, LGBTQ and otherwise, must know that they are included within the Jewish community. Inclusivity is a lesson for those who perceive themselves as "inside" and those who perceive themselves as "outside" to reflect upon and understand. 

When I was a rabbinical student in New York back in the 1980's, I was troubled that there was a synagogue in lower Manhattan designed specifically for the gay and lesbian Jewish community. I had always thought and still do that a synagogue is for all Jews, unconditionally. Friends who I had made from that particular congregation had taught me that they were all too often made to feel uncomfortable in the so-called normative synagogues and had no choice.

Forty plus years later, how far have we come? Are all Jews welcome in our synagogues regardless of ideology, skin color, sexual persuasion, and otherwise? 

We may do well to understand what Miriam had to understand, in a Biblical story from over 3500 years ago, in which she had to be excluded in order to learn about being included!

Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Howard Morrison