Rabbi Howard Morrison

CREATED IN THE IMAGE OF GOD

Rosh Hashanah is commonly referred to as the birthday of the world or the day on which the world was conceived. More specifically, our Sages understand that on Rosh Hashanah, humanity was created, with today commemorating the sixth day of creation, the birth of humanity. In Bereishit, Genesis 1, a strange verse describes the creation of humanity in the following words: "And God created man in God's image; in the image of God, God created man; male and female God created them." What is this verse saying? Was the first person a man? Was the first person a singular entity of man and woman? Was the first entity already two separate human beings, one male and one female? The text is strikingly ambiguous.

In the Midrash, ancient rabbinic interpretation, as in the commentary found in the Etz Hayim Chumash, "The first human being was actually a pair of twins attached to each other, one male and one female. God divided them and commanded them to reunite, to find the other person who will make them complete again, in order to reproduce and attain wholeness."

When we say that humanity, male and female, are created in God's image and likeness, we know that in Jewish tradition we have "many many" different conceptions of God, based on time, place, and circumstance. Some describe God in masculine terms: Our Father, our King, Man of war. Others describe God in feminine terms: The Shechina, feminine in dwelling presence; Compassionate One, from the word Harachaman, literally of the womb. In the second day Haftarah for Rosh Hashanah, God is described as a mother weeping over her exiled children. God is a composite of male and female attributes. So, of course, men and women are created equally in the image and likeness of God. Judaism teaches us that EVERYONE is made in the image of God and should be treated accordingly.

In recent years, we have all heard stories of people, some being members of our own families, who are struggling with their gender identification. There are those individuals who are phenotypically one sex but morphologically the other, or ambiguous. There are people who have complex genetic or biochemical realities that create tensions between their genetic makeup and their apparent gender. Sometimes this is resolved in favor of their genotype and sometimes in favor of their outward gender. Sometimes this resolution changes at puberty. These are hard cases that need nuance, balance, and medical expertise. Of course, every person needs to be dealt with kindness as they seek answers to many religious questions that a gender-ambiguous person has.

Over two thousand years ago, the ancient rabbis were aware of an individual whose sexual characteristics were indeterminate or obscured and whose gender was in a state of doubt, called a TUMTUM.

Over two thousand years ago, the ancient rabbis were aware that someone could display both male and female characteristics, called ANDROGYNOS.

Over two thousand years ago, the ancient rabbis understood that a transition could take place as one aged. A person who was identified as a female at birth but developed male characteristics later on was called AYLONIT.

Over two thousand years ago, the ancient rabbis understood that another transition could take place as one aged. A person who was identified as a male at birth but developed female characteristics later on was called SARIS.

Of course, the ancient rabbis understood male as ZACHAR and female as NEKEVAH.

For the ancient rabbis, these categories were not merely theoretical and abstract. For example, the ANDROGYNOS was not just a thing of the mythic past. The ANDROGYNOS was in fact a recognized gender category in their present, with both, male and female sex organs. The term appears no less than 32 times in the Mishnah and 283 times in the Talmud. Most of these citations consider how Jewish Law applies to one who has both, male and female sexual characteristics.

For example, in Mishnah Bikkurim 4:1, we read explicitly: "The ANDROGYNOS is in some ways like men, and in other ways, like women. In other ways, he is like men and women, and in others, he is like neither men nor women."

That the rabbis recognized non-binary categories of people is clear. That the rabbis were challenged with particular legal applications of Jewish law to non-binary categories of people is also clear. What is remarkable, however, is that over two thousand years ago, our great leaders, teachers, and rabbinic masters recognized a wide array of human diversity. They discussed the matters as reality, with openness, with love, with compassion, with understanding, with sympathy, and with empathy. In other words, the ancient rabbis were remarkably ahead of their time. They recognized and accepted a world of possibilities.

What about us today? Are we judgmental with pre-conceived notions of human diversity? How many of us were aware of the vastness I have shared today from within the canons of sacred Jewish literature? 

It is no accident that the Golden Rule of Judaism, the exact mid-point of the Torah, is the famous expression, "V'Ahavta L'Reacha Kamocha - Love the other as you love yourself (Leviticus 19:18)." Just as you and I do not want to be rejected, alienated, judged, or labeled, we should not do so to others, and definitely not in the name of religion. All people are to be loved and made to feel welcome. 

While the ancient rabbis understood gender to "largely" operate on a binary axis, they clearly understood that not everyone fit binary categories, and they even specified realistic categories for acknowledging specific differences.

May we learn true ideals for today from a tradition of true ideals from thousands of years ago.

I wish everyone Shanah Tovah U'Metukah - A sweet, healthy, good, and peaceful new year.
Rabbi Howard Morrison