D’Var Torah – Parashat Acharei Mot

achareiGeorge Gazarek gave this d’var Torah on May 6.

This weeks Torah portion comes from Leviticus chapters 16 to 18 and is named Acharei Mot (אחרי מות), two words that mean “after the death.” The title comes from the first words of the first verse of the reading, which say, “Now the LORD spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron.” Leviticus 16 describes the Tabernacle ceremony for the holy festival of the Day of Atonement. Leviticus 17 establishes general rules for sacrifice and sanctuary. Leviticus 18 lays down specific laws about permitted and forbidden sexual relationships including the infamous verse 22, “Do not lie with a male as one lies with a woman; it is an abhorrence.”

In response to numerous anti-LGBT laws being introduced, and in many cases passed, at the state level, the leadership of the Union for Reform Judaism, the Central Conference of American Rabbis, the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, the North American Federation of Temple Youth, and the American Conference of Cantors issued the following statement on May 2, 2016:

“As leaders in the Reform Jewish Movement, we are deeply troubled by the sharp rise in legislation being proposed and in too many cases passed at the state level that affirms rights to discriminate against the LGBT community. We are especially concerned that such legislation is often falsely justified by appeals to religious freedom rights.
We know personally and professionally how the United States, through our Constitution and laws, has protected, ensured and enhanced religious freedom and religious diversity. Such freedom has allowed the Jewish people – and people of all faiths – to flourish in this country to a degree nearly unmatched anywhere else in the world. As Jews remain a religious minority in every state, we also know the importance of maintaining a balance between religious freedom and the many other rights and freedoms that define who we are as Americans. Any laws that aim to impinge on or imperil an individual’s fundamental dignity and humanity must be rejected.

Over the past few weeks, legislation has been introduced and/or become law in Georgia, North Carolina, Mississippi and Tennessee, to name only a few states, that would, in all or in part:
Irrevocably tilt the balance in favor of religious freedom against laws that protect against discrimination, without even the opportunity to assess the appropriate equilibrium for each situation; 
Permit taxpayer-funded discrimination, especially in employment; and
Target LGBT people by overturning existing non-discrimination protections, or render this community even more vulnerable, such as by barring transgender or gender-nonconforming people using facilities of the gender with which they identify.
We stand united against these proposals, and any similar legislation at the state or federal level. These bills defy our values as Reform Jews and as Americans. In this Passover season, as we celebrate liberation and redemption around our seder tables and in our communities, we are obligated to taste maror, the bitter herb, to feel the oppression that the Israelites faced in Egypt. The story, rituals and values of Passover remind us of the many people in our society who still know the bitterness of reprehensible discrimination, and that we must act to ensure that all people are treated equally, with dignity and respect.

That such harmful state-level bills are being introduced clearly demonstrates the need for federal non-discrimination protections for the LGBT community. We call on Congress to pass the Equality Act, which would explicitly prohibit discrimination in employment, housing, public accommodations, federal funding, education, credit, and jury selection based on sexual orientation and gender identity. These long-overdue protections for the LGBT community would bring us closer to wholeness, justice and peace for all people.”
The letter was signed by the leaders of the five organizations.

How are we to reconcile this position with the 209th Mitzvah in Leviticus 18:22? I think we might find some guidance to resolving our dilemma in our celebration of Mother’s Day. My mother, of blessed memory, had three sons. With all due respect to my mother, a monarch butterfly, after a single mating, can lay up to 800 eggs. An endangered Atlantic Sturgeon, I recently learned from my visit to the Chalk Point Generating Station Aquaculture Center, can lay 800,000 to 3.75 million eggs in a single year. Not all female specie are as prolific.

There was a young lady in my B’nai Mitzvah class from 2005 to 2007 who had been battling cancer for many years. She was in constant pain and would break down in tears on numerous occasions, not knowing if she would live long enough to complete the class. One evening, she approached me during the break. She wanted to know if I thought she was going to hell because she could not have any children. She was thinking of the very first mitzvah from Genesis, to be fruitful and multiply. Because of the cancer, she was unable to give birth.

I told her that I didn’t believe in hell and that I was sure God would welcome her with all the warmth and love she deserved. I went on to say that I believed the mitzvah to be fruitful and multiply was very situational to the early days of creation where God wanted to populate the Earth. I was confident that if God came down to Earth today and saw the overpopulation in many of our cities, He would say, “Enough already.” “Stop being so fruitful.” She seemed at peace with that answer and thanked me for my words of comfort.

Isn’t it possible that our 209th mitzvah falls in the same category and was driven by God’s desire to populate the Earth? If the Torah were anti-homosexual, it would have also prohibited a woman from lying with another woman, but it didn’t. It was focused on getting the Earth populated and prohibited the wasting of seed that could have contributed to population growth.

I believe our Reform Jewish leaders have taken the right position. I admire them for standing up to bigotry, discrimination, and hatred. I pray that each of us may have the strength to do the same.
Shabbat Shalom!