Beit Midrash
- Torah Portion and Tanach
- Vayikra
- Emor
- Three times within the space of just two p’sukim, this unidentified person is referred to as "the son of an Israelite woman." Only after this is her full name finally mentioned: Shlomit bat Divri.
- Rashi says the phrase, "he went among Bnei Yisrael" means he converted. But wasn’t he Jewish already?!
- At no time do we learn why the man was cursing G-d. He is placed in custody until Moshe can consult with Hashem as to what should be done with him. In the end, the verdict of execution by stoning is finally given. Why?
With the help of several midrashim, going back to Shmot, let’s try to put the pieces of this puzzle together.
Chazal say there was only one instance of an illicit liaison between a Jew and an Egyptian during the entire period of Egyptian slavery. That was the case of the Egyptian taskmaster who was involved with Shlomit (there seems to be a dispute as to whether she was a willing partner or was raped). When Shlomit’s husband caught the two together, the Egyptian began to beat him; Moshe saw this & killed the Egyptian (using Hashem’s ineffable name). In any case, a child – the M’kalel - resulted from this union.
The son grows up & he demands a share in the land. He even goes through a conversion (the Siftei Chachamim says that those born before Matan Torah went by the religion of the father). He repeats over & over that his mother is Jewish, from the tribe of Dan, but as he has no paternal tribal Jewish lineage, his plea is denied. Caught in an impossible halachic quandary & feeling abandoned, he finally explodes in anger & curses G-d for his fate.
This complicated case is similar to that of Z’lofchad’s daughters, who also felt disenfranchised & denied their ancestral land. The difference between them & the M’kalel is that the daughters kept their cool, went thru proper procedure & politely petitioned Moshe. So in the end, their petition was vindicated, whereas the M’kalel lost control, lashed out at G-d, and so he was executed.
Life, to be sure, is not always fair – at least in our mortal eyes. But even when we are depressed & dismayed, cursing our fate - & G-d – cannot be the answer. At some point, we must bow to a higher authority & keep our faith.
