B'not Ts'lofchad B' (Parashat Mas’ey)
Rabbi David L Kline, 2001
It happened near the end of the Israelite period in the dessert. The unit heads of Gil'ad, which is to say, the elders of the tribe of Gil'ad ben Machir ben Mnasheh ben Yosef, approached Mosheh and the high council of B'nei Yisrael with a complaint. To wit:
"Whereas Yah has commanded m'lord to divy up the whole land by a lottery among the B'nei Yisrael, and
Whereas m'lord was ordered by Yah to give the portion of Ts'lofchad, our brother, to his daughters, and
Whereas these worthy ladies may marry anyone they chose, carrying with them their inheritance and thereby subtracting from the overall value of our tribe.
Therefore they will enrich some other tribe while impoverishing their own. This is not good for the tribe."
Now in order to appreciate this situation we need to keep in mind what happened last week, that is, what happened in last week's Parashat Pinchas. A man named Ts'lofchad ben Chefer ben Gil'ad ben Machir ben M'nasheh ben Yosef died, leaving behind five daughters: Machlah, Noa, Choglah, Milkah, and Tirtsah, aged 16 down to 8. They were bright and talented and even little Tirtsah had learned Im Eyn Ani Li Mi Li from Noa, who was like the song leader.
The problem was that in those days only sons were permitted to inherit both property and family name, and Ts'lofchad had only daughters. So widely accepted was the practice of male dominance in this matter that people had come to believe that it was God's will.
The sisters frequently talked among themselves about how unfair it was that only boys could be heirs. Choglah had what some people call a lawyer head, that is she analyzed problems and generally saw a good solution. She had an idea and told it to Machlah, the eldest and they decided to give it a try.
All five dressed themselves in their Shabbat finest and stood in a line near the assembly of Mosheh and the high council. By custom. any Israelite could approach the council session with an idea or a question. Neither Mosheh nor the sitting elders had ever before seen such a dignified group of young people, and they were women to boot! They had been deep in discussion but they stopped talking out of surprise. A few moments later, Moshe beckoned the five to approach.
Machlah introduced herself and her sisters, Noa, Choglah, Milkah, and Tirtsah, concluding with their geneological name: b'not Ts'lofchad ben Chefer ben Machir ben M'nasheh ben Yosef. Anyone would have to admit that this was an impressive name.
"Our father Ts'lofchad died last month and we are his survivors. We miss our dad terribly and so do all who knew him, for he was generous and helpful an a friend to many people. But his good name will surely be lost to history unless you can do something new. Why should our father's name disappear from his family just because he had no son. Give us his portion among his brothers."
"Hmmmmmm," said Mosheh. Then he had one of those storied moments with God and reported it as follows: "Yah says Ts'lofchad's daughters speak right. Let there be given to them their father's portion among his brothers. Let them be full heirs. And let it be known among Israel that if a man dies without a son, his daughters shall inherit."
Well, what do you think happens when a step in the right direction comes about because of the efforts of five young people? What about all those who had hued to the customary wrong headed path? Especially the elders? Doubts, worries, and fears, and so the elders of Gil'ad and their complaint this week. Even Mosheh wasn't so sure about giving women equal freedom and responsibility. He listened to all those whereas's and the therefore, and said his usual "Hmmmmmm." He held out the "mmmmm" till he was certain of the answer:
"Yah says the tribe of the B'nei Yosef speaks right. Here's what Ts'lofchad's daughters must do: they may marry anyone who pleases them but they must select men only from among their ancestral tribe."
And that's what Machlah, Noa, Choglah, Milkah, and Tirtsah, b'not Ts'lofchad did. They all married their first and second cousins and they enriched their family and tribe. Eleh hamitsvot v'hamishpatim asher tsivah Yah b'yad Mosheh el B'nei Yisrael b'arvot Moav al Yarden Yericho.
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