The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, "Phinehas, son of Eleazar son of Aaron the priest, has turned back My wrath from the Israelites by displaying among them his passion for Me, so that I did not wipe out the Israelite people in My passion. Say, therefore, 'I grant him My pact of friendship. It shall be for him and his descendants after him a pact of priesthood for all time, because he took impassioned action for his God, thus making expiation for the Israelites.'"
Phinehas won expiation for the Israelites and a pact of priesthood for his descendants. Phinehas here served the Lord’s will very well, he fought against the idolatrous Israelites with zeal and passion. Phinehas showed a good model for all of us. Those who serve God must learn to take an impassioned action for the Lord. This is also true to religious or people who consecrate themselves to God. Vows made during profession is not merely compliance of the Canon, but it is our way of taking an impassioned action for God, that we will dedicate our whole lives in following the Lord’s will. Obedience must be like Phinehas obedience that he must take ‘action’ to what the Lord wishes for him to do. Imagine Phinehas a Jew killing another Jew, this would really hurt him, or confuse him, this is what we call brutal. We might wish a lighter punishment. I hope it was a lighter punishment. We could even ask: is it justifiable that you kill someone because he made a sin? Was it really God’s will? Was he a fundamentalist or something – a bigot? However, the point that God wanted to make (or I hope he does) is that when you do something, you do it with diligence, from the heart and not a mere observance to the rule. God did rewarded him not because he killed someone but he did something with zeal and passion, he understand that Phinehas lived in time which had a different mindset, and that this story reminds the Jews that when we wish to serve the Lord do it not on a minimal level but to use all our energy in giving it up to him.
And the Lord said to Moses, “The plea of Zelophehad's daughters is just: you should give them a hereditary holding among their father's kinsmen; transfer their father's share to them. "Further, speak to the Israelite people as follows: 'If a man dies without leaving a son, you shall transfer his property to his daughter. If he has no daughter, you shall assign his property to his brothers. If he has no brothers, you shall assign his property to his father's brothers. If his father had no brothers, you shall assign his property to his nearest relative in his own clan, and he shall inherit it.' This shall be the law of procedure for the Israelites, in accordance with the Lord's command to Moses."
Zelophehad had died because of his own sin[1] but had left no son, so his daughters went to Moses if they could inherit Zelophehad’s right of property. We assume that in time of Moses women are second class citizen, not only in Jewish tradition but also in other cultures (e.g. read Plato’s republic – women had no legal personhood in Athens). Women’s struggle (all over the world) over their rights would last even up to this day. Going back to Zelophehad’s daughters we could see an existing movement toward a society that concerns women’s right. However, let us not also immediately assume that Israelites do not recognize completely the role of women. Miriam played a great role during their exile as spiritual nourishment for the Israelites. However, their role in such society is not yet elaborate and limited. When Zelophehad daughters brought the case to Moses he did not simply dismiss the matter because he understood the ‘problem’, Moses may be thinking: who has the right over the land of Zelophehad? Unsure of the solution to the situation, he immediately consulted God. The Lord immediately approved the appeal and had made it to a Law.
If we look closely to the text we can see that the case was brought by the daughters themselves. Feminist movement is not done by their male counterparts it always brought up by ‘fearless women’ who assert their rights as equal citizens in society. Imagine if women would not fight for their right maybe even up to this time we would work on a worldview that women are just handmaids to men – maybe Ateneo would be an all boys school and LST would not have women professors. In most Arab nations wherein women’s role in society is still underplayed, women are not allowed to have liberal stand against their male counterparts and would not even allowed to have drivers license, have also stories of their own. Last month we heard that women went and started to drive to tell the government: “We too have rights!” This actions made by women are not simply act of rebellion but an act to fight for one’s right – a human act!
Laws are not static. In the text we could see that laws can be flexible to the needs of time, when situation arise laws maybe insufficient, laws does not guarantee that all needs of the society will be given. Human laws that govern our society must adapt to the needs of time. In the text, we could see that God did not say: “This people have no right to question what I have given them” but it was considered and that they have created a law to serve the needs of the women.
After Zelophehad’s daughters appeal to Moses, we could see a new leadership in the pilgrim people of God. Joshua was now chosen as the new leader of Israel. Moses is old and he won’t be able to enter the promised land thus, the Israelites need a new leader capable of leading the stubborn Israelites. The Lord did not chose Joshua son of Nun on his own caprice (although it may sound like that –why not a woman leader?). Joshua had a quality that I would like to emphasize that is necessary of leadership. He was a servant-assistant of Moses. Nobody could lead the people of Israel better than a man who could be a servant himself, who could be obedient and faithful, who is humble enough to be a subordinate. Along with Caleb he had trusted in the Lord in believing that God would allow them to occupy the land flowing with milk and honey. This two qualities are necessary in leading the Israelites – a man who trust in the Lord and humbles before God. This is a new beginning for Israel.
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