Tommy de Beer - Dvar Torah

Shabbat Shalom everyone! My Torah portion is Mishpatim, which can be found in the book of exodus. We have just been given the 10 commandments, after Moses went all the way up mount Sinai and retrieved them, which set some ground rules for everyone. My Torah portion has lots of interesting topics. Death penalty, murder, slavery, and more. How wonderful. But the one thing I want to talk about now is still a problem even today. People treating women as possessions. Lots of people still think women are possessions, and worth less than men. Why? Why is one type of the exact same species, less important than the other? In the Torah, once a woman was married to a man, she was protected. She would be given food, clothes, and safety. Sounds nice!

But to any one of any gender in this room, would you rather be safe, but trapped and all you could do was stay at home, cook and look after children. Or be less safe, but have freedom. I don’t know about everyone, but I’d be free.

Women in the Torah were seen as possessions, more than as people. Even today, this still relates. Women are forced into marriages, they are hurt, they are even abused. Why? Because they’re women. The exact same species as every man in the world. Now, if you have never experienced this you probably won’t know what it feels like. And hopefully you never will, but imagine  your parents, their parents, their parents, and so on, imagine how they felt. Exploited and used. Terrible.

Becoming a bar mitzvah is all about responsibility and knowing what is right and what is wrong. Lots of people struggle with standing up for others, but as I take on this role as a Jewish adult, I will do all in my power to stand up for all those who are unfairly treated.

As I end off, I would like to leave you with a message.  Feminism isn’t about making women stronger. Women are already strong. It’s about changing the way the world perceives that strength.

Shabbat Shalom