Dear Friends,
Don’t worry if you don’t keep kosher. It appears that Abraham didn’t, either.
In a pithy little moment opening this week’s Torah portion, Abraham is sitting by his tent when three men appear from the desert, and Abraham instantly offers them traditional middle eastern hospitality: some water and food.
But, besides bread, look what our patriarch, Abraham, provided:
“Abraham then ran to the herd and took a young calf, tender and sound, and gave it to the servant lad, who quickly prepared it. He took sour milk and sweet milk and the calf he had prepared and set it all before them; and as he stood over them under the tree, they ate.” (Genesis 18:7-8)
So, Abe mixed meat and milk! Apparently, he made veal stroganoff for the guests!
How is this controversy understood among Torah scholars, nearly all of whom have been observant Jews? There are a few, fascinating responses:
And, my favorite response….
Each of these three options have one element in common: they try to round the square peg. Any way one reads our Torah text, it clearly breaks the laws of kashrut which prohibit eating meat and milk. Thus, the rabbinic sages tried to make treif into kosher; they were trying to twist the appearances with a legal fiction to exculpate Abraham.
The fun thing about Torah is that the sages each succeeded, yet the problem is unresolved. Torah is problematic, and the explanations work. However, the reader is left with a smirk. Sometimes, that is the way it is!
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Douglas Kohn
Don’t worry if you don’t keep kosher. It appears that Abraham didn’t, either.
In a pithy little moment opening this week’s Torah portion, Abraham is sitting by his tent when three men appear from the desert, and Abraham instantly offers them traditional middle eastern hospitality: some water and food.
But, besides bread, look what our patriarch, Abraham, provided:
“Abraham then ran to the herd and took a young calf, tender and sound, and gave it to the servant lad, who quickly prepared it. He took sour milk and sweet milk and the calf he had prepared and set it all before them; and as he stood over them under the tree, they ate.” (Genesis 18:7-8)
So, Abe mixed meat and milk! Apparently, he made veal stroganoff for the guests!
How is this controversy understood among Torah scholars, nearly all of whom have been observant Jews? There are a few, fascinating responses:
- Some scholars argue that of course Abraham kept kosher, even though the laws of kashrut were not given until later in Leviticus. This is his lad feeding three strangers.
- Another option teaches that the text states that he gave them the milk, and thereafter he brought the calf. Jewish law allows eating dairy before meat, but not meat before dairy, so clearly Abraham followed the law.
And, my favorite response….
- Abraham did not give real calf, but mock calf. It was something akin to a tofu calf, a Beyond Veal Burger, or an Impossible Burger! Why? Because of course Abraham would not violate the laws of kashrut, so he gave mock calf!
Each of these three options have one element in common: they try to round the square peg. Any way one reads our Torah text, it clearly breaks the laws of kashrut which prohibit eating meat and milk. Thus, the rabbinic sages tried to make treif into kosher; they were trying to twist the appearances with a legal fiction to exculpate Abraham.
The fun thing about Torah is that the sages each succeeded, yet the problem is unresolved. Torah is problematic, and the explanations work. However, the reader is left with a smirk. Sometimes, that is the way it is!
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Douglas Kohn
