Justice for Queen Athaliah: Parshat Terumah and Shekalim

Writing about parshat terumah is always very difficult for me.  I have problems with what is often called the Edifice Complex. I have no problem with the idea of contributions (terumot), but I do have problems with all the gold that is needed to build a sanctuary for God.  And even though all the commentators point to how God does not demand all this, rather that He merely suggests it, to me this begs the question of WHY? Obviously from a historical point of view, it is to prepare us from moving from the simple ohel moed (the meeting tent) to something more grandiose, that will end up being the first temple which will be built by Solomon, which is the usual haftarah for parshat terumah. But this week is a special Shabbat; it is actually a triple header—we take out three Torah scrolls, one for the regular parsha, another for Rosh Hodesh Adar and the third for shabbat shekalim. And the haftarah for shekalim is from 2 Kings 11:17-20 in the Sephardic tradition; in the Ashkenazic tradition it begins with Chapter 12:1-17. More about that later.

JEWISH JUSTICE GIVING DAY

In the middle of the week, I got two emails. One was from Lilith Magazine, to which I have been a faithful subscriber for years, and the other from the Jewish Women’s Archive, another wonderful resource. Both of them introduced me to the inaugural “Jewish Justice Giving Day”, which, to those of you (like me) who never heard of it, was on Wednesday, February 26^th. Here is Lilith’s advertisement (and note the connection with this week’s parshat shekalim:

Support Lilith on the very first Jewish Justice Giving Day! In Parshat Shekalim, we recall that our ancestors were asked to contribute half of a Biblical shekel to meet the needs of the community as a whole. On Jewish Justice Giving Day, we act on our tradition of tzedakah (giving) as one way of supporting justice work. Show you care about: Award-winning feminist journalism investigating gender-based harms; Reproductive rights as a Jewish value; Transformational disability justice; Breaking age barriers for the young, and for older women too; Cross-cultural conversations.

Naturally, I support most of these causes. The next advertisement, makes no mention of any parsha. Here is the one from JWA:

At a time of injustice, antisemitism, misogyny, and backlash, it can feel like our work to create a more inclusive, diverse Jewish community is being eroded. The history of Jewish women can guide us in this challenging time. And thanks to the Jewish Women’s Archive, their stories of strength, resilience, and creativity are accessible as a powerful resource for millions of people of all genders and backgrounds around the world. The Jewish Women’s Archive is proud to be part of the inaugural Jewish Justice Giving Day.

And of course, both Lilith and JWA ask us to make donations to support them. So instead of focusing on the very long and specific list of gifts–gold, silver, and copper; blue, purple, and crimson yarns, fine linen, goats’ hair; tanned ram skins, dolphin skins, and acacia wood, oil for lighting, spices for the anointing oil and for the aromatic incense; lapis lazuli and other stones for setting, for the ephod and for the breastpiece–that God asks from “every person whose heart is so moved” to build a sanctuary for Him to dwell in, I decided to focus on the very interesting haftarah connected to a woman.

QUEEN ATHALIAH

Since Wednesday was about Jewish Justice Giving, I would like to introduce you to Queen Athaliah, the mother of King Ahaziah and do her justice. The reason I want to do this is because, if you follow the Ashkenazi tradition you would not have any reason to know about her. The Sephardic tradition has the haftarah starting as follows:

And Jehoiada solemnized the covenant between GOD, on the one hand, and the king and the people, on the other—as well as between the king and the people—that they should be GOD’s people. Thereupon all the people of the land went to the temple of Baal. They tore it down and smashed its altars and images to bits, and they slew Mattan, the priest of Baal, in front of the altars. [Jehoiada] the priest then placed guards over the House of GOD. He took the chiefs of hundreds, the Carites, the guards, and all the people of the land, and they escorted the king from the House of GOD into the royal palace by the gate of the guards. And he ascended the royal throne. All the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was quiet. As for Athaliah, she had been put to the sword in the royal palace (2 Kings 11:17-20).

The curious reader might wonder who was this woman. For that we have to go back to the beginning of the chapter (which is not part of the haftarah):

When Athaliah, the mother of Ahaziah, learned that her son was dead, she promptly killed off all who were of royal stock. But Jehosheba, daughter of King Joram and sister of Ahaziah, secretly took Ahaziah’s son Joash away from among the princes who were being slain, and [put] him and his nurse in a bedroom. And they kept him hidden from Athaliah so that he was not put to death. He stayed with her for six years, hidden in the House of GOD, while Athaliah reigned over the land.

It is clear to us that Athaliah was queen for six long years. In the seventh year, when Joash was old enough, the high priest decided to stage a military coup and showed the army the legitimate king’s son. It was carefully planned. They guarded the young king and kept him safe in the house of God.

Jehoiada then brought out the king’s son, and placed upon him the crown and the insignia. They anointed him and proclaimed him king; they clapped their hands and shouted, “Long live the king!”

When Athaliah heard the shouting of the guards [and] the people, she came out to the people in the House of God. She looked about and saw the king standing by the pillar, as was the custom, the chiefs with their trumpets beside the king, and all the people of the land rejoicing and blowing trumpets. Athaliah rent her garments and cried out, “Treason, treason!” Then the priest Jehoiada gave the command to the army officers, the chiefs of hundreds, and said to them, “Take her out between the ranks and, if anyone follows her, put him to the sword.” For the priest thought: “Let her not be put to death in the House of God.” They cleared a passageway for her and she entered the royal palace through the horses’ entrance: there she was put to death.

This is the back story for this week’s haftarah. For some reason the Ashkenazic tradition does not want us to know about her. Do they find it disturbing that a woman actually ruled for seven years? Do they find it disturbing that there was a coup d’état, sponsored by a religious leader which resulted in the execution of a legitimate ruler? Do we wonder, if she actually killed off all her offspring, or was that just inserted into the text to demonize her and justify why they had to kill her. I leave it to the readers of my blog to figure out why in one tradition there is a mention of her, and in the other, no mention whatsoever. Feel free to share your thoughts of “why” with me.

This has been a terrible week for us all; the unjust seem to be thriving. Yet life as it is, must go on. Shabbat shalom.