Life of Spud

One of the steps in the process of understanding the concept of “transgender” is to recognize that society assigns one of two gender roles to people, based on their sex at birth. When someone is born with a penis, society labels them as male and projects certain expectations onto that person (i.e., blue clothing, sports-lover, stoic, etc.); when someone is born with a vagina, society labels them as female and projects other expectations onto that person (i.e., pink clothing, princess-aspiring, emotional, etc.).  Transgender people do not fit the typical binary expectations of society, with some even identifying as non-binary and/or gender fluid. This week’s Torah portion - Parshat Toldot - begins with the story of the birth of Yakov (Jacob) and Eisav (Esau). Almost immediately, each of the children were assigned specific identities, which the Torah presents as binary (and which, perhaps, can be mapped onto gender roles): Eisav emerged first from his mother’s womb, covered in hair f...

  A quick Dvar Torah regarding men's health... After eating from the Eitz HaDaat (Tree of Knowledge) AdAm/Man becomes aware of his nakedness and goes into hiding when God seeks him. He is ashamed of his nakedness - his "manhood" - and does not want to be seen in public with it uncovered. A little while later, Noah, too, has his nakedness uncovered. After exiting the Ark, he plants a vineyard and - yada, yada, yada - he gets drunk on the wine that he produces from it. While in a drunken stupor, his youngest son sees him unclothed. When he sobers up, Noah is so ashamed that his "manhood" has been seen by his child that he curses his grandson. Abraham, on the other hand, transformed his "manhood". Instead of being ashamed of it, he used it to conclude a covenant with God through circumcision. He performed this act on his whole household, ensuring that his descendants would receive the blessings that he received from God. And when it was time to find a ...