Lesbianism is not mentioned in the Torah, nor is it prohibited by the Torah. Most rabbinic texts consider lesbianism an inappropriate behavior. While they disapprove of lesbianism however, not all texts consider it an outright rabbinic prohibition, and none consider it a Torah prohibition. Given that there are many behaviors considered inappropriate by the traditional rabbinic cannon (wearing red, keeping coed company, according to Rambam, women – married and unmarried-going out without covering their hair), have become acceptable in Modern Orthodox Society the question becomes why lesbianism specifically still remains taboo: Is it truly because of dedication to halakha, or because Modern Orthodox society has soaked up some of secular Western society’s traditional homophobias, which become magnified when combined with the fear of lesbianism’s assault on the values of patriarchy, which claim that all women “need” men?
Below is a link to brilliant article by Reen Zeidman about lesbianism in traditional Jewish texts, especially notable for its great footnotes: http://wjudaism.library.utoronto.ca/index.php/wjudaism/article/view/165/211
No comments:
Post a Comment