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September 28, 2006
Santa Cruz, California
Received by FAB.
I am here, Jesus.
I come tonight to write again on my relationship to the
Jewish Talmud. Today I wish to discuss women.
Every sincere Jew is proud of the fact that the Jewish
heritage honors women in a way that was unprecedented in
the ancient world. Indeed, in that distant time, Judaism
stood alone in this regard. In other ancient cultures,
women were seen as no better than cattle, items for
ownership. But in Judaism, women were seen as holy, and
marriage was considered an equal partnership. In fact, the
marriage relationship was seen as an equivalent to one's
relationship with God. That's how highly women were
honored.
As I grew to adulthood, I absorbed eagerly this lofty and
elevated way of seeing. Of course, the Divine Love, with
Its resulting closeness to God, would not allow any lesser
attitude. But it was a great gift to me that my culture
actively encouraged seeing women as worthy of respect and
love.
It was because marriage was seen as holy that adultery was
perceived as such a serious sin.
This lofty attitude pervades what became the Talmud. There
is a whole section, or order, of the Talmud devoted to
women. It is called Nashim.
You are learning the true value of this great book. Previously, you saw it as "a straitjacket." You
now realize its original intention was exactly the opposite. It sought to make relevant the Torah to contemporary
realities.
And so, far from abolishing the Law, I cherished it, and absorbed everything I could that brought me closer
to God. At that time, there was so much to value, despite the general impression of chaos and rebellion that
has prevailed.
Since marriage was sacred, much thought was given by the
Talmudic rabbis to issues concerning the relationship
between husband and wife, and marriage in general. For
example, the ketubah, or marriage contract, protects women
in many ways. It stipulates that if a husband leaves his
wife, he has to provide for her anyway. The ketubah is
thus squarely for the protection of women.
As I studied and absorbed this beautifully enlightened
heritage, I grasped the concept that women generally
possess certain qualities that are generally more
developed in them than in men. I understood that my own
nature, which was always spiritual, was deeply akin to
that of women, and I actively encouraged women to join my
movement, despite the impression created in the New
Testament that I limited myself to twelve disciples. No,
such was not the case. In fact, in one sense I related
better to women than to men, because I felt they
understood my nature more easily.
I know I haven't been too specific in this message in
referring to the Talmud, but the point I have been trying
to make is that its values pervaded the culture and
enabled me to feel supported, despite the impression
created in the Bible. No, there were many forces on my
side, and my life could have taken a different course had
sanity prevailed instead of hysteria.
As the world evolves toward a closer and more accurate
perception of my life, people will be more and more able
to lift up the Talmud as one of the major influences in my
life that strengthened and fostered my message of Divine
Love.
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