MY DAILY LIFE TORAH COACH:
Parashat Pinchas N.42

The name of the Parashat, “Pinchas”, refers to Phineas, who zealously avenged G-d
name, and it is found in Numbers 25:11.
Aaron’s grandson Pinchas is rewarded for his act of zealotry in killing the Simeonite prince Zimri and the Midianite princess who was his paramour: G-d grants him a covenant of peace and the priesthood.
A census of the people counts 601,730 men between the ages of twenty and sixty. Moses is instructed on how the Land is to be divided by lottery among the tribes and families of Israel. The five daughters of Tzelafchad petition Moses that they be granted the portion of the land belonging to their father, who died without sons; G-d accepts their claim and incorporates it into the Torah’s laws of inheritance.
Moses empowers Joshua to succeed him and lead the people into the Land of Israel.
The Parashat concludes with a detailed list of the daily offerings, and the additional offerings brought on Shabbat, Rosh Chodesh (first of the month), and the festivals of Passover, Shavuot, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot and Shemini Atzeret.

Raising a voice to demand change
The parasha counts B’nei Israel by tribe, giving mention to the main families in each of the tribes. When the counting reaches the tribe of Menashe, as it lists Menashe’s sons, we are unexpectedly introduced to the five daughters of Tzlofechad: Mahlah, Noa, Hoglah, Milcah and Tirzah. They are mentioned by name, nonchalantly, like it is totally natural to have five women mentioned by name as part of the Israelite count!
We encounter the unique story of these five women. This is a story which is easier to relate to. A group of people, five women, members of what is essentially an oppressed group within society comes forward, approaches Moshe and raises its voice, demanding to alter the social order. They challenge the law of the land which dictates that property which belonged to a man who has no sons to inherit him, is transferred to the nearest male relative.
The Hebrew text is very powerful – למה יגרע שם אבינו – why shall our father’s name be subtracted for his family because he has no son? They demand the opportunity to carry on their father’s name as women. This might be translated today to a woman choosing to keep her maiden name.
In our story G-d rationalizes the women’s request as fair. The text reads: כן בנות צלפח
דוברות – what they say is just – and the law changes so that in lieu of sons, daughters can inherit land under certain restrictions. We could argue whether what Mahlah, Noa, Hoglah, Milcah and Tirzah accomplished was an act of feminism. At the end of the day their request wasn’t to alter the patriarchy but to ensure their father’s name was succeeded.