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November 5, 2004/Cheshvan 21 5765, Vol. 57, No. 10
Removing the veil
Torah study
RABBI ELIZABETH DUNSKER
Chayei Sarah, Genesis 23:1-25:18
"And Isaac went out walking in the field toward evening and, looking up, he saw camels approaching. Raising her eyes, Rebekah saw Isaac. She alighted from the camel and said to the servant, 'Who is that man walking in the field toward us?' And the servant said, 'That is my master.' So she took her veil and covered herself." (Genesis 24:63-65)
Veils are mentioned so rarely in the Torah that their appearance is worth examining. Chayei Sarah contains the Torah's first mention, which occurs when Rebekah arrives in the Negev and has her first look at Isaac. What is hidden from Isaac is revealed to all the other characters, as well as to the reader. We have already been told of Rebekah's beauty; only Isaac has yet to behold it.
The next mention occurs to explain why Judah is unable to recognize his daughter-in-law, Tamar, who exchanges her widow's garb for a veil and waits for Judah at the roadside. The text says, "When Judah saw her, he took her for a harlot; for she had covered her face" (Genesis 38:15). Throughout this episode, the reader knows that Tamar tricks Judah so that she can conceive an heir for his deceased son.
In the first instance, the veil signifies Rebekah's modesty and preparation for marriage. In the second, it signifies Tamar is available for hire. So, the veil serves as a symbol of duality. It hides a face while still making it visible; it hides a situation from a participant while allowing the reader to see the whole story; and it signifies both the modesty of a bride and the immodesty of a prostitute.
We find a veil mentioned in only one other place in the Torah. We are told in Exodus 34:29-35 that when Moses came down from Mount Sinai his skin glowed so radiantly the Israelites were unable to look at him. From then on he wore a veil unless he was speaking to God, or of God, to the Israelites.
Throughout our lives we experience moments of holiness. What makes them so is that they are separate from what is everyday. The Torah uses the veil as a device to note such separations in the lives of biblical characters. Moses' closeness to God would certainly be classified as kadosh, "holy." It can also be argued that Tamar's fulfillment of the obligation to provide an heir for her deceased husband is an example of holiness. And Rebekah veils herself before entering into kiddushin, "marriage" that is holy under God, with Isaac. In fact, this text is used as the basis for the ceremony of bedeken.
While the veil symbolizes duality - hiding and revealing - it is also a symbol of the separateness of that which is kadosh. We separate Shabbat from the other days of the week, making it holy. When we pinch off a piece of the bread we are baking, it becomes challah, which is holy. And when we join with another person making ourselves separate from all others, that is undoubtedly an act of kiddushin - a holy union.
In our world, holy and profane will always exist side by side. Sometimes we see the holiness of the separate, and sometimes we mistake it for the everyday. Rebekah knew that when she met Isaac her life would change; she marks that moment by covering her face with a veil. So too in our lives, it may be only the sheerest of fabrics that separates what is holy from what is profane. May we always see those moments with the same clarity possessed by our ancestors.
Elizabeth Dunsker is the rabbi for the Reform Temple of Suffern-Shir Shalom in Suffern, N.Y. Torat Chayim of the Union for Reform Judaism is at www.urj.org/torah.
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