Eve at your side
abracad, · Categories: externally authored, religion, spiritualityEve Is Beside Not A Side Of Adam
by Rabbi Allen S. Maller
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Most people think erroneously, that the Biblical account of God creating woman from Adam’s side means from Adam's rib. Since humans have many ribs it seems to be no big deal for men to lose a rib and gain a wife.
But the word mistranslated as rib in the Greek Septuagint, actually means side (for example Ezekiel 41:5,11 or Exodus 26:26, 27, 35).
God took the right side, or the left side, from Adam and built woman (who is well built to this day). Built seems to be a strange term to use, but the Hebrew word for side appears mostly (40 times) in the context of building a structure. A wall with only one side does not exist. A one sided building cannot shelter anyone.
Adam without one side was only half a man. Thus the Torah concludes, “That is why a man leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife, and the two become one flesh.†(Genesis 2:24)
Two sides become one whole. Two sides can stand together. Which side did God take?
Probably the right side because Psalm 45:10 says, “A royal consort stands at your right side†This is why the bride stands at the grooms right side in a Jewish wedding ceremony.
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The woman God built is described in Hebrew as an “ezer kenegdoâ€- a helper corresponding to or equal to him i.e. a partner or a teammate. The right side does not differ greatly from the left side in bilateral creatures but psychologically perhaps she is the ‘inside’ and he is the ‘outside’.
This would symbolize a greater difference. Good partners bring different abilities and talents together. Thus, as partners, one plus one is greater than two.
Even a skeptic like Kohelet declares, “If two lie side by side, they keep each other warm; but how can one keep warm alone? †(Ecclesiastes 4:11)
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This is why God says, “ It is not good for a male to dwell alone. I will provide a helpmate partner for him.†(Genesis 2:18)
Indeed, it is very bad for a man to live without a partner by his side. An analysis of data comparing 2011 with 1990 shows that in 2011Â just 2.9% of every 100 divorced or widowed Americans remarried, down from 5% per 100 in 1990.
This is a 40% decline in remarriage rates in 21 years. The remarriage rate has dipped for all ages, with the greatest drops among those younger than 35: a 54% decline among ages 20-24, and 40% for ages 25-34.
Since many studies have shown that married men live healthier and longer lives than single men, these trends bode ill for male life spans in future decades. But those men who marry a helpmate that they believe is a gift from God; they will live a longer and healthier life as a result of God’s blessing:Â
“When God created Adam-humankind, He made them in the likeness of God. He created them male and female; and when they were created, He blessed them and named them “Adam-humankind.â€
And even in our generation: "It is better to live outside the garden with Eve than inside it without her. Blessed be the One who brought us near together and taught me to know the goodness of her heart and the sweetness of her soul! “Wheresoever she was, there was Eden.†From Mark Twain
Rabbi Maller’s web site is: rabbimaller.com Rabbi Maller’s book ‘Judaism and Islam as Synergistic Monotheisms: One Rabbi's Reflections on the Profound Connectedness between Islam and Judaism’ (31 articles by Rabbi Maller first published by Islamic web sites) is for sale ($15) on Amazon and Morebooks.
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Filed in: externally authored, religion, spirituality
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