Rabbi Daniela Szuster
B´nei Israel Congregation, Costa Rica
This week’s parashah describes two very specific situations, with their corresponding laws: the Sotah and the Nazir.
The first case, the Sotah woman, refers to a situation in particular where a man suspected that his wife had been unfaithful and, in order to prove his suspicions, the woman had to undergo a test, drinking the water of bitterness, and thus the truth was known. Sort of a lie detector. Of course, a situation quite unfair, since it was exercised only when men suspected, but not when women suspected their husbands. Furthermore, a humiliating and embarrassing situation. Fortunately, the Jewish tradition abolished this ritual many years ago.
The second case, the Nazir, was when someone, man or woman, decided to devote themselves to God by making a vow for a specific period of time. During this period, the person had to abstain from drinking wine, cutting their hair and contact with dead people. The word itself, Nazir, means to move apart, to separate from the community. They removed themselves for a time, to the purpose of avoiding their impulses and search for a way to control them.
