As always, Mary Meyerson led us in an interesting discussion of the Torah portion today that made me want to know more. One of the questions that produced a lot of discussion was why Rachel stole her father’s household idols. Like a college student going away from home for the first time, she might have taken them to help her transition to her new life away from home. As Rabbi Joyce Newmark wrote on the USCJ Web site: “Did she take them to remind herself of home, much like a college student keeps a bedraggled stuffed animal on her dorm room bed?”
Another author noted: “It is not written explicitly why she stole them. Some commentators say it was to prevent Laban from worshipping idols, while others say that the idols actually had some magical power and Rachel did not want them revealing to Laban the way that Jacob traveled. Jacob did not tell Laban that he was leaving.”
I prefer to think that Rachel’s purpose was the more noble one–that she was trying to prevent her father from continuing to worship idols. As Rabbi Newman writes, citing Bereisheit Rabbah 74:5: “Yet her purpose was indeed a noble one, for she said: ‘What, shall we go and leave this old man [Laban] in his errors!’ ”
Rabbi Newman continues: “Our sages remark that Rachel stole these gods because she could not bear the thought of going away and leaving her father to idolatry without any further incentive to better himself. She accordingly stole his penates, the household gods supposed to be protectors of the house. Their impotence would be brought home to Laban, if they can be stolen, can not even protect themselves, how much less can anyone put any trust in them to protect the home! (Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, 1808-1888, Germany)”
Rabbi Newman also notes that Rachel might have attributed magical powers to the idols and did not want her father to be able to use the idols to find out where Jacob had traveled to. “In order that Lavan should not be able to locate the whereabouts of Yaacov and his family… They were widely consulted to provide information about the future, information of a supernatural dimension. (Rashbam (Rabbi Shmuel ben Meir), 1080-1158, France, Rashi’s grandson)”
But if she attributed magical powers to the idols, then was Rachel still an idolater herself? In fact Rabbi Newman raises the question of whether Rachel was fully committed to her husband’s God at this point. As always, studying Torah raises more questions than it answers, but I guess that’s what makes it so interesting.
Thanks to Mary, as always, for making me want to know more!
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