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Swarsensky Weekend: Social Justice Implications of a Dual-Gendered Name of God

01/10/2022 04:25:00 PM

Jan10

by Erica Serlin

At the Shabbat service during our Swarsensky Memorial Weekend in November, Cantor Jacob Niemi introduced us to the feminine God language available to us when we pray, helping us to experience our relationship to a God that is neither exclusively male nor gender-neutral but who integrates male and female aspects equally. 

Resident scholar Rabbi Mark Sameth followed with a fascinating d’var, speaking about the implications of such a God. Drawing on his extensive research, Rabbi Sameth outlined the archeological and written evidence supporting the thesis of his book The Name about the unpronounceable name of God (the four-letter Hebrew word יהוה that is transliterated as YHWH). His thesis is that this tetragrammaton was originally understood by the ancient Israelite priests to be a cryptogram that, read backward (and translated as “He/She”), reflected a dual-gendered name of God. According to Rabbi Sameth’s research, this understanding of the Divine was repeatedly acknowledged and lost again throughout history. 

This theme was further explored in Saturday’s Torah study and panel presentation. Saturday’s panelists began to consider how the concept of a dual-gendered God might be useful when applied to our own lives and the pursuit of tikkun olam. Cantor Niemi described his own personal and theological journey and exploration of gender-expansive language and experiences as a gay Jew and member of the clergy. Recognizing that every word we use to try to understand the Divine can only be a metaphor that is inherently limiting, Cantor Niemi offered a solution in using a variety of metaphors to expand our understanding of God as a deity who actually transcends gender.

In my remarks, I highlighted the idea that a dual-gendered God could have significant social justice implications for society’s treatment of LGBTQIA individuals and especially for the healthy psychological development of nonbinary and transgender youth and adults. I pointed out that, as a retired psychologist, I have been pleased to see significant progress in societal acceptance of homosexuality and gender fluidity, but recognize that LGBTQIA individuals still face additional mental health challenges due to societal discrimination and oppression, family rejection, bullying from peers, and all kinds of abuse.

The Saturday program ended with thoughts from Gwen Costa Jacobsohn and her 10th-grade child, Theo, who identifies as nonbinary and pansexual and uses “they/them” pronouns. They talked about the process of education that has occurred as Theo worked tirelessly with their family to make school and Temple more inclusive and safe places for gender-nonconforming youth. It was wonderful to hear how they made significant changes in the language surrounding their b’nai mitzvah and their successful advocacy for gender-inclusive bathrooms and camp cabins to be more congruent with self-defined identities. It was also gratifying to hear Theo express genuine pleasure at Temple’s progress and permission for other youth to become more of their authentic selves.

Sunday morning’s keynote address by Rabbi Sameth delved more deeply into the implications for social justice and tikkun olam of embracing the metaphor of a dual-gendered God. Three particular areas of relevance were highlighted: helping to enfranchise and empower girls and women, supporting the current gender revolution, and, most surprisingly, bettering prospects for world peace. Rabbi Sameth acknowledged that endorsing this metaphor of the Divine in itself will not accomplish these expansive goals but can certainly support a process of positive change.

Rabbi Sameth pointed out that a dual-gendered notion of God already resonates with many religious Americans today: 42% of those surveyed rejected the idea that God is exclusively male. As Rabbi Sameth posited, rather than continuing to perpetuate a myth that’s no longer supported even by the majority of religious believers, “we could embrace alternative God language which reflects our collective, evolved, and reasonable understanding and puts girls and women on par with boys and men.” Throughout history, many societies have recognized more than two genders, and, in fact, the rabbis of the Talmud knew of six! A dual-gendered interpretation of God could certainly be helpful to LGBTQIA individuals who “might see themselves reflected and affirmed in this old-new understanding of the Divine.”

Rabbi Sameth argued that suggesting that gender equality is a quality of divinity is a powerful message for bettering the prospects for world peace. Policy analysts have demonstrated a direct correlation between gender equality and a nation’s security: the enfranchisement and empowerment of girls and women increases the likelihood that a state will be at peace and vice versa. In other words, there is compelling evidence that the likelihood a state will be at war is significantly reduced in countries where girls and women enjoy physical security and legal equity and where women participate in high-level decision-making.

Rabbi Sameth ended by connecting the dual-gendered notion of God and the unfolding of the age of “New Modernity,” which “takes into account both individual, discrete bounded realities and the larger, fluid unbounded reality within which those individual realities exist.” He explained how this worldview might serve as an important counter to both dangerous individualism and rampant tribalism, by encouraging respect for individual differences within an inclusive whole. This idea certainly melds nicely with Reform Judaism’s increasing pursuit of diversity, equity, and inclusion. 

These points and more are expanded in Rabbi Sameth’s excellent book The Name. I highly recommend it if you haven’t yet had the privilege of reading it.
 

April 30, 2025 2 Iyar 5785