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106  twenty When the Fabulous Is Holy Parashat Tetzaveh (Exodus 27:20–30:10) Marla Brettschneider How many times have I heard queers sneer some version of “those texts just don’t speak to me” or “there is nothing recognizable” or “there isn’t anything in the Bible that relates to the world as I know it.” Yet Parashat Tetzaveh, in its exquisite attention to detail and ritualizing of the beautiful, is a queer text that speaks to me. One might say that its resonance to queer life for me is based on stereotype, given the text’s flamboyance. Yet the flamboyant is a slice of queer life that is real to me, and much beloved. Though flamboyance is commonly associated with excess and negatively valenced, in Tetzaveh we find an alternative framing of flamboyance as the site that brings G-d near to us as (a) people. Earlier in Exodus, in Parashat Terumah, the Mishkan, or Ohel Moed, has been constructed. It is a ritualistic meeting place, sometimes referred to in English as “the tent of meeting” between the Israelites and G-d. The Ohel Moed, the tent of meeting, is the only place where sacrifices can be made. Parashat Tetzaveh follows, offering a robust mix of extreme moments. In the parasha’s opening lines instructions are given for lighting the eternal flame, signifying the constancy of G-d’s presence. Moses’s brother, Aaron, and Aaron’s sons are named as the ones to attend to this task and to keep the flame alight through the ages. In a flash, Aaron and his sons are anointed and ordained to G-d as priests. Without much ado, the fanfare thus begins. The text instructs in the creation of sacred adornments: a breastpiece, an ephod (an elaborate embroidered garment), a robe, a headdress—all lavish and lush. There are robes with pomegranates and tiny golden bells so that when the wearer walks they make a tinkling sound. The ephod is to be made of gold, blue, purple, and crimson yarns and fine twisted linens worked into designs. Lazuli stones are attached, bordered in frames of gold, to remember the tribes of Israel. These vestments are a remembrance before the Lord. There is a breastpiece deemed an “instrument of decision” far more awesome than powdered wigs and the flowing robes of Supreme Court justices. It is mounted in elaborate design with sapphire, turquoise, amethyst, emerald, and other richly colored precious stones. There is a fringed tunic and a sash of embroidered work. Yes, these sumptuous clothes are to be worn. Yet they are worn, admired, and created as devotion, highlighting the religious principle of hiddur mitzvah, or “beautification of the mitzvah,” the idea that it glorifies G-d and elevates any commandment Parashat Tetzaveh 107 or ritual if it is done in an aesthetically pleasing way. Preparing stunning attire is therefore a prayer. Wearing a magnificent frock is an aspect of one’s love of G-d. A pleasing sight is a divine offering. These clothes and fabulous accoutrements are ordered for no other reason than “dignity and adornment” (28:40). Yves St. Laurent would be proud. Any boy in the Castro, West Hollywood, or Chelsea knows the rules. The femme, the butch, and the dyke take up such ablutions religiously. As Tetzaveh continues, there are bulls and rams, splashing blood, and the laying on of hands. This is the stuff of great queer rituals. The text describes sumptuous food to be eaten and fired as a fragrance. Luscious portions are to be consumed, some forbidden. Two yearling lambs are offered daily, in the morning and at twilight. Wild libations for the lambs are concocted, made of wine, oils, and flour. There is blood dabbed with the finger on the right ear, the thumbs of the right hands, and on the big toes of the right feet. Blood gets dabbed here, poured there, sprinkled on that, and dashed against every side of the altar round about. These offerings from Aaron and his descendants, not following the bloodline of Moses, are what will stand the test of continuity, as G-d wants it offered this way throughout the generations (29:9, 29:28, 30:8, 10). Is it fair to offer this contemporary queer reading of the text, delighting in such showy demonstrations? Contemporary queer theory puts much emphasis on the concept of performativity, which challenges the notion that identity is “inherent” in a person or group. Characteristics and actions that we...

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