Shabbat Shalom

I want us to think about what Shifrah and Puah, the characters in today’s Torah portion, teach us about Ferguson Missouri.

My Torah portion consists of the first chapters in Shemot, or Exodus as it’s known in English. 

In the beginning of my portion, the Hebrew people were in Egypt, enslaved. 

The pharaoh told all the midwives to kill Hebrew baby boys because the Egyptians were afraid that the Hebrews would become so numerous that they would take Egypt away from the Egyptians. 

There were two midwives who helped the Hebrew women give birth -  Shifrah and Puah  - and these midwives were smart, street smart.   Shifrah and Puah defied Pharaoh’s order.

Why did Shifrah and Puah defy the Pharaoh?  The Torah says they defied Pharaoh because they feared God.