Dinah's Abduction

Why did Simeon and Levi kill the people of Shechem? Were their actions morally justified? Morally imperative? And why do they serve as the prototype for the law of bar mitzvah, the Jewish boy’s attainment of maturity and responsibility?

The classical interpretation is that Leah and Dinah’s behavior is being condemned as unbecoming the Jewish woman’s virtue of “innerness.” But a careful analysis of the source texts shows the very opposite to be the case . . .

Where Abraham, Isaac and Jacob failed, a young girl could have succeeded

The Destruction of Shechem, The War against the Seven Kings

Torah tells us that Dinah, daughter of Jacob and Leah, was the victim of rape. Oral traditions add to our understanding of this special woman.

Dinah had a sparkle. She had an appeal. She was an influencer. She had a way with people.

Arriving in Shechem, Dina ventured out to observe the local girls. She was abducted by the Crown Prince, who violently raped and abused her. Without seeking counsel, two of her brothers brutally massacred the townspeople along with the perpetrator. Does t...

The women in Abraham’s family were abducted (or nearly abducted) no less than four times . . .

From beginning to end, Genesis 34 tells a terrifying story. Dina, Jacob’s daughter – the only Jewish daughter mentioned in the entire patriarchal narratives – leaves the safety of home to go out to “look at the daughters of the land.” She is raped and abd...

There is only one incident of sexual abuse that is recorded explicitly in the Torah. It is quite a tragic read, and the repercussions are curiously significant.