Tuesday, December 20, 2005  Jameel vs Rashby  Our Arab friend
Jameel has found a fascinating bit of parshanut from bible
scholar Mark Twain: Jacob took advantage of Esau's consuming
hunger to rob him of his birthright and the great honor and
consideration that belonged to the position; by treachery and
falsehood he robbed him of his father's blessing; he made of him
a stranger in his home, and a wanderer. Yet after twenty years
had passed away and Jacob met Esau and fell at his feet quaking
with fear and begging piteously to be spared the punishment he
knew he deserved, what did that magnificent savage do? He fell
upon his neck and embraced him! Jameel doesn't much like what
Twain had to say, but his complaint is comical: "How can it be
that Mark Twain falls into the hypnotic trap of Esav, when its
totally clear to Chazal of Esav's hypocrisy and evil?"  Well,
for starters Twain didn't have the benefit of midrashim. All
Twain had was the text itself. It's a little stupid to fault
Twain for being unaware of the