“Say to the Israelites, ‘If a man dies and leaves no son, give his inheritance to his daughter.’ – Numbers 27:8

Today’s Scripture Reading (November 13, 2018): Numbers 27

The main purpose of the “Succession to the Crown Act of 2013” was to remove any gender preference in the order of succession to the throne of the United Kingdom. Up until that time, becoming a reigning Queen, and not just a Queen Consort who is married to the hereditary King was relatively rare. Any male born in the line of succession had preference over the daughters born in the same family, regardless of birth order. Under the old system, Princess Charlotte would have to take a step back in the line of succession behind her younger brother Prince Louis. Admittedly, because Prince George is the oldest of the children Prince William’s, it would still take a disaster in the family for her to reign as Queen Charlotte, but the chances of a Queen Charlotte were significantly raised with the “Succession Act of 2013.” And the current Monarch of the United Kingdom, Queen Elizabeth, would never have reigned if her younger sister had been born a brother.

Not all monarchies are as progressive. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is decidedly male-dominated, and we should not expect a queen to emerge in that monarchy any time soon. In fact, it is arranged to favor brothers even before sons, although the heir apparent Mohammad bin Salman is the son of the reigning King.

In North America, it was not actually that long ago when a woman could not even own property without her father’s or husband’s consent, and the property at that point would usually have been placed in their father’s or husband’s names.

Taking all of that into consideration, this addition to the law is fairly remarkable. Thirty-five hundred years ago, a son was still favored over a daughter, but a daughter could still receive an inheritance even over the claims of a brother. And a daughter could own land and do with it as she saw fit. Eventually, even the determination of tribe would flow through the woman and not the man, although when this change was made is a current topic of disagreement. Some argue that matrilineality in Judaism stretches back to an oral tradition that originated when the law was given at Sinai. According to this definition, a Jew is someone who is born of a Jewish mother or who has converted to Judaism. Therefore, it is the mother, and not the father, who determines who is a Jew and who is a Gentile.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Numbers 28