So far, this research has been depressing to me. As a lefty, I found out that, for early historic Semitic cultures:
- The right is symbol of power and honor;
- Being left handed is weak and shameful;
- I can never be an Israelite (and likely Semitic) priest because I am left-handed. So much for keeping my options open!
In the process, though, I did learn something that cheered me up quite a bit, and that should cheer all left-handers.
In Exodus 4:10, Moses (Moshe in Hebrew) says: “Not a man of words am I… Heavy of mouth, heavy of tongue am I,” and Exodus 6:12 where he is called “uncircumcised of lips” both make it clear that Moshe had a speech impediment and possibly a facial injury.
Midrash Rabba Exodus 24 describes how Moshe became a stutterer in a haggadic story. When he was a young child, adopted by the daughter of Pharaoh, he once playfully grabbed Pharaoh’s crown. The whole court worried that it was an omen that he would someday take over power.
So, a test was devised. He was offered two bowls, one with gold, one with hot coals. If he were to grab the gold, he would be killed. He was moving his hand to pick the gold, but the Archangel Gabriel pushed his arm towards the coal. He grabbed the coal, brought it to his mouth, burned it, and became a stutterer.
But the Archangel Michael typically sits on the right of God, while the Archangel Gabriel sits on the left. For instance, that’s what the old version of the bedtime Shemah prayer says: “Michael to my right side, Gabriel to my left, Uriel before me, and Raphael to my back”.
So, if Gabriel was on the left of Moshe, he would have pushed his left arm. If Moshe was using his left arm to grab the coals, then he must have been left-handed.
So I have this in common with Moshe: we are both left-handed! What else do I have in common with him?
People say I am too ready to speak my thoughts. Moshe was not afraid to say what he had to say, even to the highest in the land. (Exodus 5:1) “Afterward Moshe […] went to Pharaoh and said, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Let my people go’”. In fact, Moshe was even ready to talk back to God: (Exodus 5:22) “Then Moshe turned to the Lord and said, “Lord, why have you done evil to this people? Why did you ever send me? For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has done evil to this people, and you have not delivered your people at all.”
Some traits of Moshe I hope I will have too. Moshe had physical and moral courage, and the willingness to right wrongs committed upon others: Exodus 2:11 “One day, when Moshe had grown up, he went out to his people and looked on their burdens, and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his people. […] he struck down the Egyptian and hid him in the sand.” I hope I will show courage and the willingness to fight injustice too, and to fight for my family as well. My family went through Shoah, the Holocaust, and fought and survived. I will not let this happen – I will fight back.
Moshe was persistent and never lost hope, even in the long years in the desert, having to deal with constant adversity, as shown in Exodus 16:12: “And the whole congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses.” I already am stubborn – I guess this is a common trait among us, the people with the stiff neck. I hope I will be persistent like him.
And, finally, there are some things that were true for him but that will never be true for me. Exodus 33:11 says: “ The Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend.” I don’t think God will ever speak to me as a friend. And, what is also not true for me is Numbers 12:3: “Now Moshe was a very humble man, more so than any other man on earth.”
But I guess a few similarities are enough for me, so I’ll stick to saying: “I’m left-handed like Moshe.”
Left-handers of the World Unite!
Born left-handed 