Ok, this is going to seem like a really weird post to some (maybe all!) but just indulge me, please.
There is one question I have for God, when I get to heaven: How is it that light can move as both particles and waves?
Until last night, I thought there was another one, but now I’m not sure that I’m going to need to ask him: Why does the bible say that we should not wear clothing of mixed fibres?
This comes from Leviticus 19:19 “Do not wear clothing woven of two kinds of material” and the more prescriptive Deuteronomy 22:11 “Do not wear clothes of wool and linen woven together.”
Now, many laws that God sets out for his people in the Old Testament of the bible are for good reasons: community good, cleanliness and to stop illness spreading, and other things that on closer inspection seem to make some reasonable sense.
But I have long pondered why we are told not to wear mixed fibres. To me, it doesn’t make any sense. I have pondered the different properties of different fibres. Some are stronger when they are dry, some are stronger when they are wet. Some take dye well, some do not. Some absorb water and still feel (relatively) dry, and others feel wet very quickly.
Why would these properties mean that it is bad to mix fibres?
I was discussing this with my husband last night, and he couldn’t come up with any answers either. So we looked it up on the internet. There were all sorts of strange and funny suggestions as to why it might be, and then we happened upon this link, which quoted from what seems to be a scholarly journal (using the internet with a healthy deal of scepticism here – I am the wife of a librarian, after all, and I have it drummed into me that not all sources are good sources, not all are reliable…)
Ok, so having a look at that link, (and ignoring the advertising disclaimer at the top, because the mind boggles at the thought that some people can’t handle advertising that is not Christian…) it talks about the fact that it is wool and linen fibres. I’d never noticed this before, probably because the Leviticus reference only says mixed fibres, not specifically linen and wool.
According to the person posting on the forum (Bob10),
The combination of wool and linen (sha’atnez) is forbidden to the lay Israelite because it is a holy mixture and reserved exclusively for the sanctuary (e.g., Exodus 26:1) and the priest.
Now, if I look up Exodus 26:1, which talks about the preparations for the Tabernacle, it does mention linen, but not wool (or not in so many words). It refers to “finely twisted linen and blue, purple and scarlet yarn”. So how do we know this “yarn” is wool?
According to the article that Bob10 quotes, someone called Milgrom says the following:
We may assume that the thread of blue was made of wool. The ancients had great difficulty in dyeing linen because the colors would run, so all dyed garments are assumed to be wool.
And thinking back to my original ponderings and to discussions with my friend Zan who is a dyer, protein based fibres from animals e.g. wool and silk, are much easier to dye successfully than cellulose based fibres from plants e.g. cotton and linen. Therefore it makes sense that the linen was not dyed and the yarn that was coloured would have been wool.
And so it seems that God asked that the combination of wool and linen be used for the Tabernacle and the priesthood (see Exodus 26:1, 28:6, 39:29). Its not that its bad for us, or that the two different fibres are going to react with one another and perhaps cause the fabric to break down, its simply because it is something that God set apart for his priests. Wow – that’s fascinating – there really is a legitimate reason why we should not wear linen and wool mixed together.
As it happens though, as a Christian, I believe that the New Testament gives us two new and all encompassing laws: to love God and to love others (Matthew 22:37-39). I guess whether you think you should still follow the mixed fibre law depends on whether you feel that by wearing a combination of wool and linen would stop you from fully loving God and loving others. Personally, I think not, but it is an interesting law to ponder!
So now I feel that I have only one burning question for God. Maybe the problem of light acting as both particles and waves will be answered by science before I get to heaven, and maybe not.
White Threads is the blog of Yvette Stanton, the author, designer, publisher behind Vetty Creations' quality needlework books and embroidery products.
Yvette,
I have a copy of the Chumash, with rabbinic commentary from many Jewish scholars, and Ramban (Maimonides)says that these laws against mixtures are decrees–“commands of the King for which man knows no reason.” He also says that species on earth are “directed by Heavenly forces” and that disobeying the command causes harm man cannot see or understand. As for the linen/wool mixture, the word “shaatnaz” means “fibers pressed or woven together in the same piece of cloth or garment.”
There’s no commentary for the Deuteronomy reference; it points back to Leviticus. The Leviticus commentary says nothing about the mixture being reserved for the priesthood. The Exodus verse specifically says the thread was linen and the loops were wool.
We know, and Ramban comments on this too, that it’s easier to follow commands when we understand the reason. He says that man doesn’t derive the same satisfaction from obeying decrees like this one, when we don’t know why. So true!
It’s been interesting reading the Scriptures and commentary from a Jewish perspective. Some things are exactly as I’ve always been taught, some things are quite different.
Thanks Carol, its great to hear your thoughts and reading on this. Maybe I’m not alone in pondering this one! 🙂
I went back and looked at Exodus 28:6 in the Chumash. It says the wool yarn was twisted into a multiple ply cord that was used to weave some of the priestly garments. It doesn’t talk about mixing the linen with the wool while weaving.
Interesting questions, Yvette!
Certainly the Christian period ignored that particular decree – in fact “Linsey-woolsey”, with linen warp and woollen weft, seems to have been a durable but rather low-status fabric, so exactly the opposite of the sanctuary fabrics.
There’s no end to the strange ramifications of an interest in textiles, is there!
Very interesting — thanks Rachel!