204. Jethro & Justice - February 6, 2021

Jethro, the father-in-law to Moses, has a surprisingly important role in Jewish tradition. Surprising because Jethro was not an Israelite at all - in fact he was a priest of the Midianite religion. Even so, Moses respected Jethro and accepted his advice on the organization of a judicial system for the Israelites. This week we looked at the midrash, or traditions meant to fill in the gaps in biblical stories, that try to explain how a non-Israelite came to be so important in the Israelite story.