When do clothes define our sense of being in the world? Not just the uniforms that confer identity but the garments that give meaning to the ways with we which we embody our purpose?
Samuel’s just a little boy - four or so years old - when his parents bring him to the shrine in Shiloh which will become his new home, dedicated to the sacred service. Before departing, his mother Hannah, whose prolific public speaking is already renowned, delivers an ecstatic poem in praise of the almighty. And then he stays there by himself, to be apprenticed into priesthood by Eli & sons. The scene in Shiloh reeks of religious corruption, greedy bureaucracy and sexual misconduct. Eli’s sons are notorious for abusing the women who arrive as pilgrims, and the rest of the priests repeatedly take more than their share of sacrificial flesh, despite old Eli’s helpless wrath. They have a special three-pronged fork with which they extract the juiciest morsels of each sacrifice, before any of the procedure has even begun.
The young boy is thrust into this rough reality and the authors make a point to emphasize that even though he was on his own, his mother tried to keep protecting him even in her absence. She gives him the gift of a special garment, perhaps a sort of second, thicker, skin:
וּמְעִ֤יל קָטֹן֙ תַּעֲשֶׂה־לּ֣וֹ אִמּ֔וֹ וְהַעַלְתָ֥ה ל֖וֹ מִיָּמִ֣ים ׀ יָמִ֑ימָה בַּֽעֲלוֹתָהּ֙ אֶת־אִישָׁ֔הּ לִזְבֹּ֖חַ אֶת־זֶ֥בַח הַיָּמִֽים׃
“His mother made a little robe for him and brought it up to him every year, when she made the pilgrimage with her husband to offer the annual sacrifice.”
Why this special mention of Samuel’s outer garment? It is to become his identifying feature, an object that is simultaneously practical and priestly, protective and privileged. Many years later, when the dead Samuel will be summoned from the other side by the witch of Endor he will be identified by his coat.
Throughout his life, the mention of the coat he wears or the ones worn by the leaders he will help get elected, will be important enough to mention. Coats will show up multiple times throughout this book as symbols of authority and its abuse, converting literal, legal and regal layers. Like many fashionable items of clothing - the coat carries a subtle statement all its own.
The Hebrew word that’s used here, “Meh’il” can be translated as coat, jacket or tunic. It’s not the same word used for Joseph’s famous ‘coat of many colors’, but the same word does show up previously in the Book of Exodus, as part of the elaborate description of the uniform worn by Aaron and his sons, the priests. Samuel’s mother designates him to the priesthood - but the storyline will take his leadership elsewhere - he’ll be wearing the mantle of the prophet. Others will follow suit in the following chapters - an elaborate and specific coat or mantle will become one way to identify important prophets. Maybe that’s how our modern days still celebrate the uniform of some religious clerics.
But Samuel’s coat is not just a professional designation. It is the last thread connecting him to his mother, and to personhood that is at the core of his public role.
In a moving article, Zehavit Gross, reflects on Hannah’s creation and the meaning of this labor of love, both for her, for her son, and for their ongoing relationship, important enough to bear mention in the book:
“By means of the coat, she sews his confidence and creates warmth and a safe place for him inside it...When she gave birth to her son by virtue of her vow, she experienced a transformative process of liberation. She liberated herself from the natural maternal possessiveness and sense of ownership that every mother has over her son. She also underwent a healthy psychological process of separation to enable her son to achieve the individuality that would enable him to be ready for his mission.
Hannah fears that after she gives birth, she will bind Samuel to her. She understands that she must liberate him in preparation for his greater mission of bringing the kingdom to the people of Israel. The coat that she sewed is the epitome and the highest and noblest expression of this liberation. While sewing it, she also frees herself from maternal possessiveness. She sewed a kingdom for her son, since it is Samuel who will enthrone King David and build a kingdom in Israel.”
Young Samuel grows up, clad in a coat made to measure by his mother, and begins to get a sense of the declining state of the establishment he’s part of. A mysterious messenger proclaims a prophecy to Eli, overhead by all: The end of the House of Eli is near, and another loyal servant, a Cohen one can count on, will take the old man’s place. He doesn’t know it yet, but the coat that covers him is the careful reader’s premonition: Samuel is being groomed towards initiation, echoing the gradual evolution of the national culture, the religious center, and the emergence of new political leaders, dressed for power.
Below the Bible Belt: 929 chapters, 42 months, daily reflections: Join Rabbi Amichai’s 3+ years interactive online quest to question, queer + re-read between the lines of the entire Hebrew Bible, with daily reflections, weekly videos and monthly learning sessions. January 2022-July 2025
#SamuelI #SamuelI2 #Shmuel #BookofSamuel #Hebrewbible #biblefashion#whowrotethebible? #Tanach #hebrewmyth #929 #hiddenbible #sefaria #labshul #queeringthebible #belowthebiblebelt #postpatriarchy #Hannah #Eli #Shiloh #Samuel’scoat #mantleofpower #priestlyvestment #JFKjr #secondskin #uniform #corruption #initiation #mothering
I used to wear a long black m'il, inherited from my father, to conduct services. Barbara loved it. The m'il was costume/uniform/armor.