For those of you who tuned in last week, you learned about my views on Jewish mothers (not to mention the pagan view, which is that these moms, or crones, are women filled with wisdom). Now let's look at Jewish fathers.

There's an old joke out there about Jewish dads, the one in which the young boy returns from school all excited to tell his mom "I got the part of the Jewish father in the school play!" Rather than being excited for her son, the mother shakes her head, raises her eyes heavenward and proclaims. "I'm sorry, son. Maybe next year you'll get a speaking part."

While this might get a chuckle, the unfortunate fact is that Jewish fathers have been lumped into two stereotypes, one of which is the henpecked, silent husband/dad referred to in the example above. The other is the loud-mouthed, cigar-smoking, money-throwing-around man who causes everyone else around him to grimace.

What's the truth? I liked Rabbi Daniel Brenner's commentary, in which he points out that American Jewish fathers, in particular, have gone from blue-collar day workers to white-collar professionals in a matter of three generations, which is confusing, to say the least. But through it all, he pointed out, fathers have taken their role of providing for and protecting their families seriously.

Now let's talk a little about ancient times and how this might tap into some paganist thought. In my book, "Servant of the Gods," I implicitly point out that women held many high-ranking posts in ancient Israel and Canaan, which required diplomacy and decision-making skills. I also implicitly point out that the men were the war lords, the ones who would do the muscle work to defend the towns and villages (or in the case of "Servant," a whole province). So while women were the "speakers," so to speak, the ones who dealed and made arrangements, men let their swords do the talking.

This division of labor also made its way into medievil times, especially in pagan societies in Europe and England -- again, women dealt with matters of diplomacy and rulership while men were responsible for defending the realm. Pagan queens ruled the turf, with their trusty warlords at their side for defense. It was only when Judeo-Christian beliefs moved more toward patriarchal tendencies that men moved into roles of leadership and diplomacy, relegating women to the home front only.

By the rise of the Holy Roman Empire, it was widely accepted that women simply didn't have the cojones (so to speak), to take on leadership roles. Ridiculous of course, in light of the fact that several queens and other female rulers made their marks on history.

So let's turn to our modern-day Jewish father. While mom makes decisions regarding hearth, home and child-rearing (i.e., diplomacy, for the most part), dad is out in the work force, doing battle to bring home the paycheck. In other words, providing for his family. Far from being henpecked, the father defers to the mother on certain issues, understanding her intellect. And interestingly enough, when mom because too emotional, it's dad who is the voice of reason. Not too different from ancient times, if you look at it logically. Of course, in this day and age, mom might be in the workforce too, but the same situation applies.

So our Jewish dad isn't a hen-pecked, whipped individual who is too afraid to speak for himself against a sharp-tongued shrew. Rather, he's someone who takes seriously the duty to provide for his family and to protect it in times of trouble. In my mind, this turns the Jewish father from Casper Milquetoast into the strong, silent type, determined to do his best.

Have a wonderful day!