Al Reguel Ajat

When Moses and the Hebrew people leave Egypt and wander for forty years on their way to the Promised Land, the Torah calls them “The Children of Israel.” Why the children of Israel? Why not the children of Abraham or the children of Moses, the liberator of the slaves? Why did tradition choose to call them “children of Israel?”

In the biblical account, God changed Jacob’s name to Israel, as Breishit 32:24-29 describes: “So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until the break of day. And when the man saw that he could not overcome him, he touched the hollow of Jacob’s thigh, and Jacob’s thigh went out of joint as he wrestled with him. And he said, “Leave me alone, for the break of day is breaking.” And Jacob said to him, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” And the man said to him, “What is your name?” And he said to him, “Jacob.” And the man said to him, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.”

The word Israel in Hebrew means “to wrestle with God.” Why call the Hebrews the children of Israel, the one who wrestled with God? With this, tradition suggests that to be truly descended from Israel, modern Jews must not assume that tradition demands submissive obedience. On the contrary, the name of the Jewish people comes from an ancestor who wrestled with God while on the road. Struggling on a journey is what the term “odyssey” means.

The importance of “struggling” is present in the life of the Jewish people from its beginnings. Forty years to cross a desert that anyone would have done in much less time is a clear example. What is the message? That the value is in the effort, in the struggle to arrive. The Torah is teaching us that the path to Judaism is one of effort and struggle. To imagine Judaism as something perfectly packaged and happily perennial, is to trivialize it. Nothing important in our own lives has come easy. Everything that has given us deep satisfaction has come through hard work and effort. Why should our own Judaism be any different?

True Judaism involves a passionate struggle and an honest search. It is about beginning that journey towards the Promised Land. It was started by the patriarch Abraham when God told him Lech Lecha, leave your house, and in the Torah it is continued by Moses with the departure from Egypt. Our tradition suggests that we are a people in constant search of the Promised Land, knowing that the most enriching part of our lives is the process of searching and not the joy of having reached the goal. The Gaon of Vilna, one of our great rabbis, was once asked if an angel were to come to reveal to him all the divine truth, would he accept it? He answered no, because life has more meaning and is richer if one has to fight for that truth on one’s own. Being human is perpetually asking questions, knowing that we will never be totally satisfied with the answer. Being Jewish involves striving to understand our place in the world, working to become more whole beings, and recognizing that the struggle to achieve it is more important than the final result. That is why we are the “Children of Israel, the fighters with God.”

By Marcos Gojman

Bibliography: God was not in the fire, the search for a spiritual Judaism by Rabbi Daniel Gordis.

Although the mitzvoth come literally from the Torah, studying the Bible alone does not help us much to understand them. For example, three times we find it written in the Torah: «You shall not cook a goat in its mother’s milk» (Shemot 23:19 and 34:26 and Devarim 14:21). What did God mean? Our sages interpreted the divine words, and their comments led us to the laws of kashrut that imply the separation of meat dishes from milk dishes. And the law applies to all types of meat: beef, goat and poultry, and in relation to milk, they do not refer only to the mother’s milk but also to that of other mammals. And they clarify: the precept of separating meat from milk is not exclusively in the pot where it is cooked, but in all dishes, and they teach us that we must try to have two sets of dishes, one for meat and the other for milk. How did all these rules developed, in many cases filling many volumes, just from such a simple phrase?

The task of interpreting and commenting on the word of God is where the essence of Judaism is found. And in this task, we can perceive a humanizing tendency in the way in which the Jewish people read and apply the sacred texts. For example, the Torah contemplates the death penalty for some transgressions, but the procedure established by the rabbis in the Talmud makes it almost impossible to carry it out.

There are several origins of the precepts (Halacha) that govern the practice of Judaism: We have first of all the commandments of the Torah. Secondly, the acts of rabbinical authorities called Ma aseh that came to have the character of law. Third, the Midrashim, understood as the interpretation of verses of the Torah, and which gave rise to many precepts. Fourth, the custom, Minhag, practices that developed over time, which were independent of the Scriptures and which the sages gave the status of obligatory. Fifth, the Takanot, edicts promulgated by the rabbis caused by social conditions, such as that of Rabeinu Gershom who prohibited polygamy. And finally, sixth, the jurisprudence, Hora’ah, instructions ordered by the Supreme Rabbinical Court, also with the force of law.

The process of forming the Halacha began at Mount Sinai, continues to this day and apparently will continue forever. Man’s circumstances are changing and Judaism adapts to them. Some currents within Judaism believe that this process can be stopped and even reversed, but they do not realize that this has been done since time immemorial and will continue to be done. It is a kind of Darwinian evolution of religious precepts, where the most solid are those that will endure over time. The question is: do we want dinosaurs or eagles?

By Marcos Gojman

Bibliography: An introduction to the history and sources of Jewish Law, edited by N.S. Hecht and others. And Settings of Silver, an Introduction to Judaism by Stephen M. Wylen.

The Hebrew term for what we call “praying” in English is Tefila. This word is derived from the Hebrew root “fei, lamed, lamed,” which means “to judge,” or “to intercede on someone’s behalf,” or “to have hope.” Therefore, tefila implies judging ourselves, or interceding on our behalf before God, or expressing our feeling of hope that something will change for the better.

Jewish liturgy is based on three types of prayers: prayers to thank God, prayers to praise God, and prayers to ask God for something. Although each type has a different purpose, the content is similar and consistently reflects the understanding of Judaism held by our sages.

There are several examples of spontaneous prayers in the Bible. For example, Hannah prayed to God to be able to have a son, and her request was granted with the birth of Samuel. But in biblical times, sacrifices were the accepted way to relate to God. With the destruction of the first Temple and the exile to Babylon, Jews in the diaspora developed alternative rituals to sacrifices, since they could not perform them in Babylon. Studying the Torah was one of them.

Many of the first prayers were psalms, hymns or poems taken from the Bible that were accompanied by music. The first prayer to be written down was the Amidah, followed later by the Shemah. Biblical passages were added over time. A frame of reference for prayers existed in Talmudic times and they were prayed from memory.

The order of the prayers was finally fixed only in the 9th century, when the traditional prayer book appeared, the “Sidur” which means order, of which there are many versions. The earliest known is the Seder of Rav Amram Gaon from around 850. The first printed siddur appeared in Europe in 1485.

The prayer book contains prayers written in all different periods of Jewish history. It is an anthology of Jewish literary creativity. There are selections from the Bible, the Talmud, the Midrashim, the writings of Maimonides (the Ygdal) and the Kabbalah (Lejah Dodi). There are medieval prayers such as the Unetaneh Tokef and contemporary prayers such as the prayer for the welfare of the State of Israel and the country in which one resides. It is a treasure and a compendium of Jewish beliefs and is constantly evolving to be able to express those beliefs in the language of each generation.

Praying in Judaism is more than just an expression of our faith. It gives us a sense of belonging to a community and affirms our Judaism in a social context. Being in the synagogue with others who share our beliefs is often more important than the meaning of the words we say when we pray.

By Marcos Gojman

Bibliography: “What do Jews Believe? by David S. Ariel.

It is written in the Talmud, in Menahot 29b: “Rav Judah said in the name of Rab: At the time when Moses ascended to heaven, he found the Kadosh Baruchhu (God) sitting and placing crowns on the letters (of the Torah). And he said to him: Teacher of the world, what is holding back your hand? And God answered him: There will be a man who will come at the end of several generations with the name of Akiva ben Yosef who will investigate every point and every form of the letters (of the Torah) and will bring forth mountains and mountains of laws (halachot). Moses said to God: “Teacher of the world, teach me” and God said to him: Turn around. And Moses went and sat in the eighth row (of Akiva’s academy) and could not understand what was being said. His strength failed him. When they reached a certain point, the students said to him: Rabbi (Akiva), how do you know this? He replied: It is the Law of Moses from Sinai. This calmed his mind. Moses returned to God and said: With a man like this, you chose me to give us the Torah? God replied: Silence. That is how I thought it.”

This is the basis of the development of the oral tradition of Judaism. When Moses asked God why He continued to work on His Torah, God replied that Rabbi Akiva, one of the leaders of the tradition in the second century, was going to decipher these ornaments and discover new laws and interpretations in them. This explanation arouses Moses’ curiosity and he is transported twelve centuries ahead to Akiva’s academy.

Moses is confused by his lack of familiarity with rabbinical law, or rather, with the rabbinical interpretation of the Law of Moses, and his uneasiness makes him feel alien to the very Judaism that he founded. His mind is put at ease when he learns that the rabbis attribute the origin of their laws to him. Although this comforts him, he seems to have no idea how this works.

This legend is a masterpiece in the world of rabbinical explanation of how our laws and traditions can be innovated without violating what is written in the Torah. The rabbis made the belief in the divine origin of the Torah elastic enough to allow innovation but at the same time rigid enough to prohibit radical departures from the original text. They claimed, paradoxically, that they were not introducing anything new, since their laws were inherent to the written Torah, while at the same time accepting that their system of interpretation would be difficult to understand, even for someone like Moses himself.

By Marcos Gojman

Bibliography: “What do Jews Believe? by David S. Ariel.

The rabbis of the Talmudic era asked themselves: Why did God create only one Adam? Why not several? Some said it was to highlight the value of the individual. Others to emphasize that all men are equal, since they all come from the same ancestor, Adam, the father of humanity.

One man was created to teach us that if someone takes the life of a single person, say our sages, it is as if he were destroying the entire world, but if one person saves the life of another, it is as if he were saving the entire world. Also the creation of one man is intended for peaceful coexistence among men, since none can say: “my father is greater or better than yours.”

A man can die-cut many coins using the same mold and all the coins will be identical. But God conceives each human being using the first man as a “mold” and yet they are all different from each other. As if the entire universe was created for him.

The rabbis conclude that the creation of the human being is the true purpose of creation itself. There is no other being, other than man himself, who can perfect or destroy the world. Human beings must be aware that we have dominion over the earth and of the consequences that this fact implies. There is no one else who can clean up what man messes up. The Midrash tells us: When God created Adam, He took him and showed him the trees of the Garden of Eden and said to him: “How beautiful and splendid is my work. Everything I have created, I have created for you. Take care of it and do not corrupt yourself and destroy my world. Because if you corrupt yourself, there will be no one else who can repair it.”

By Marcos Gojman

Bibliography: “What do Jews Believe? by David S. Ariel.

In the 19th century, Charles Darwin shocked the world with his “theory of evolution.” What bothered many people about his theory at that time was the idea that man descended from apes. To many, Darwin was considered the greatest of heretics, because they said that he had replaced the divine image with a monkey.

These people did not understand the main idea of ​​his theory. The idea of ​​evolution is clearly set out in the Torah: in the story of the Creation of the world. The sequence and development follow an ascending pattern. What was created first is less than what came later. Read the account in the Bible and you will see that plants were created before animals, fish before birds, birds before land animals, animals before man and woman. This order coincides with Darwin’s theory. The only difference between the theory of evolution and the biblical account is the fact that the latter includes in its narrative the Great Architect, God, without whom none of this would have happened.

If apes preceded man, it was because man is a more advanced being. The distance between ape and man is not quantitative but qualitative. And you cannot understand the Jewish conception of the world if you do not accept that not only does God exist but that He placed a part of Himself on earth. Man was created in the “image and likeness of God.” What does this mean? What it definitely does not mean is that we resemble each other physically. God does not have a physical form. “In the image and likeness” does not refer to appearance, but to something more in keeping with His Essence.

We share something with Him that gives us a divine component. For centuries, scholars have discussed what that characteristic is that makes man “similar” to God. Some say it is the human soul, because that mysterious part of our being is something divine, since it makes us immortal. Others say that what we share with Him is His Intelligence reflected in our mind, that unique gift that is our brain. Others dare to say that what makes us similar to God is free will, our freedom to choose and decide our path.

You can choose one or all of the interpretations of our “divine likeness”, this does not change the result, because in the end both conceptions, the evolutionary one and the divine creation one, put man at the top of the scheme. And in this, Darwin coincides with God.

By Marcos Gojman

Bibliography: Jewish History and Culture by Rabbi Benjamin Blech

The golden rule: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Leviticus 19:18) is based on the principle that all men are equal, since we were created in the image and likeness of God and its application does not depend on whether I like or not my neighbor or even whether or not he is my friend or my enemy. In Shmot 23:4 it says that “if you find your enemy’s ox or donkey lost in the field, you must take it back to him. If your enemy’s donkey is weighed down by its load, you must help lighten it.”

Revenge is prohibited. The law of Talion, the famous “eye for an eye,” was explained from the beginning by our sages in two ways: that the punishment must be proportional to the crime committed and that the punishment must be applied by a court. They sought to avoid personal revenge and humanize the laws to avoid excesses in punishments. The rabbis also established that payment for a crime would, in most cases, be a financial penalty proportional to the damage caused.

In Leviticus 19:18 it is written: “You shall not take revenge or hold a grudge against the children of your own people.” “Do not say, I will do to him as he did to me, I will repay him in the same coin for what he did to me” (Proverbs 24:29). This does not mean that one should not proceed against someone who committed a crime, on the contrary, we should punish him, but within the framework of the law and not by your own hand.

Maimonides in his Mishne Torah sums it up as follows: “It is forbidden for a man to be harsh and irreconcilable and he should be easy to appease and difficult to provoke. If the offender apologizes (sincerely) he should forgive him wholeheartedly and with a willing spirit. If the other has harassed you and sinned against you, you should not take revenge or hold a grudge.” (Hilchot Teshuvah 2:10).

So, do you really think you can or should say: You’re going to pay me back?

By Marcos Gojman

Bibliography: The Jewish People, their history and their religion, by Rabbis David J. Goldberg and John D. Rayner

Work.-

There is considerable emphasis in Jewish tradition on the value of work. Even the fourth commandment, which defines the Sabbath rest, begins by saying: “Six days you shall labor and do all your work…” The rabbis, who considered the study of Torah to be the highest activity, recognized that it should be combined with a worldly occupation. In Pirkei Avot 2:2 Rabban Gamliel says: “The study of Torah must be complemented by work, for dedication to both keeps us from error. All study that is not accompanied by work becomes unproductive and leads to error.” The rabbis of the Mishnah era themselves had an occupation. It is the father’s obligation to teach his son a trade (Tosefta, Kiddushin I:II). And not only out of economic necessity, but for self-esteem: “Great is work, for it confers dignity on those who do it” (Nedarim 49b).

Labor relations.-

Judaism emphasizes the employer’s responsibility to treat his employees in a fair and considerate manner. The mitzvah that orders us to pay an employee’s salary on the same day (Leviticus 19:13) produced many rabbinical commentaries that sought to protect the employee. Even though slavery was permitted in biblical times, the Torah ordered that your slave should also rest on Shabbat.

Trade.-

Trade must be conducted in an honest and fair manner. Leviticus 19:36 says: “You shall have just weights and just scales…” and in 25:14 it says: “And if you sell to your neighbor or buy from your neighbor, you shall not harm one another.” The Talmud explains the implications of these mitzvoth.

Social Assistance.-

Society has a special responsibility towards its weakest members: orphans, widows, the elderly, the disabled, the poor and the foreigner. All of them are mentioned in various mitzvoth and in the exhortations of the Prophets and are sought to be protected and helped.

Finance.-

There is a biblical commandment that clearly prohibits lending with interest to the poor. In today’s age, with the complexities of economic affairs, its application is a difficult matter. But the core of the matter, protecting the poor from economic abuse, remains valid.

Thus, we can say without fear of being wrong, that the Judaism’s view of any economic theory focuses on the moral quality of the society it produces and what kind of human relations it fosters. Freedom, justice, brotherhood and compassion are essential values ​​for any government, regardless of its affiliation. As you see, the Torah and the Talmud also teach us economics, but ethical economics.

By Marcos Gojman

Bibliography: The Jewish People, their history and their religion, by David J. Goldberg and John D. Rayner.

Judaism emphasizes that those who have, when they give to those who do not have, are not doing an act of charity but of justice. Also, by doing so, it does not give a sense of superiority to the giver over the receiver. The Torah refers to the receiver as “your brother” to emphasize that he is someone equal to you.

In the book of Psalms, 41:1 it is written: “Blessed is he who considers the poor” and the Talmud interprets this to mean that we should give at the same time that we assess what is the best help we can give to a certain person. Rabbinic literature also speaks of giving being done anonymously or in secret, so as not to humiliate the recipient. In Temple times there was a publicly administered charity box, which kept both the giver and the receiver anonymous.

Maimonides set out the teachings of the rabbis on this subject with his list of eight degrees of charity. In ascending order they are as follows:

1. Giving reluctantly.

2. Giving gladly but less than you could give.

3. Giving only when asked.

4. Giving before being asked.

5. Giving in such a way that the recipient knows who gave it to him, but the giver does not know who received it.

6. Giving in such a way that the giver knows who received it, but the recipient does not know who gave it to him.

7. Giving anonymously to a community charity.

8. Helping someone who has become impoverished to get back on their feet by giving him a gift or a loan, partnering him in a business, or helping him find a job.

Giving Tzedakah is one of the mitzvoth that is most valued in Jewish tradition. In the tractate of Bava Batra (9a) the sages say that it is worth as much as all the other mitzvoth put together. However, good deeds, Gemilut Chassadim, are ethically superior to Tzedakah, since it involves personal involvement and is not just “checkbook charity,” and good deeds are done for the poor as well as for the rich.

Tzedakah undoubtedly belongs to the group of mitzvoth “Bein adam lechavero,” the ethical mitzvoth. And if it is done correctly, no one should find out about it, since in the end, it is just an act of justice.

By Marcos Gojman

Bibliography: The Jewish People, their history and their religion, by David J. Goldberg and John D. Rayner.

In Devarim 30:19 God said, “I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that you and your descendants may live.”

Rabbis tend to affirm that man is free in his decisions, but without denying that there is a divine presence. Rabbi Akiba said in Pirkei Avoth, “Everything is foreseen, but the freedom to choose is given. Rashi comments: Everything that happens to man is in God’s hands, for example, whether he is tall or short, rich or poor, intelligent or not, white or black, but whether he is a good or bad person is not in God’s hands, for He has entrusted this into the hands of man and set before him two paths, so that he may choose the path of fear of God.”

Maimonides in the Mishneh Torah writes: “Every human being has been given the freedom of choice. If he wishes to lean toward the good path and be a virtuous man, he is free to do so, and if he wishes to lean toward the evil path and be a wicked man, he is also free to do so….Every individual is capable of being virtuous like Moses or wicked like Jeroboam… and there is no power that can force him, that can decree him, or that can pull him toward one path or the other; he himself, of his own free will, will choose the path that he desires…..And this is a basic principle and a fundamental premise of the Torah and its commandments.”

An impressive testimony to Judaism’s affirmation of the reality of free will, the freedom to choose, is what Victor Frankl, psychologist and Holocaust survivor, writes: “The experiences in the concentration camp demonstrate that man can always choose which path to take. There were many examples, some of them heroic in nature, which proved that apathy can be overcome, that irritability can be suppressed. Man can preserve a vestige of spiritual freedom, of independence of thought, even under such terrible conditions of physical and mental stress. We who lived in concentration camps can remember those men who walked between the barracks comforting others, giving them their last piece of bread. They may have been a few, but they were sufficient proof that almost everything can be taken from a person except one thing: the last of man’s freedoms, the power to choose what attitude to take in given circumstances, the power to choose one’s own path.”

By: Marcos Gojman

Bibliography: The Jewish People, their history and their religion, by David J. Goldberg and John D. Rayner.