Tikvah Frymer-Kensky shed enormous light on the process through which monotheism took root within Israelite culture and thus revolutionized Vaetchanan 5780: Shema as a Mitzvah biblical religion. She described a transition to monotheism as a process in which the image of Israel’s God expanded to include the functions Juliana S. Karol August 1, 2020 | 11 Av 5780 previously attributed to various gods/godesses--the multiple divine personalities thought to determine the natural world. Israel’s God became rainmaker, healer, warrior, etc. However, this perception of one God as master of the universe creates a theological challenge. The polytheistic The Shema (“Hear”) reminds the Israelites of God’s essence universe is defined by change and flux in which humanity is at the mercy of the gods. Divine whims destroy cities; divine squabbles cause deluge or and their relationship with the One God. The V’ahavta drought. Now, with one God in control, what accounts for destruction and tragedy? Biblical monotheism makes human beings the initiators of (“You shall love”) describes how the people are to change within the universe. Human behavior becomes the variable that determines the course of history and the natural world. Frymer-Kensky internalize the teachings and impart them to future noted that biblical monotheism comes with a mandate: as God’s partners, it becomes humanity’s responsibility to maintain God’s universe through generations. The charge “Obey, O Israel, willingly” refers right behavior and social justice. Amy Kalmanofsky, 21st c. USA to both listening and obeying, with alliteration linking In the opinion of some [early ], the biblical ”.commandment is just to recite the verse “Shema Yisrael ג וְשָׁמַעְתָּ יִשְׂרָ אֵל וְשָׁמַרְ תָּ לַעֲשׂוֹת אֲשֶׁר יִיטַב לְ וַאֲשֶׁר תִּרְ בּוּן מְאֹד כַּאֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר יְהוָה the two words (v’shamata and v’shamarta). Given the ,(According to them, this is the meaning of (Deut 6:6-7 .אֱהֵי אֲבֹתֶי לָ--אֶרֶ ץ זָבַת חָלָב וּדְבָשׁ centrality of the Shema as the “watchword of the Jewish faith,” its meaning is surprisingly uncertain. Because of its “These words I am commanding you today must be in your grammatical construction and the various nuances of the Obey, O Israel, willingly and faithfully, that it may go well heart…when you lie down and when you rise up.” word echad (“one” or “alone”), this declaration can be with you and that you may increase greatly [in] a land However, [later rabbis] instituted reciting the entire construed in different ways. “Adonai is one” implies the three paragraphs. The essence of the mitzvah of Keriat flowing with milk and honey, as Adonai, the God of your Shema is indeed that a person accepts upon oneself the Shema is a statement about God’s essence, a reflection of ancestors spoke to you. the monotheistic belief in the existence of only one God. yoke of heaven, and for that reason, even one who only recites the first verse fulfills the biblical ד שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָ אֵל יְהוָה אֱהֵינוּ יְהוָה אֶחָד The “Adonai alone” translation makes a claim about God’s unique relationship to Israel, without necessarily commandment. Yet, the more a person enhances their denying the existence of other divine beings. Bernard acceptance of the yoke of heaven, the more completely Hear, O Israel! Adonai is our God, Adonai is one. Levinson points out: “The verse makes not a quantitative they fulfill the biblical commandment. Therefore, the argument (about the number of deities) but a qualitative Deuteronomy 6:3-4 [later rabbis] instituted the recital of all three one about about the nature of the relationship between paragraphs, for within them are the fundamentals of The rabbis saw the recitation of the Shema as a Jew’s acceptance of the God and Israel. This understanding reflects what many faith, the acceptance of the yoke of the mitzvot, and the “yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven”-- that is, acceptance of God’s scholars have concluded is a pre-monotheistic Israelite remembrance of all the mitzvot through the mitzvah of sovereignty, including God’s legitimate authority to require obedience to belief called monolatry: the allegiance to one god, while tzitzit. Hence, in actuality, we fulfill the biblical . The entire passage known as the “recitation of the Shema,” became recognizing the existence of other deities. Ora Horn mitzvah by reciting all three paragraphs. Eliezer part of the standard prayer liturgy that men are required to recite twice Prouser, 21st c. USA Melamed, 21st c. Israel daily. However, the Rabbis ruled that women are not This too is a commandment that offers explanation. Already contained required to recite the daily Shema (Mishna Brachot 3:3) The thrust of this declaration of our accepting the rule of Heaven is that either in the commandment “I am Adonai your God” (Deut 5:6) is the principle since it is a positive, time-bound commandment from which of the two aspects of God, i.e. eloheinu or echad is sufficient by itself to establish of the Unity of God. As the Rabbis have said: "Rabbi Nathan says: From women are generally exempt by rabbinic law. our relationship with God. If the Torah had not phrased our declaration of here there is a refutation to those heretics who say there are two powers raises the possibility that women should also be obligated accepting God’s rule by repeating the word Adonai but had written Adonai governing the universe. For, when the Holy One...stood on Mount Sinai in the recitation of the Shema because of its proclamation Eloheinu echad, the implication would have been that the reason we accept God and proclaimed I am Adonai your God, who protested?" But here Moses of God’s sovereignty, but then dismisses the option. The is that there is no alternative, God being the only one. In such an event one came to explain this commandment and mentioned it after the Ten insistence on women’s exemption from time-bound cannot claim credit for serving the one and only master. By expressing this Commandments because it is the root of faith, and whoever does not commandments, even in the service of God, is a powerful declaration in the manner recorded in the Torah, Israel makes plain that our acknowledge it denies the essential principle of the religion as if they talmudic statement of gender hierarchy and female acceptance of God is not one that is due to a lack of choice. We have additional worship idols. Nachmanides, 12th c. Spain spiritual marginalization. Alyssa M. Gray, 21st c. USA reasons for accepting God, over and above the fact that God is indeed the only Master. Chaim ibn Attar, 18th c.