DOCSLIB.ORG

An Unpublished 1966 Memorandum from Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan Answers Questions on Jewish Theology

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
An Unpublished 1966 Memorandum from Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan Answers Questions on Jewish Theology An Unpublished 1966 Memorandum from Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan Answers Questions on Jewish Theology An Unpublished 1966 Memorandum from Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan Answers Questions on Jewish Theology Marc B. Shapiro and Menachem Butler Professor Marc B. Shapiro holds the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Chair in Judaic Studies at the University of Scranton, and is the author of many books on Jewish history and theology. He is a frequent contributor at the Seforim blog. Mr. Menachem Butler is Program Fellow for Jewish Legal Studies at The Julis-Rabinowitz Program on Jewish and Israeli Law at Harvard Law School. He is an Editor at Tablet Magazine and a Co-Editor at the Seforim Blog. Over the last ten years Professor Alan Brill has writtena series of blogposts, as well as a recent scholarly article on the perennially interesting, yet historically mysterious, rabbinic theologian, Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan (1934-1983).[1] It was from these posts that many have learned about what Kaplan was doing before he burst onto the wider Jewish literary scene in the early 1970s through his writings and public lectures. He passed away in 1983 at the age of 48.[2] Rabbi Aryeh (Leonard M.) Kaplan was born in the Bronx in 1934, and studied at Mesivta Torah Vodaath in New York, and at the Mirrer Yeshiva in New York and in Jerusalem. In 1953, 20-year- old Aryeh Kaplan joined the group of students assembled by Rabbi Simcha Wasserman under the guidance of Rabbi Shmuel Kamenetsky to establish a yeshiva in Los Angeles,[3] and three years later in 1956 received his rabbinic ordination (Yoreh Yoreh, Yadin Yadin) from Rabbi Eliezer Yehuda Finkel of the Mirrer Yeshiva of Jerusalem, and from the Chief Rabbinate of the State of Israel. After receiving his ordination, Aryeh Kaplan began his undergraduate studies and, in 1961, earned a B.A. in physics from the University of Louisville, and two years later, an M.S. degree in Physics from the University of Maryland, in 1963. While studying towards his undergraduate degree, Aryeh Kaplan taught elementary school at the pluralistic Eliahu Academy in Louisville, and corresponded with Rabbi Moshe Feinstein about some of the challenges that he encountered.[4] He then worked for four years as a Nuclear Physicist at the National Bureau of Statistics in Washington DC. In February 1965, Rabbi Kaplan and his wife and their two small children moved to Mason City, Iowa, where he was invited to serve as a pulpit rabbi at Adas Israel Synagogue, a non- Orthodox congregation with forty member families. It would be his first pulpit. He remained at that pulpit until July 1966. During his time in Mason City, Rabbi Kaplan and his wife were very active in all aspects of their synagogue activities. Rabbi Kaplan led services and delivered a sermon each week at the Friday Night Service at Adas Israel Synagogue, hosted a Talmud Torah and taught about Jewish tradition to the youth in the community. He was a member of the National Conference on Christians and Jews, and regularly hosted visiting religious groups to the synagogue and participated in interfaith meetings and on panels alongside religious leaders of other faiths. In all of his delivered remarks, Rabbi Kaplan would type out each sermon prior to its delivery and maintain copies of these addresses within his personal archives; to date, these sermons have not yet been published. It was during Rabbi Kaplan’s time in Mason City that he authored a fascinating eleven-page-typescript memorandum, dated February 22, 1966, that, thanks to the research discovery of Menachem Butler, we are privileged to share with the readers of The Seforim Blog in the Appendix to this essay.[5] Kaplan was responding to questions sent out by the B’nai B’rith Adult Jewish Education bureau in Washington DC on matters of basic Jewish theology.[6] We see from the letter that like many other rabbis who were serving in frontier communities, Kaplan maintained a camaraderie with those among the non-Jewish clergy. He was even a member of the “Ministerial Association,” and together with his wife was “founder and chairman of the local chapter of Ministerial Wives.” As one who often hosted non-Jewish groups at the synagogue, Kaplan was well equipped to place Jewish concepts and practices within a context that would make sense for Christians, and this is clearly seen in how he formulates his answers in the letter. Although Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan’s memorandum is self-explanatory, there are a few points of theological interest that are worth calling attention to: 1. Right at the beginning, Kaplan notes that Jews have no official dogmas, and that in many cases Jewish opinions vary widely. 2. Kaplan states unequivocally that Maimonides does not believe in a literal resurrection. In support of this statement he cites Guide 2:27. If all we had were the Commentary on the Mishnah and the Guide, it would make sense to assume that when Maimonides refers to the Resurrection of the Dead that he intends immortality, not literal resurrection. Even the Mishneh Torah can be read this way, and Rabad, in his note onHilkhot Teshuvah 8:2, criticizes Maimonides in this regard: “The words of this man appear to me to be similar to one who says that there is no resurrection for bodies, but only for souls.” Furthermore, inHilkhot Teshuvah 3:6, in speaking of the heretics who have no share in והכופרים בתחית המתים:the World to Come, Maimonides writes Those who deny the Resurrection and the coming“ ,וביאת הגואל of the [messianic] redeemer.” Throughout his works Maimonides is clear that the ultimate reward is the spiritual World to Come. So how could he not mention among the heretics those who deny the World to Come, and only mention those who deny the Resurrection? It appeared obvious to many that when Maimonides wrote “resurrection of the dead” what he really meant is the spiritual “World to Come.” As noted, if the works mentioned in the previous paragraph were all we had, then one would have good reason to conclude that for Maimonides resurrection of the dead means nothing other than the World to Come. Yet it is precisely because people came to this interpretation that Maimonides wrote his famous Letter on Resurrection in which he states emphatically that he indeed believes in a literal resurrection of the dead, after which the dead will die again and enjoy the spiritual World to Come. It is true that some have not been convinced by the Letter on Resurrection and see it as an work letter that does not give us Maimonides’ true view, but such an approach means that one is accepting a significant level of esotericism in interpreting Maimonides, as we are not now concerned with a passage here or there but with an entire letter that one must assume was only written for the masses. Since Kaplan ignores what Maimonides says in his Letter on Resurrection, I think we must conclude that, at least when he wrote this letter, he did not regard it as reflecting Maimonides’ authentic view.[7] In Kaplan’s later works, there is no hint of such an approach to Maimonides.[8] 3. In discussing Jesus, Kaplan writes: “In this light, we can even regard the miracles ascribed to Jesus to be true, without undermining our own faith, since his message was not to the Jews at all.”[9] APPENDIX: Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan: Response to “Questions Christians Ask Jews” (1966) [INSERT IMAGES 1-13] Notes: [1] See Alan Brill, “Aryeh Kaplan’s Quest for the Lost Jewish Traditions of Science, Psychology and Prophecy,” in Brian Ogren, ed., Kabbalah in America: Ancient Lore in the New World (Leiden: Brill, 2020), 211-232, available here. See also Tzvi Langermann, “‘Sefer Yesira,’ the Story of a Text in Search of Commentary,” Tablet Magazine (18 October 2017), available here. [2] A complete biographical portrait of Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan remains a scholarly desideratum. For appreciations of his writings, see “Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan: A Tribute,” in The Aryeh Kaplan Reader: The Gift He Left Behind (Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 1983), 13-17; Pinchas Stolper, “Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan z”l: An Appreciation,” Ten Da’at, vol. 1, no. 2 (Spring 1987): 8-9; Baruch Rabinowitz, “Annotated Bibliography of the Writings of Aryeh Kaplan, Part 1,” Ten Da’at, vol. 1, no. 2 (Spring 1987): 9-10; Baruch Rabinowitz, “Annotated Bibliography of the Writings of Aryeh Kaplan, Part 2,” Ten Da’at, vol. 2, no. 1 (Fall 1987): 21-22; and Pinchas Stolper, “Preface,” in Aryeh Kaplan, Immortality, Resurrection, and the Age of the Universe: A Kabbalistic View (Hoboken, NJ: Ktav Publishing House, 1993), ix-xi, among other writings. [3] See Nosson Scherman, “Rabbi Mendel Weinbach zt”l and The Malbim,” in A Memorial Tribute to Rabbi Mendel Weinbach, zt”l (Jerusalem: Ohr Sameyach, 2014), 13-14, availablehere ; as well as Nissan Wolpin, “The Yeshiva Comes to Melrose,”The Jewish Horizon (March 1954): 16-17. [4] See responsum by Rabbi Moshe Feinstein as published in Shu”t Iggerot Moshe, Orah Hayyim, vol. 1 (New York: Noble Book Press, 1959), 159 (no. 98), dated 13 July 1955. Discovery of additional correspondences between Rabbi Moshe Feinstein and Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan during those years would be of great scholarly interest and of immense historical value. [5] Menachem Butler is also preparing for publication the typescript text of a sermon (“If This Springs From G*D…”) that Rabbi Kaplan delivered the previous month in January 1966, and where he reveals details about a conversation that he had with Dr. Robert Oppenheimer, director of the Los Alamos Project and father of the Atom Bomb.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Creation As Theodicy: in Defense of a Kabbalistic Approach to Evil
    Faith and Philosophy: Journal of the Society of Christian Philosophers Volume 14 Issue 4 Article 6 10-1-1997 Creation as Theodicy: In Defense of a Kabbalistic Approach to Evil Robert Oakes Follow this and additional works at: https://place.asburyseminary.edu/faithandphilosophy Recommended Citation Oakes, Robert (1997) "Creation as Theodicy: In Defense of a Kabbalistic Approach to Evil," Faith and Philosophy: Journal of the Society of Christian Philosophers: Vol. 14 : Iss. 4 , Article 6. DOI: 10.5840/faithphil199714441 Available at: https://place.asburyseminary.edu/faithandphilosophy/vol14/iss4/6 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals at ePLACE: preserving, learning, and creative exchange. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faith and Philosophy: Journal of the Society of Christian Philosophers by an authorized editor of ePLACE: preserving, learning, and creative exchange. CREATION AS THEODICY: IN DEFENSE OF A KABBALISTIC APPROACH TO EVIL Robert Oakes The doctrine of Tzimzum (or divine "withdrawal") occupies pride of place in the Jewish mystical tradition as a response to what is arguably the chief theo­ logical or metaphysical concern of that tradition: namely, how God's Infinity or Absolute Unlimitedness does not preclude the existence of a distinct domain of finite being. Alternatively, how can it be that God, by virtue of His Maximal Plenteousness, does not exhaust the whole of Reality? I attempt to show that, while a plausible argument - one that does not involve the idea of Tzimzum - can be mounted against this "pantheism" problem, the doctrine of Tzimzum has considerable force as the nucleus of a theodicy.
    [Show full text]
  • Below Are Recommendations of Non-Fiction Books of Jewish Content from a Small Group of People Involved in Jewish Engagement and Education
    Below are recommendations of non-fiction books of Jewish content from a small group of people involved in Jewish engagement and education. The authors of these books span most of the range of Jewish practice and ideology. The list may look extensive, but there is much more to choose from. Feel free to ask your friends, neighbors and clergy for recommendations. Ports of Entry: Introductory Jewish Books Shimon Apisdorf, Judaism in a Nutshell (series: Passover, Israel, G-D etc.) Thomas Cahill, The Gifts of the Jews Arthur Green, Judaism's 10 Best Ideas: A Guide for Seekers Esther Jundgreis, The Committed Life Kerry M. Olitzky, Introducing My Faith and My Community: The Jewish Outreach Institute Guide for the Christians in a Jewish Interfaith Relationship Dennis Prager and Joseph Telushkin, Nine Questions People Ask About Judaism Mayer Schiller, The Road Back Joseph Telushkin, Jewish Literacy Shmuel Waldman, Beyond A Reasonable Doubt American Jewish Experience Stephen Birmingham, “Our Crowd:” The Great Jewish Families of New York Arnold Eisen, The Chosen People in America Arnold Eisen & Steve Cohen , The Jew Within: Self, Family, and Community in America Eli N. Evans, Judah P. Benjamin: The Jewish Confederate Irving Howe, World of Our Fathers: The Journey of the East European Jews to America and the Life They Found and Made Michael Krasny, Let There Be Laughter: A Treasury of Great Jewish Humor And What It All Means Jonathan Sarna, American Judaism: A History Ron Wolfson, The Spirituality of Welcoming: How to Transform Your Congregation into
    [Show full text]
  • Interpreting Diagrams from the Sefer Yetsirah and Its Commentaries 1
    NOTES 1 Word and Image in Medieval Kabbalah: Interpreting Diagrams from the Sefer Yetsirah and Its Commentaries 1. The most notorious example of these practices is the popularizing work of Aryeh Kaplan. His critical editions of the SY and the Sefer ha Bahir are some of the most widely read in the field because they provide the texts in Hebrew and English with comprehensive and useful appendices. However, these works are deeply problematic because they dehistoricize the tradi- tion by adding later diagrams to earlier works. For example, in his edition of the SY he appends eighteenth-century diagrams to later versions of this tenth-century text. Popularizers of kabbalah such as Michael Berg of the Kabbalah Centre treat the Zohar as a second-century rabbinic tract without acknowledging textual evidence to the contrary. See his introduction to the Centre’s translation of the Zohar: P. S. Berg. The Essential Zohar. New York: Random House, 2002. 2. For a variety of reasons, kabbalistic works were transmitted in manuscript form long after other works, such as the Hebrew Bible, the Talmud, and their commentaries were widely available in print. This is true in large part because kabbalistic treatises were “private” works, transmitted from teacher to student. Kabbalistic manuscripts were also traditionally transmitted in manuscript form because of their provenance. The Maghreb and other parts of North Africa were important centers of later mystical activity, and print technology came quite late to these regions, with manuscript culture persisting well into the nineteenth, and even into the mid- twentieth century in some regions.
    [Show full text]
  • A Journal of Jewish Responsibility
    saints. Read perceptively, the Talmud and Midrash Sh'ma state that over a million Jewish people were involved in meditative disciplines before the Common Era. a journal of Jewish responsibility But with the threat of dispersion into the foreign lands, the sages of the Second Commonwealth, and 21/416 SEPTEMBER 6,1991 the Great Assembly feared that the meditative practices would become corrupted and perverted by the masses in exile. With great wisdom they substi- tuted and standardized the prayer service and the Amidah (the "standing" prayers) in particular, as a discipline which would contain within it meditative secrets as well as maintain the unity of the Jewish people while in exile. Over time, the meditative A prayer in anticipation of negotiation practices became more hidden and available to fewer and fewer people. Just and Merciful One, Giver of Time, Lover of A Jewish Way We have Forgotten Israel and all Humankind, create out of the tohu vevohu of Middle East politics an enduring peace. There is evidence however that the greatest Jewish And then teach us all how to live with it so that non- thinkers were familiar with meditative practices. belligerence grows into neighborliness. We bless Louis Jacobs' book, Jewish Mystical Testimonies, You, Holy Presence, the Ultimate Peacemaker. contains personal accounts of meditative mystical experience by such pre-modern giants as Rabbi Meditation, the ultimate openness Joseph Karo, Rabbi Moshe Luzatto, Rabbi Dov Baer Mindy Ribner of Lubavitch, and the Vilna Gaon. Surprisingly, these sages were known primarily for their legalistic Meditation enjoys increasing popularity as a means teachings.
    [Show full text]
  • Extraterrestrial Life
    Extraterrestrial life Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan Space flight as a prelude to the messianic age? According to this article by the late Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan there is a connection. Do it make sense to you? Tell us your opinion in the comments. One of the unique aspects of Judaism is its far reaching universality. Not only does Judaism provide a lesson for every human being, its teachings extended to the very boundaries of the universe. It is an axi om of Judaism that the entire universe was created for the sake of man. In one place, the Talmud reckons that there are some [10 to the 18th power] stars in the observable universe, and explicitly states that they were all created for the sake of man. It g oes further to state that all the angels and spiritual worlds also only exist for this purpose. Of course, this immediately raises a question that many find quite difficult. How is it possible that man, living on a dust mote called planet Earth, should be the center of the universe? Our Sages realized the vast number of stars in the universe, and also realized that many of them were many orders of magnitude larger than the earth. (Maimonides - Foundations of Torah 3:8) ...It should be quite simple to unde rstand that size and quantity alone are meaningless to an infinite God. There is absolutely no question that the human brain is vastly more complex than the greatest galaxy, and furthermore, that it contains more information than the entire observable inan imate universe.
    [Show full text]
  • Tefillin the HAZAN EDITION
    tefillin THE HAZAN EDITION THE JEWISH LIFE SERIES what are tefillin? A SYMBOL OF BEAUTY, STRENGTH AND ROYALTY Wearing Tefillin daily is one of the most essential practices in all of Judaism. Tefillin are a set of specially crafted leather boxes contain- ing parchments handwritten with sections from the Torah. The Torah sections in Tefillin speak of remembering God’s miracles in freeing us from Egypt, entering the Land of Israel, belief in God, Passover, sanctifying the firstborn and the command to wear Tefillin. tefillin are Cutaway of Head Tefillin showing four Cutaway of Hand Tefillin showing a chambers each housing a single scroll single scroll housed in one chamber Israel’s One box is bound to the arm (with leather straps called Retzuot strength in Hebrew) and one box rests on the head (also held in place with leather straps). While wearing Tefillin we are connecting to God with the fullness of our body, emotions and intellect. The Hand Tefillin have a single chamber containing a strip of parchment with four Torah portions written on it. The Head Tefillin has four chambers, each containing a strip of parchment with a single Torah portion written on it. The verse below is one of four places* where the Torah instructs us to wear Tefillin. וקשרתם לאות על ידך והיו ולטוטפת בן עיניך And you will bind them for a sign on your arm and they will be for a sign (“totafos”) between your eyes U’Kshartam L’os al yadecha, V’Hayu L’totafos Bein Einecha *The four places are, Deut.6:4-9; Deut.
    [Show full text]
  • Jewish Spirituality and Mysticism in the 21St Century: Meetings with Remarkable People (48892)
    ה מ ח ל ק ה ל ק ו ר ס י ק י ץ Department of Summer Courses ו ת ו כ נ י ו ת מ י ו ח ד ו ת and Special Programs Jewish Spirituality and Mysticism in the 21st Century: Meetings with Remarkable People (48892) Dr. Eliezer Shore [email protected] June 30 – July 23, 2020 The Course will meet Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays for 3 hours a day 45 Academic Hours, 3 Academic Credits Name of Lecturer: Dr. Eliezer Shore Telephone: +972 050-876-3450 [email protected] Course Description: For centuries, the Jewish mystical tradition was a highly guarded, orally transmitted body of knowledge. Today, Kabbalah is everywhere, from the internet, to Hollywood, to popular charms and amulets. This course presents both an introduction to the basic principles of Jewish mysticism, as well as the way in which Kabbalah and Jewish spirituality has entered diverse forms of contemporary spirituality, new-age thought, religious cross-fertilization, art, cinema, and even politics. The course will examine how thinkers across the entire range of Jewish experience have drawn upon Kabbalistic ideas to enrich the spirituality of their adherents. Primary texts will be read and discussed (Hebrew texts in translation) and guest speakers will be invited regularly, providing students with a unique opportunity to meet leading spirituality thinkers in Israel and around the world. 1 The course will be specifically geared to online study and will make use of advanced educational technologies to maximize student interest and involvement: pre-recorded videos, online quizzes and reviews, clickers, flipped-class learning, break-out rooms, Prezis, and more.
    [Show full text]
  • Guidelines for Conversions at Ohev Sholom ‐ the National Synagogue
    Guidelines for Conversions at Ohev Sholom ‐ The National Synagogue The decision to convert to Judaism is one of the most powerful and life‐changing decisions that someone can make. Below are the guidelines to convert at Ohev Sholom ‐ The National Synagogue. These guidelines include information on the application process, the requirements of the conversion candidate, and the obligations of the clergy and synagogue to the conversion candidate (e.g., the rights of all conversion candidates). If you have any questions please contact Maharat Ruth Balinsky Friedman at [email protected] Application Process Information on the application process can be found online at www.ostns.org/conversion. Requirements for converting under the auspices of Ohev Sholom1 These guidelines are based on Rabbi Herzfeld and Maharat Friedmans’s years of experience working with conversions in the Orthodox community. All conversions that are performed through them and Ohev Sholom are in accordance with Orthodox interpretation of halacha (Jewish law). Belief All conversion candidates must commit to the belief that there is only one God. All conversion candidates must commit to the belief of reward and punishment. All conversion candidates must commit to the belief that God revealed the Torah to the Jewish people at Mount Sinai. All conversion candidates must commit to becoming a part of the destiny of the Jewish people. Participation in synagogue life According to Orthodox interpretation of halacha, one may not drive on Shabbat. Therefore, all conversion candidates must live within a two mile radius of our synagogue so that they can walk to the synagogue on Shabbat and participate fully in our synagogue and community.
    [Show full text]
  • Ten Da'at 2.1 1987 Fall.Pdf
    Ter ISSr Cor Tor Vol Fa) Ch€ Fal I' t rt i ~ Ten the 1 ON OUR COVER: A young boy, (T.E Budapest, Hungary, from The Last Edu, Jews of Eastern Europe by Yale Tora Strom and Brian Blue, 1986. the\ Reproduced by permission of and Philosophical Library, Inc. Com Eich an al The purpose of Ten Da'at is to provide a forum for the expression of a wide Dear variety of slimulating and responsible Exec Torah viewpoints. Thus, the views and 500, opinions expressed in the articles of New Ten Da'at are those of the contribu· (212) tors and do nol necessarily reflect, the position of Ten Da'at or that of the Torah Education Network. ~ Ten Da'at ISSN 0892-7359 Copyright, 1987 Torah Education Network Volume II Number I Fayge Safran, Editor CONTENTS Cheshvan 5748 Fall 1987 Da'ati 2 DA'AT Torah: Evolution, A Theory that Failed to Evolve 3 Moshe D. Tend/er Top TEN Profile: An Interview with Adin Steinsaltz 7 Jacob M. Rabinowitz Case Study: A Response Happy Birthdays 9 Stanley Fischman Transmitting Jewish Values to Young Children 10 Rivka Behar Educational Implications of Research in Moral Development 12 Esther M. Shkop Storytelling: Five Steps to Teaching Others 14 Peninnah Schram Bibliography of Jewish Stories 16 '!'fDUo Peninnah Schram c! (Y"') ~~ Health and Sex Education in Our Day School 18 oJ.c.lt o Michael Novogroder Y, 1~N < On Cults and Missionaries 19 1,,trwo0+- Barry Bender Annotated Bibliography of the Writings of Aryeh Kaplan 21 Baruch M. Rabinowitz Ten Da'at, Official Publication of theTorah Education Network Responsive Readers 22 rT.E.
    [Show full text]
  • Syl W11 Nahman Seminar
    Nahman of Breslov, seminar F16, page 1 JS 467.001/Near East 476.001/Religion 47.001 Hasidism as Mysticism: The Radical Teachings of Nahman of Breslov Fall Term, 4-7 p.m., 2112 MLB Professor Elliot Ginsburg ([email protected] and [email protected]) Office: 3016 Thayer Bldg., 734.763-4670 Office hours: Thursday 12-1:30 p.m. and special Judaic Studies Office hours, t.b.a. The focus of this course is on Nahman of Breslov (1772-1810), one of the most celebrated masters of Jewish mysticism and Hasidism, whose radical writings —poised on the precipice of modernity— have attained the status of spiritual classics. (The roster of writers, theologians, and creative artists influenced by Nahman is legion.) The ongoing fascination with Nahman stems both from his singular (mercurial, multi-tiered, questing) personality and from the profound and uncompromising nature of his theological vision. In this class we will explore the existentialist Nahman confronting the absence of God (his Torah of the Void); the Messianic Nahman wrestling with depression and utopian grandeur; and the mystical Nahman, finding vivid manifestations of the divine in the realm of nature (in Forest and birds, the grasses of the field), in song and the outpouring of the heart, and in interpersonal dialogue and spiritual practices that deconstruct the ordinary self. Key themes will include: spiritual longing and the perpetual search for meaning; conflict and growth; exile and redemption; as well as the dialectic between sadness and joy; shatteredness and wholeness; madness and health; doubt and faith; complexity and simplicity. Students will probe Nahman’s creative rereading of the devotional life: including his theology of niggun (wordless song) and sacred dance.
    [Show full text]
  • Jewish Perspectives on Death, Burial & Mourning ?
    WHAT IS JUDAISM? JEWISH PERSPECTIVES ON An Introduction to a Journey of Self-Discovery he birth of Judaism brought with it waves of monumental influence that have DEATH, BURIAL & MOURNING Tcontinued to shape the world until today. Picture yourself a mere 133 generations ago in the most consequential event in world history – when God gave the Torah eath, it is often said, is a part of life. For those who remain alive and experience to the entire Jewish nation. Preceded by thunder, lightening, and a shofar blast, the Dthe death of a relative or close friend, this is certainly true. Indeed, the tragedy Jewish people received the Ten Commandments; Judaism was up and running. The of death provides a deep challenge for the surviving loved ones to confront; this is a Torah revolutionized the world with world-shattering concepts such as Divine ethics, challenge that is often hard to meet. tikun olam (helping the world achieve its purpose), and personal self-perfection. From generation to generation over these 3,300 years, the Jewish people have infused the Like all aspects of life, the Torah and its commentators relate to the death experience world with transformational values and transcendent wisdom. Judaism introduced the from all angles – from the perspective of the dying as well as that of the living. Rather world to monotheism – not as an academic concept, but as the vibrant reality where than a hopeless “end,” Judaism provides us with a framework sensitive to the needs the Creator of the universe continually sustains and guides the world to its destiny and of both the deceased and the mourners.
    [Show full text]
  • Teshuva: a Look at Repentance, Forgiveness and Atonement in Jewish Law and Philosophy and American Legal Thought Samuel J
    Fordham Urban Law Journal Volume 27 | Number 5 Article 43 2000 Teshuva: A Look at Repentance, Forgiveness and Atonement in Jewish Law and Philosophy and American Legal Thought Samuel J. Levine Follow this and additional works at: https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/ulj Part of the Criminal Law Commons Recommended Citation Samuel J. Levine, Teshuva: A Look at Repentance, Forgiveness and Atonement in Jewish Law and Philosophy and American Legal Thought, 27 Fordham Urb. L.J. 1677 (2000). Available at: https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/ulj/vol27/iss5/43 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by FLASH: The orF dham Law Archive of Scholarship and History. It has been accepted for inclusion in Fordham Urban Law Journal by an authorized editor of FLASH: The orF dham Law Archive of Scholarship and History. For more information, please contact [email protected]. TESHUVA: A LOOK AT REPENTANCE, FORGIVENESS AND ATONEMENT IN JEWISH LAW AND PHILOSOPHY AND AMERICAN LEGAL THOUGHT Samuel J.Levine* INTRODUCTION In his contribution to a recent UCLA Law Review symposium,' Professor Stephen Garvey introduces and develops the possibility of viewing "punishment as atonement."' 2 Garvey describes an "ideal community" in which punishment serves as "a form of secu- lar penance aimed at the expiation of the wrongdoer's guilt and his reconciliation with the victim and the community."'3 Recognizing that the concept of atonement "sounds religious," Garvey insists and sets out to demonstrate that "atonement makes perfectly good ' 4 sense independent of religion. " Nevertheless, Garvey acknowl- edges that "religion is one place where you'll find atonement's roots" and identifies St.
    [Show full text]