a context of idolatrous Near Eastern cultures. The se’ir (goat) sent to ‘Azazel is meant to recall a goat-like spirit that represented desolation and destruction. The Israelite nation, then, seeks to reframe this previously from JTS idolatrous practice—symbolizing both a break from pagan practice and a break with its wayward past. By expelling to a place of desolation, it 5775 / 2014 diminishes and removes the power of transgression from its presence.

While we may lament the fate of the innocent scapegoat, the power and THE JTS PARASHAH COMMENTARY significance of this ritual resonates with us today. All too often, , as rep- resented by habitual, harmful behavior (idolatry of another sort) takes hold By Rabbi Burton L. Visotzky, Appleman Professor of and of us. A downward spiral ensues as we find ourselves embroiled in chaos Interreligious Studies, JTS and desolation. The challenge for each of us is to reclaim a path of disci- pline in our individual and communal lives. To do so, such destructive hab- its need to be exiled. The very controlled and complex ritual of confessional The Difference a Day Can Make and expulsion as represented by the scapegoat becomes a powerful model for . Discipline expels disorder and chaos. We journey a step Wouldn’t it be grand to wipe the slate clean? What if there were a day in the calendar when the slate was simply wiped clean once again? No marks farther from the chaos of the wilderness as we endeavor to bring the Prom- against you. No petty quarrels remembered, no grudges borne, no more ised Land within reach. Ken yehi ratzon! So it may it be for all of us in this grievances for trespasses petty or grievous. What if? High Holiday season.

The publication and distribution of A Taste of Torah are made possible by a How might any one of us feel if we had a chance to do it all again, and— let’s sweeten the deal—do it knowing what we know now? Would we dare? generous grant from Sam and Marilee Susi. Could we change things? Can we imagine ourselves to be better people

than we might be right this minute? Who would each of us be? Would it be a tad easier to look at our reflections in the mirror? To kiss our spouses and children? To tell our siblings, or our parents, “I love you”? What if there were a day on the calendar called Wipe the Slate Clean Day? A day when—such as in the game Monopoly—we “get out of jail free and collect $200”? Well, maybe we don’t get the $200, but the guilt is gone.

Ever since the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple in 70 CE, almost two thousand years ago, Jewish scholars have bemoaned the lack of an altar to offer sacrifices and so achieve the atonements of which the biblical book of Leviticus speaks. We no longer have a High Priest to perform the cultic ceremonies that lead to the cleansing of our sins. No longer is the scape- goat dashed upon the rocks, taking away our errors in the wash of its blood. What can we do to atone for our sins? How can we wipe clean the slate and start the year afresh once more?

What is the point of Yom Kippur, really? How does it help us change our ways, repent, return to the pristine state we imagine for our better selves? The Torah speaks of it as “A Day of Atonement, on which expiation is made on your behalf before the Lord your God” (Lev. 23:28). Okay, but how does it work now, absent blood on the altar? Must our own blood be offered as atonement instead (God forbid)? Intriguingly, the editor of the , the To receive Torah from JTS by email, first essential compendium of Jewish law and custom compiled around the visit www.jtsa.edu/subscribe year 200 CE following the destruction of Jerusalem, Rabbi Judah the Patri- arch suggested that we take the verse of Leviticus literally, and so he said, child. And forgive yourself there, too. Finally, and only when you have done “the day itself brings atonement” (BT Yoma 85b). That’s a great “get out of the hard work within your immediate circle, can you look outward to the jail free” card. Well, almost. community and your relationships there.

The verse says, indeed, “A Day of Atonement, on which expiation is made The day is nigh: let the hard work of atonement begin! on your behalf before the Lord your God.” Yes, the day itself atones, but— there’s always a “but”—it only atones for those sins against “the Lord your The publication and distribution of the JTS Torah Commentary are made God.” It is not a small thing to be forgiven for sins against God. But for sins possible by a generous grant from Rita Dee and Harold (z”l) Hassenfeld. against our fellow human beings, we have to go and apologize. Until we make it right with our neighbors, we don’t really get the slate wiped clean (M Yoma 8:9). And, God or not, that slate is chock full of marks against us this late in the Jewish year. There is lots of work to be done between now A TASTE OF TORAH and Yom Kippur. By Rabbi Matthew Berkowitz, Director of Israel Programs, If we may dwell on our relationships with God a few moments longer, our The Rabbinical School, JTS sins against God surely must include those sins we commit against God’s creatures, our fellow human beings. So, while we might technically get a Expelling Our Own Scapegoats freebie on Yom Kippur, we don’t even really wipe the slate clean regarding God. Indeed, other rabbis suggest that without the sacrificial system pre- This coming Shabbat culminates the period of ‘aseret yemei teshuvah, the scribed by the Torah, there are four means of atoning, the first three of 10 days of repentance, as we commemorate Yom Kippur, the Day of which are Yom Kippur itself, suffering, and death (BT Yoma 86a). It is re- Atonement. It is the “Sabbath of Sabbaths,” in which we seek to success- assuring to know that our ancient Rabbis sought meaning for suffering and fully complete our journey toward making amends and recall the ritual of suggested that it helps achieve atonement. Of course, there are yet other purification that unfolded in biblical times. This particular ritual is detailed rabbis who reject this, saying, “keep your suffering; I want none of it” (BT during the Musaf service of Yom Kippur. We read that the High Priest Berakhot 5b). The same argument can be offered for death as a means of would set aside his elegant garments and don the garb of a regular priest achieving atonement, but at least everybody dies—so there must be some as he entered the Holy of Holies. There he would atone for his own sins, universal benefit, right? If only. the transgressions of his family, and the sins of all of Israel. Subsequently, two goats were selected—one for God and the other designated for a place The fourth means of atonement is a prerequisite for the other three: repen- called ‘Azazel. While the former goat would be offered as a sacrifice, that tance. This requires that we change our ways. We repent of what we have latter animal would be led into the desert wilderness. What was this myste- done, and then we do not do it again. This is very, very hard to do. The rious place, and how can we better understand this intriguing ritual of the good news built into repentance is this: it achieves atonement for our sins scapegoat? against both God and our fellow human beings. The 13th-century Spanish commentator, Rabbi Moses Nahmanides What is required of us is a sincere apology and an equally sincere desire (Ramban) sheds light on the significance of the goat and of ‘Azazel. Re- not to repeat the offense. Wow, where do we begin? The Torah gives us a garding the latter, Ramban surveys the beliefs of other commentators: clue. In Leviticus 16:17, speaking of the sacrifices that Aaron offered back on the first Yom Kippur, Scripture says, “when he has achieved atonement This was a high mountain—a flinty precipitous peak, as it is said, “a for himself, and for his household, and for the whole congregation of Is- land which is cut off” (Lev. 16:22). This is the language of Rashi. rael.” The Rabbis explain this verse to teach the order of asking forgive- Other say this means the “hardest” place in the mountains . . . Ac- ness (Sifra Aharei Mot par. 6:3). cordingly, the meaning of the word la’azazel is to a hard place [the root of the word azazel being az—strong], with the letter zayin dou- First, we must forgive ourselves. This means self-examination and criti- bled just like izuz (strong) and mighty (Psalms 24:8). (Commentary cism. Second, we must resolve to change our ways. Third, we must actu- to Lev. 16:18, trans. Chavel) ally do the hard work of changing. Finally—and this is not easily achieved, either—we must forgive ourselves for our idiocies and sins. Go onward to Nahmanides, however, remains unconvinced, rejecting these interpreta- your immediate family. Ask their . Be a better parent, partner, tions. He argues rather that the goat and ‘Azazel must be understood within