Month: October 2017

Shabbat Table Talk

Parashat Vayera – Erev Shabbat 3rd  November 2017

Week of 29 October- 4 November 2017

Torah portion: Genesis 18:1-22:24 Haftarah: 2 Kings 4:1-37

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Central to all these eight stories related in this parashah is Vayera ‘he (the Lord) appeared’. Fox names the various vignettes as follows: 1) Visit and Promise (18:1-15); 2) The Great Intercession (18:16-33); 3) The end of Sedom and Amora (c. 19); 4) The Wife – II (c.20); 5) Yitzhak is born (21:1-8); 6) Yishmael banished (21:9-21); 7) Treaty (21:22-34); and 8) The Great Test (c. 22).

 

The first story describes the Lord appearing to Abraham at the hottest time of the day. The Lord is firstly, ‘three men’ to whom Abraham offers immediate hospitality. The ‘three men’ bring a message that Sarah will have a child. The ‘three men’ then become ‘I’ and the Lord who works wonders – Sarah in her old age will have a son.

 

‘The Great Intercession’ describes ‘the men’ gazing down on Sodom and Gomorrah. Then ‘the Lord’ tries to decide whether to share the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah with Abraham, whom the Lord has chosen. The Lord then shares with Abraham concerning the evil in Sodom and Gomorrah. The men turn away and go to Sodom while Abraham is left standing before the Lord. Then follows the wonderful interchange of dialogue between Abraham and the Lord where Abraham pleads for the cities. Sadly, there are not ten just men and the Lord departs and Abraham returns to his place.

 

This section has echoes of God hearing the outcries of the Israelites in Egypt and the trusting open relationship between the Lord and Moses throughout Exodus to Deuteronomy. I have sometimes thought that the Lord and Moses are like a married couple discussing how they will deal with their children (Nm 14: 10b-20). ‘The End of Sedom and Amora’ presents us with ‘two divine emissaries’. Lot offers them hospitality. They save Lot from the men of the city and blind them with lighting. The men reveal to Lot that the Lord is about to destroy the cities and that he and his family must escape. The men had to take Lot and his family by the hands to get them out of the city: their home with all their acquired possessions which Lot’s wife had to look back at with longing. When Lot and his two daughters were safely in Zoar, Sodom and Gomorrah were totally destroyed for their sinfulness. The Lord had saved Abraham and his family and Lot and his daughters from disaster.

 

Chapter 20 shows how God’s intervention in a dream prevents Abimelech from taking Sarah to be his wife. Abraham gains land and possessions from Abimelech – God’s plans will not be thwarted. ‘Isaac is born’ narrates the long-awaited son of promise. Sarah says: God has brought me to laughter; all who hear will laugh at me (21:6). Now Abraham has two sons whom he loves but he has to send Hagar and Ishmael away. Early the next morning (21:14) Abraham sends Hagar and their son away. In the wilderness Hagar meets God who consoles her and her son and promises that her son will be a great nation. The ‘Treaty’ is only of interest in this context because of what Abimelech and Pichol say to Abraham: God is with you in all you do (21:22b).

 

Finally we come to the ‘Great Test’ which alone has been the subject of many commentaries and sermons. Here we see how in yet another experience of impending loss, God is present and guiding along the way: On the mount of the Lord, God will be seen (22:14). It is only when we climb the mountain of the Lord in faith and trust, in whatever circumstance and no matter how painful, that we shall ‘see’ the Lord and know the Lord’s will. The Lord’s messenger reveals to Abraham the Lord’s continued guidance of and graciousness towards Abraham’s descendants. The last five verses of this Parashah give the descendants of Abraham’s brother, Nahor and his wife, Milcah from whom Rebecca was born. So God has provided for the next generation in a wife for Isaac. Immanuel, God is with us (Is 7:14; Mt 1:23).

 

Reflection: Take note of the Lord God’s constant and varied appearances in your life. Praise, thank our God!

 

Bibliography: Eskenazi, T. C. Weiss, A.L.  A Women’s Commentary (New York: 2008); Fox, Everett. The Five Books of Moses (New York: 1997); African Bible (Nairobi: 2004).

 

This week’s teaching commentary is by

Bernadette Chellew, Durban, South Africa    

Bat Kol alum 2008

Email: btrnchellew@gmail.com

 [Copyright © 2017]

 

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PLEASE NOTE: The weekly Parashah commentaries represent the research and creative thought of their authors, and are meant to stimulate deeper thinking about the meaning of the Scriptures. While they draw upon the study methods and sources employed by the Bat Kol Institute, the views and conclusions expressed in these commentaries are solely those of their authors, and do not necessarily represent the views of Bat Kol.   The commentaries, along with all materials published on the Bat Kol website, are copyrighted by the writers, and are made available for personal and group study, and local church purposes. Permission needed for other purposes.  Questions, comments and feedback are always welcome.

……………………………………………………………

 

Bat Kol Institute for Jewish Studies, Jerusalem

1983-2017

“Christians Studying the Bible within its Jewish milieu, using Jewish Sources.”

Website: www.batkol.info; Parashah Admin.: gill@batkol.info

 

Shabbat Table Talk

Parashat Lekh Lekha, Erev Shabbat 27 October 2015

Week of 22-28 October

Torah portion: Gen. 12:1–17:27         Haftarah: Isa. 40:27–41:16

 

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YHWH’s communication with Abraham, as it is presented in the biblical text, begins with two words, lekh-lekha (12:1), which are found in this combination only once more in the shared Scriptures. The second occurrence is found in Genesis 22:2, when God (elohim) gives Abraham the instruction to “go” to the land of Moriah, which we will explore in next week’s commentary. These two words mark both the beginning and the conclusion of YHWH’s biblical conversation with Abraham, as well as the limits of his physical journey. The phrase is a combination of lekh, the qal imperative masculine singular form of the verb hlk (“to walk, go”), the preposition le (“to”) and the masculine singular pronominal suffix kha (“you”). Whilst this particular construction allows for the translation, “go to yourself,” there seems to be relatively little variation in English translations of the phrase, most likely due the difficulties inherent in rendering the phrase adequately. Even though most translations of the phrase refrain from rendering lekh-lekha literally, Jewish scholarship and commentary, has focused considerable attention on the interpretive possibilities offered by this peculiar grammatical construction.

 

Aviva Gotlieb Zornberg (135) commences her discussion of the phrase lekh-lekha in a particularly Jewish manner, with a question: “What is the force of lekha?” In line with common Jewish practice she looks for answers in the work of the medieval Jewish commentator Rashi, who translates the term as: “for your benefit and for your good.” According to Rashi, the act of going will in and of itself be advantageous: Abraham will become the ancestor of a great nation; he will be blessed, which is traditionally linked with prosperity in the Jewish interpretive tradition, and his name will become great. Rashi also notes, contradistinctively, that travel is actually detrimental to “one’s family life” (and presumably the potential for reproduction), “one’s financial standing” and even one’s “renown” (name or reputation) (Ibid. 138). However, it is only by leaving Haran and travelling to an as yet unseen place, thus risking the inherent consequences of travel (above), that Abraham will receive the benefits hinted at by Rashi, which will in turn bring blessing to his descendants, those who bless him and, ultimately, all the families of the earth.

 

Understanding that there is always more than one possible interpretation of any biblical text, other Jewish commentators suggest that Abraham is being called to “leave behind those things that make [him] someone else” (Sacks, 79) in order to find his “authentic self” (Lieber 2001, 70). Further, Plaut (112) notes, “The aloneness of Abraham foreshadows that of all religious seekers and, above all, that of the people of Israel in their historic solitude.”

 

For Reflection and Discussion:  The journey that Abraham is called to take is set into motion with the deceptively simple command from YHWH to go: with yourself, to yourself and by yourself. Have you ever experienced a divine call to go? What did it mean for you?

 

Bibliography: Lieber, Etz Hayim (The Jewish Publication Society, 2001); Plaut, The Torah: A Modern Commentary, Revised Edition (Union of Hebrew Congregations, 2006); Sacks, Genesis: Covenant and Conversation (Koren Publishers, 2009); Walsh, Himig Ugnayan Vol XV (AR 2014-2015) 69-91; Zornberg, The Murmuring Deep: Reflections on the Biblical Unconscious (Schocken Books, 2009).

 

This week’s teaching commentary was prepared by

 Mark David Walsh, B.A., B.Theol. Grad. Dip. R.E., M.R.E., Australia

Bat Kol alum ‘01, ‘02, ’04, ‘13

(Email: markdavidwalsh@gmail.com)

 [Copyright © 2017]

 

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PLEASE NOTE: The weekly Parashah commentaries represent the research and creative thought of their authors, and are meant to stimulate deeper thinking about the meaning of the Scriptures. While they draw upon the study methods and sources employed by the Bat Kol Institute, the views and conclusions expressed in these commentaries are solely those of their authors, and do not necessarily represent the views of Bat Kol.   The commentaries, along with all materials published on the Bat Kol website, are copyrighted by the writers, and are made available for personal and group study, and local church purposes. Permission needed for other purposes.  Questions, comments and feedback are always welcome.

……………………………………………………………….

 

Bat Kol Institute for Jewish Studies, Jerusalem

1983-2017

“Christians Studying the Bible within its Jewish milieu, using Jewish Sources.”

Website: www.batkol.info; Parashah Admin.: gill@batkol.info

Shabbat Table Talk

Parashat Noach 21st October 2017

Week of 15-21 October 2017

Torah portion: Gen 6:9-11:32;   Haftarah: Isa 66:1-24

 

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The Tower of Babel story in this week’s portion is short, but well-known. Humanity unites to “build a city and tower with its top in the sky, to make a name for ourselves” (Gen 11:4). Seeing this, God divides them and scatters them by dividing and scattering their language.

 

Plaut suggests three interpretations of the transgression committed here. First, this was an attempt to reach the heavens and displace God. Just as the first humans reached out to take the fruit in Gen 3, so too do men “exhibit excessive arrogance” in making a name for themselves in self-exaltation. On the other hand, focusing their gaze on the heavens can be seen as a sign of anxiety rather than arrogance, looking to their own agenda, but then forgetting God’s. Here, humanity seems to escape God’s command to have dominion over [all] the earth (Gen 1:28) and to till the garden and tend it (Gen 2:15). Third, the city of Babel can symbolize all corrupt empire-building that results only in oppression and marginalization. God’s decision to scatter and confuse humanity via the confusion of language is therefore a safeguard against further evils, for “if, as one people with one language for all, this is how they have begun to act, then nothing they may propose to do will be out of their reach” (Gen 11:6).

 

 Reflecting on our world today, it would seem that this goal has been achieved. We are now plagued by the confusion of language. The issue of freedom of speech is being challenged by the proliferation of violence through hate speech. Political rivals are unafraid of throwing accusations and allegations against each other – with no shame admitting that these are all made-up. Lies are constantly fed to the public with the proliferation of fake news and poor journalism. Confusion abounds more and more in the realms of social media.

 

 Carol Ochs, however, points out in The Torah: A Commentary, that God’s intention was to undermine humanity’s capacity to use language insofar as it was used in a destructive fashion. Language must actually be used for the opposite: to repair relationships, instruct others, forgive, and bless [Ochs].

 

 We can see this in the other story in this week’s portion, the story of Noah and the flood (Gen 9-10). In contrast to the Babel story of scattering, we are presented with God using language to instruct Noah to gather and to save. God’s words include detailed blueprints for the ark and detailed instructions of gathering his sons, his wife, his son’s wives, and animals, two of every kind, clean and unclean (Gen 6:14-21). Words here are used also to unify and take on a seemingly impossible task, just as in the Babel story. The difference, however, is that the goal here is aligned with what God ultimately wants.

 

 In this time of confusion of language, constantly used to divide and scatter, God’s words in the haftarah ring out: “I am coming to gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come and see my glory” (Isa 66:18). Remembering the words of God – the Word of God in Torah and the Word of God in Jesus Christ – must serve as a reminder of the proper use of language to unify and gather all of God’s creation.

 

For Reflection and Discussion: [1] Have I been using language to scatter or to gather? [2] How can my own words better reflect the Word of God?

 

Bibliography: Plaut (ed.), The Torah: A Modern Commentary (New York, 2005); Eskanazi (ed.), The Torah: A Women’s Commentary (New York: 2008).

 

This week’s teaching commentary was prepared by
Javier Miguel A. Galvez, PhD student, Ateneo de Manila University, Philippines
Bat Kol 2017
Email: jgalvez@ateneo.edu

Copyright 2017

 

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PLEASE NOTE: The weekly Parashah commentaries represent the research and creative thought of their authors, and are meant to stimulate deeper thinking about the meaning of the Scriptures. While they draw upon the study methods and sources employed by the Bat Kol Institute, the views and conclusions expressed in these commentaries are solely those of their authors, and do not necessarily represent the views of Bat Kol. The commentaries, along with all materials published on the Bat Kol website, are copyrighted by the writers, and are made available for personal and group study, and local church purposes. Permission needed for other purposes. Questions, comments and feedback are always welcome

…………………………………………………..

 

Bat Kol Institute for Jewish Studies, Jerusalem

 1983-2017

“Christians Studying the Bible within its Jewish milieu, using Jewish Sources.”

Website: www.batkol.info; Commentary Admin: gill@batkol.info

Shabbat Table Talk

Parashat B’Reishit, 13 October 2017

Week of October 8-14 October 2017

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Torah portion: Genesis 1:1-6:8    Haftarah: Isaiah 42:5-43:10

 

“G-d said” (Gen.1:3). Lieber immediately emphasized in his footnotes that “G-d creates with words. This is the first invocation of the Torah’s belief in the reality of words, their power to create and to destroy.”  Our new Bat Kol group, “Ohri-Yah”, in Caro, Michigan (USA) spent several sessions considering the words of parashat B’Reishit. This was our group’s first experience of looking at the text using a Jewish source. In this commentary, I am using their reflections and their eye opening experiences for inspiration and as topics for discussion in your own havrutah groups.

 

We began our group with study of the Hebrew word “Ohr” (Light) using a study sheet prepared by Bat Kol alumna, MaryAnn Payne, which uses Hebrew “Et Ha Ohr” (Gen.1:3) to explain the letter values of the phrase are 613. The rabbis explain that the primordial light, as distinct from sunlight, gave perfect clarity and understanding; therefore, the rabbis add, the Torah contains 613 mitzvot and gives us a path to clarity and understanding when we study and fulfill the commandments.

 

Our group was thrilled to learn that during ancient times, light was considered a feature of divinity; we could identify with light in the bible serving as a symbol of life, joy, justice and deliverance. (Lieber, p.5)

 

A new idea that we discussed was the incompleteness of creation and the responsibility we have as co-creators with G-d to continue creation. We felt renewed in faith and love when we read verse 1:27 “God blessed them and said to them….” Lieber’s footnotes state that God addresses the man and the woman directly. The transcendent God of creation becomes the immanent God, the personal God who enters into communion with human beings. (p.10) This blessing was experienced by our group members as a loving invitation to responsibility, to share in the care of creation, to feel valued as a partner of God in whose image we are created.  This validates all the effort and work we put forth in our daily lives.

 

A fourth topic of extensive discussion was the theme of chaos changed to order; the balance of work versus leisure; the rhythm of humans having control over time; the measurement of time as well as the use of time; and our human failure to accept Sabbath rest as a blessing.

 

 As we continued our parashat B’Reishit following chapters, we took note how “there was a stream welling up, while no rain had yet fallen”, and rain seen as not only a natural phenomenon, but a blessing from G-d; (Gen.2:5-6, Lieber p.13). We are learning to ask questions!

 

An interesting point of humanity’s ongoing pattern of blaming the other (or others) instead of accepting blame is seen in Adam’s words: “You put the woman at my side she gave me of the tree, and I ate.”    (Gen. 3:12). We wondered how after thousands of years following this example humanity still habitually blames others! It certainly provides a lesson for all of us today.

 

The question posed to Adam, could be addressed to us “…., where are you?” (Gen 3:9) Indeed, where am I?

 

Bibliography:  Lieber, Etz Hayim, Torah and Commentary, New York, 2001

 

This week’s teaching commentary was prepared by

MariAnn (Marjan) Saenen, B.A. M.A. Michigan State University,

Lay Minister, Diocese of Saginaw, MI

Bat Kol alum 1999-2000; 2002, 2010, 2015, 2016

marjansaenen@hotmail.com

[Copyright © 2017]

 

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PLEASE NOTE: The weekly Parashah commentaries represent the research and creative thought of their authors, and are meant to stimulate deeper thinking about the meaning of the Scriptures. While they draw upon the study methods and sources employed by the Bat Kol Institute, the views and conclusions expressed in these commentaries are solely those of their authors, and do not necessarily represent the views of Bat Kol. The commentaries, along with all materials published on the Bat Kol website, are copyrighted by the writers, and are made available for personal and group study, and local church purposes. Permission needed for other purposes. Questions, comments and feedback are always welcome

……………………………………………………

Bat Kol Institute for Jewish Studies, Jerusalem

1983-2017

“Christians Studying the Bible within its Jewish milieu, using Jewish Sources.”

Website: www.batkol.info; Commentary Admin: gill@batkol.info