{"id":4039,"date":"2018-08-15T19:48:21","date_gmt":"2018-08-15T19:48:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/batkol.info\/?p=4039"},"modified":"2018-08-15T19:48:21","modified_gmt":"2018-08-15T19:48:21","slug":"parashat-shoftim","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ratisbonne.org.il\/bk\/2018\/08\/15\/parashat-shoftim\/","title":{"rendered":"Parashat Shoftim"},"content":{"rendered":"
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S<\/span>habbat Table Talk<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Parashat<\/span>Shof\u2019tim<\/span>\u2014<\/span>Erev<\/span> Shabbat <\/span>1<\/span>7<\/span>August<\/span>,<\/span> 2018<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Week of<\/span>1<\/span>2<\/span>\u2013 <\/span>18<\/span>August,<\/span> 2018<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Torah <\/span>portion:<\/span>Deut<\/span>. <\/span>16:<\/span>18 \u2013 21:9<\/span>Haftar<\/span>ah<\/span>: <\/span>I<\/span>saiah<\/span> 51:12 – 52:12<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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\u201cJustice, justice shall you pursue\u2026\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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\"\"T<\/span>his <\/span>parashah <\/span>is\u00a0<\/span>devoted almost en<\/span>tirely<\/span> to the theme of justice. F<\/span>rom the obligations of judges to the limitations on the power of kings<\/span>, the well-being of a society depends neither on the goodwill of the ruler nor on the ascendance of the most capable in a competitive environment, but <\/span>rather <\/span>on the certainty that the law will treat all alike and will protect the most vulnerable against the most powerful.<\/span>The absolute primacy of justice, a theme that occurs throughout the Torah, perhaps receives its greatest emphasis here. It has been said that since the time of Abraham, Justice has spoken with a Hebrew accent.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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The<\/span> most direct, intimate and force-filled entry into the world of the Hebrew Bible is through the power of the Hebrew language. All translations are the product of the choices of other people, at other times, with personal agenda that may not match those of the reader\/student. The Sages of old used to maintain that reading the Bible through a translation may be likened to kissing a bride through a towel\/veil! However, while being \u201clanguage-challenged\u201d to some extent, and thus at the mercy of the translator, we can profitably compare several translations of a verse or passage, and, in addition, consult some of the <\/span>ancient and modern<\/span> commentaries<\/span>. <\/span>The call is to <\/span>constantly beware <\/span>the plain as well as hidden meaning of the Biblical text. <\/span>The divine utterance is Torah itself, which i<\/span>s then garbed in other tongues.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Th<\/span>e very opening line of this week\u2019s<\/span>parashat<\/span>haShavuah<\/span> goes on to say: \u201c<\/span>You<\/span> shall appoint magistrates and officials \u2026 in all the settlements and the gates \u2026 that they shall govern the people with due justice\u201d (<\/span>Deut. 16:18)<\/span>.<\/span>The Torah advises that we must set guardians at the gates of our souls \u2013 our mouths (that we do not lie or speak malicious gossip), our ears (that we not be eager to hear malicious gossip) and our eyes (that we not form the habit of seeing the worst in others).<\/span>A modern non-Biblical midrash of Mahatma Gandhi\u2019s three monkeys represents the principle<\/span>\u201chear no evil, see no evil, speak no <\/span>evil\u201d<\/span>(<\/span>www. <\/span>Gandhi\u2019sThreeMonkeys<\/span><\/a>)<\/span><\/p>\n

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The Hebrew <\/span>tzedek<\/span> is justice in the sense of doing the right thing in a legal procedure while <\/span>mishpat<\/span>is justice as a cosmic principle that maintains harmony in the world and makes possible the world\u2019s continued existence.<\/span> According to the contemporary Hassidic Master <\/span>Arthur Green<\/span> in \u201c<\/span>Justice, justice shall you pursue<\/span>\u201d the term \u2018pursue\u2019 carries strong connotations of effort, eagerness which implies more than merely respecting or following justice; we must actively pursue it. This command also means to \u201cpursue justice justly,\u201d for just goals can never be achieved by unjust means. The worthiest of goals will be rendered less worthy if we have to compromise justice to achieve it.<\/span><\/p>\n

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The Torah is meant to be read aloud preferably with a<\/span>havrutah<\/span> partner, or even when we read it alone! The music of the original language has a special beauty which translations ordinarily cannot adequately suggest unless the translation is as true to the Hebrew words and music as possible. The spokenness of the biblical text is understood as a critical factor in doing Talmud Torah. Finally, at all times we are invited to read beneath the plain, the literal meaning of the text: the <\/span>peshat<\/span>. Archeology of the Word, excavating beneath the <\/span>peshat<\/span> when there are irritations in the text, that is, clues that suggest that we should do so: these are the means to a midrashic reading of Talmud Torah. Midrash in its many appearances is a core dimension of the study of <\/span>Torah<\/span>. It is, perhaps, the most vitalizing and valuable approach to all biblical texts.<\/span><\/p>\n

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For Reflection and Discussion<\/span>: <\/span>[<\/span>1<\/span>]<\/span>For the Biblical sages, the double use of <\/span>tsedek<\/span> (\u2018justice\u2019) invited creative <\/span>interpretation. If you were to pair justice with another quality or virtue, what would it be and why?<\/span>[2]<\/span>In the context of justice, w<\/span>hat hopes do you have for the future of your children, your faith community, and your church? How do you articulate these <\/span>hopes<\/span>? <\/span>[3]<\/span>In the above context, think of an incident which led you to pursue justice. Perhaps you can share your experience with your <\/span>havrutah<\/span> partner or Torah study group.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Bibliography:<\/span>Etz<\/span>Hayim<\/span>, <\/span>Torah and Commentary<\/span> (New York, 2001)<\/span>,<\/span>Plaut, <\/span>The Torah, Modern <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Commentary<\/span> (New York<\/span>,<\/span> 1981)<\/span>, <\/span>Arthur Green, <\/span>These Are The Words: A vocabulary of Jewish <\/span>Spiritual<\/span> Life, <\/span>www.lightoftorah.net<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>Mimeographed class notes from <\/span>previous <\/span>Bat Kol <\/span>Jerusalem <\/span>study session<\/span>s<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

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This week\u2019s teaching commentary was prepared by<\/span><\/p>\n

Roy da Silva, MTh [Biblical Theology], Chandigarh, India. Bat Kol alumnus, 2002 \u2013 2006<\/span>, 2015<\/span><\/p>\n

E-mail: roydasilva@hotmail.com<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>[Copyright \u00a9 <\/span>2018<\/span>]<\/span><\/p>\n

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PLEASE NOTE<\/span>: The weekly Parashah commentaries represent the research and creative thought of their <\/span>authors, and<\/span> 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.<\/span><\/p>\n

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B<\/span>at <\/span>K<\/span>ol <\/span>I<\/span>nstitute for Jewish Studies, <\/span>J<\/span>erusalem<\/span><\/p>\n

~~<\/span>1983<\/span>–<\/span>2018<\/span>~~<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>Christians Studying the Bible within its Jewish milieu, using Jewish Sources.<\/span>\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Website:<\/span> <\/span>www.batkol.info<\/span>;<\/span><\/a> <\/span>Parashat<\/span> Admin<\/span>: <\/span>gill@batkol.info<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Shabbat Table Talk ParashatShof\u2019tim\u2014Erev Shabbat 17August, 2018 Week of12\u2013 18August, 2018 Torah portion:Deut. 16:18 \u2013 21:9Haftarah: Isaiah 51:12 – 52:12   Download   \u201cJustice, justice shall you pursue\u2026\u201d   This parashah is\u00a0devoted almost entirely to the theme of justice. From the obligations of judges to the limitations on the power of kings, the well-being of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":46,"featured_media":4040,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ghostkit_customizer_options":"","ghostkit_custom_css":"","ghostkit_custom_js_head":"","ghostkit_custom_js_foot":"","ghostkit_typography":"","_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ratisbonne.org.il\/bk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4039"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ratisbonne.org.il\/bk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ratisbonne.org.il\/bk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ratisbonne.org.il\/bk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/46"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ratisbonne.org.il\/bk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4039"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.ratisbonne.org.il\/bk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4039\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ratisbonne.org.il\/bk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4040"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ratisbonne.org.il\/bk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4039"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ratisbonne.org.il\/bk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4039"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ratisbonne.org.il\/bk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4039"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}