Please read the following article and respond while answering the following questions:
1. In this article, Rabbi Michael Knopf asserts that the revelation at Sinai is continuous and involves all of the people of Israel. How do you interpret the tradition that says that we were all present at Sinai when we received the Torah?
2. Do you agree with the notion that this revelation is continuous? How does this relate to your personal life?
3. When the people of Israel received the Torah, they responded by saying: "נעשה ונשמע", We shall do and we shall hear (Shemot 24:7, don't believe the translation in your Tanach...). How do you interpret these words, and how are they relevant (or not) to you today?
4. How do these ideas relate to our reading of the Torah as a source for studying the history of our people?
http://www.haaretz.com/jewish-world/rabbis-round-table/what-is-shavuot-for-jews-who-question-whether-god-gave-the-torah-at-sinai-1.430010
Lana Kolchinsky
ReplyDeleteIt was interesting to hear another interpretation of the receiving of the Torah. I interpret the receiving of the Torah in a similar way, but I believe that physically, only the Jews living a the time were in witness to the receiving of the Torah. I believe that when it was said that every Jew was there, even if they had died or had not yet been born, I interpret that as saying the Jews that were living, in a way, signed a contract for all Jews of the past and to come. It was as if that specific generation of Jews merely represented all other Jews.
I believe personal revelation is continuous in the sense that people learn new things everyday. In every class period of Jewish History I have, I realize something new and exciting about my religion and my nation. This is my own continuous revelation. Rabbis all over the world also experience the exact same sensation. This is the reason that the Torah is studied. The learning is never finished and no one is ever completely enlightened. If there was no more to learn, there would b no reason to study the Torah. Jews are continually trying to understand all different aspects of the Jewish religion. This is what makes Judaism so exciting to study.
I believe that "We hall do and we shall hear has a meaning specific to the commandment to study the Torah. At first glance I assume the quote meant that we will listen to God and do what he tells us, but that isn't what the quote says. If that were the meaning of the quote, the quote would be, We shall hear and we shall do. The order of the sentence gives insight to what this quote means. I believe the quote can also be said, "We will read the Torah and try to understand." This tied to the idea of continuous revelation. Continuous revelation is an idea that the Jewish people came up with. It is what God commanded us to do. It is to make the effort and to have the devotion to study and to understand Torah.
The Jews' history has all been explained in the Torah. God gave us the Torah as a device to use to study our history. In class, we are doing exactly what God commanded us to do when he gave us the Torah. We are to seek revelation every time we study the Torah. It is our duty as Jews.
Lana Kolchinsky
I never quite understood the "being at Sinai" thing because I am pretty sure I wasnt physically there. I feeling like I was there in genrations, being there was past down ldor vador to me by my ancestor who was at sinai. I dont believe every single word or story in our Tanahk is word for word what happens in our history, but summarizes in metaphors to make more interesting. So I feel that the line we were all at sinai is one of those metaphorical lines that made the text more interesting than saying your ancestors where at sinai and its been past down to you now. I feel like the people of Israel recieving the torah also have this sense of ldor vador, even now at reform Bnai Mitzvot we past down the torah from generation to generation. I agree with the author on the idea that when reading torah you get a vibe of your ancestors, a feeling of pride as well.
ReplyDeleteAs a practicing Jew, I accept, as Rabbi Michael Knopf does, modern biblical scholarship. I don't believe that there was ever or really could ever be a single moment of revelation but I do love the concept of l'dor va dor, generation to generation, or as my summer camp phrases it, 'generational leadership'. So, while I don't believe all Jews were present at Sinai, I do believe that all Jews can have their own moment of revelation and revelation and education can be passed down through the generations. As a songleader, I feel a duty to continue to learn and pass on new music, because that is how I express my Judaism. This is how I interpret the line "You shall do and you shall hear". These ideas and the belief in modern biblical scholarship tend to cloud the historicity of the events stated in the Tanach, but don't change the fact that the Tanach remains a strong moral code. Thus, the Tanach allows us to pass on the real history of the Jewish people, which is a history of a high moral code and strong ethics.
ReplyDeleteRabbi Knopf's interpretation of this has really shaped my thoughts on this vague statement. His interpretation that anyone who has a revelation or hears the voice of the Divine is, at that moment, present at Sinai really resonates with me. It makes me feel as though anytime I shape my own religious path, I am connecting with my distant ancestors more than ever before, and that the different views on Judaism bring us together more than anything else.
ReplyDeleteRevelation in my eyes is continuous because whatever epiphany or new insight you gain, you will apply to your life in the near and distant future. Everything that came with the Torah being given at Sinai was not only a revelation for a minute, but it has lived on for thousands and thousands of years beyond the moment. This year, I had the revelation within my Jewish identity not only about my views on God, but about my role in the Jewish community. This revelation continued as it shaped my decision to come to NFTY-EIE and also made me a more active member in my Jewish community. I will be forever grateful for this eternal revelation.
I believe the jew that were physically present to receive the Torah meant that they will abide by the commandments within the torah as well as hear the voice of God, both internal and external, and do everything to follow the voice that has lead us for thousands of years. This is still relevant as we preform mitzvot, follow most (or all) of the commandments we have received and the tasks bestowed onto us, and do all we can to listen to the voice of God within us.
This directly relates to our study of torah in class as we constantly try to interpret and make the ancient stories relevant to our Jewish identities today.
1. I believe, that when the Torah says that all Jewish people, past present and future, were at Sanai when God gave the the commandments to Moses, it really means that everyone will experience that moment sometime in their life. This could be any moment, any revelation that has the sense of an epiphany. It is the feeling of finally understanding one's purpose that I feel is what should be taken away from this story.
ReplyDelete2. I do agree with the notion that this is a continuous revelation. I am always finding out new things about myself. Whether it is a revelation about what I want to do in the future, or finally figuring out what a prayer means to me.
3. I interpret the phrase "You shall do, and you shall hear," as a general guideline on living life. God is saying that you shall do, or follow, the commandments. When he says you shall hear he is saying that you also need to listen because there can't be rules for every single aspect in life and sometimes you need to listen for guidance in life.
4. When we study the Tanakh we should think about this. We can learn from these stories and see how our ancestors connected to God and Judaism. This helps me connect to God and Judaism as well.
Lexi
I liked Rabbi Michael Knopf's interpretation of receiving the Torah at Mount Sinai. However, I don't believe that all past, present, and future Jews were there because I believe that some of the stories in the Torah were written to teach lessons and Mount Sinai is one of them. I think it was written to tell us to pass the Torah on from one generation to the next.
ReplyDeleteI think that revelation is continuous because as Jews, we are encouraged to ask questions. When we ask questions, we learn more and understand new things all the time.
I interpret "we shall do and we shall hear" as "teaching others and being taught by others". I think that "we shall do" means to pass on knowledge along with the Torah and "we shall hear" means to be open, listen, and learn from others. This is relevant to me because I enjoy learning new, interesting things and think that it is important to pass knowledge to others.
As we read the Torah while studying the history of the Jewish people, we question what happened in the Torah and compare it to the facts we already know today. This means that we will be able to pass on what we learn from the stories in the Torah from generation to generation, which meets the Jewish tradition of passing on knowledge today.
I've always heard the idea that every Jew was at Sinai. I don't have an interpretation for Sinai because I believe it happened as it was written. Everyone who is was or will be a Jew was at Sinai when the Torah was given to us in some way shape or form. This means that everyone was there and that even if we don't remember it happened. I personally don't believe that this is a continuos cycle, I just believe that everyone was there at Sinai. This doesn't effect my life that much because it does not feel like a special experience if everyone has experienced the same thing. The only thing I wish was that I could remember something as important as that. The Quote of "We shall do and we shall hear" is just the Jewish people saying that they shall act upon the word of God. This just means that we should follow the Torah. These words saying that we shall follow the Torah means that we are supposed to take the Torah and only the Torah as a completely historical retelling of the Jews. While I don't know about that, the idea that in the Torah it says to take the Torah seriously means that there was already the idea that there would be people claiming it's illegitimacy.
ReplyDeleteI am the sum of four millennia of Jewish history. Everything that has happened to Jewish people, has happened to me, just like everything that has happened to the British, has happened to Boris Johnson, for instance. This idea is related, but not the same as, Friedrich Nietzsche's idea of "eternal recurrence." According to Nietzschean scholars Kathleen Higgins and Robert Solomon, "eternal recurrence is the idea that the sequence of events, including the events that make up one's life, has already happened and will occur again and again and again," a metaphor for moments frozen in time which I think can be applied easily to the events of Sinai. If we look at ourselves not as individuals but as a people with a collective soul, Sinai does happen infinitely within that moment. Even if it is not historically accurate, it has been burned in our memory. Every person who calls himself a Jew has had, is having and will have that revelation. In my life, this means that our Judaism is not something that can be turned on or off like a switch. The revelation is Torah, and as such, we are always accepting Torah. This can mean several things, however. It could be following the Mitzvot, or simply understanding it as a moment in our history. Piety doesn't necessarily have a role in things. It could be as simple as understanding that I am always foremost a Jew.
ReplyDeleteThe translation of "Torah" is laws. I have always interpreted the receiving of Torah at Sinai as receiving the 613, not the book we study today. As such, when we say "we shall do and we shall hear," it means that we will not only follow Mitzvot but also remember it. We celebrate Shavuot every year for a reason, to hear the commandments. Every Parshah we read is hearing the words of Hashem. This relates to our study of Jewish history in that we are living the words of our ancestors and our people at Sinai by doing and hearing. There is a reason that studying Talmud is considered a Mitzvah, both in the literal and accepted sense of the word.
I love the idea that every Jew, past, present and future was at Mt.Sinai to receive the Torah. In my opinion i think it is because the Torah is something that has been with our people since the very beginning and it stories and teachings have and continue to fill each and every Jew with curiosity and hope.I think the idea behind this theory is fascinating and it links us all together. It makes me feel as if the Jewish people continue to grow together as one because every year we continue to learn from the same scroll and remember valuable lessons, hopefully gaining different perspectives on life each time we do. "We shall do, and we shall hear" is a very cool concept. I believe it means that the Jewish people should do as the Torah says, and to be open to hearing what others have to say.By reading the Torah, we get a sense of appreciation and great fullness, Not that everyone has to believe in every story that is in the Torah, but the fact that just words on a scroll can help to keep a group of people bound together for centuries is so special.
ReplyDeleteI believe that by saying all the Jewish people - past, present, and future - were there at Sinai when the Torah was given is a symbolic way to view the event. It's a way to unfify the Jewish people and come together as a community to celebrate what we all have and can share now, the Torah. Whether it's factually proved that the Torah was given at Sinai or not, we have it today and that's a unifying and gratifying definite fact. I agree that revalation is continuous because as I continue to learn more and more while living in Israel as well as learning so much in Jewish History everyday, I continue to question what I learn. With asking questions comes person opinions and a lot of revelations about your beliefs as well as the people around you. Judaism aside, I think revelations is a continous part of life and a part of growing up and learning about the world. By saying "We shall do and We shall hear", the Jews are making a point to tell God that recieving the Torah means a lot and that they will abide by the rules and lessons that the Torah provides them. They also mean that they will be sure to create justice and help anyone who doesn't follow the guidelines that the Torah gives. Factually, and accurately, I don't think the Torah gives the Jews a whole lot of information about our past that is logical or very literal at all. While many of the events in the Torah very possibly could have happened, it's important to know and use the Torah as a reminder to what's right and wrong, what's justice and injustice, and what's a mitzvah and what's not.
ReplyDeleteI honestly believed in a lot of what Rabbi Michael Knopf said. i like to interpret the idea of us receiving the torah as the tradition of generation to generation. the idea that for centuries we have passed these stories down and instilled these values onto our children is amazing. what they mean by all jews have received the torah means that every jew has the right to the torah. I do agree that revelation is continuous. Everyday the torah commands us to be better people and lets us step toward towards a better future with the background and tradition that we have in common. I can relate to this in so many ways. For example i love the idea of mitzvot and the idea that we are commanded to be better people. I believe the meaning behind "We shall do and we shall hear" is that now that we have recieved the Torah we shall act on it and takes its teachings to heart. these words are relevant to me because I can always learn new ideas from the torah and figure out what to take out of it These teachings relate to our study of torah because we are all people trying to learn from the torah and trying to find whats good and bad in this life through the teachings of the torah that have been passed down through centuries of tradition.
ReplyDeleteI think that it’s less so that I was present at Sinai but that my ancestors were and they have passed on their experiences through stories. I don’t believe that it is possible in any way shape or form for me, a 16 year old girl in 2015, to have been present at Sinai thousands of years ago. Stories and experiences passed down from generation to generation, .לדור ודודר
ReplyDelete2) I definitely think that this revelation is continuous. Why else would we read Torah three times a week, and continuously comment and be learning the ideas of it? This relates to my personal life in the way that I read Torah every year, the same portion, at Rosh Hashanah, and study it every year. If the revelation and learning was discontinuous, I would have no reason to feel connected to my Judaism. The continuation of the learning is what keeps Judaism alive, and what reminds us of the hardships and miracles that our ancestors went through to get us to this point.
3) I think that this is meant to show that the People of Israel form a promise with God, that they will listen to the words of Torah and will act accordingly. I don’t think that this is as relevant today as it used to be. I’m a reform Jew. I don’t follow all of the mitzvot that we are commanded to in the Torah. I still think that I am a good person in the eyes of God, and that what mitzvot I do follow are good enough. I think that the Torah is all about interpretation, and that the relevance of doing and hearing the words of Torah are about interpretation as well.
4) I think that these ideas in relation to our study of the Torah as a source for the history of our people are quite closely knit. As we study and learn Torah, we are interpreting the words that we read. We don’t know for complete accuracy what the author(s) meant in their writings. We only know what we see and how we interpret that. Not everyone will agree on interpretations either, and I think that is very important. Interpreting and discussing is what will help us learn more and connect with our ancestors more.
Rachael Coleman
As is becoming a theme for me on this trip, reading this article and more deeply examining traditional thinking has offered me the opportunity to postulate new personal theories about Jewish concepts. While I do not believe literally that we were all there in body at Sinai, I was intrigued by a point Rabbi Knopf brought up in his article. He quotes Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani: “Their souls were there, even though their bodies had not yet been created.” The crux of this quote, in my eyes, is the word soul. I believe that a human soul is the quintessential part of who we are, the part of us created b’tzelem elohim, the part of us with a spark of Gd. My interpretation is that all souls of the Jewish people were there at Sinai, because in a soul is something divine. This “something” transcends the restrictions of a body, and the souls of all Jewish people, past and present, were there collectively with those Israelites who fled Egypt. If subscribing to this train of thought, it follows that because all Jewish souls were present at Sinai, every time a Jewish soul in the present day learns Torah, the revelation is ongoing.
ReplyDeleteIn addition, I struggle with the word “revelation” used in the stories about Sinai. I do not believe that in any age, all that the Torah is and means has been revealed in its entirety to a generation. Part of what it means to be Jewish is to struggle with Gd and Gd’s teachings, and, if all that Torah is had been revealed in one moment, there would be nothing with which to grapple. For this reason, I interpret the words “We shall do and we shall hear” as a promise to Gd to always accept the Torah, and in each age to learn and grapple with it’s concepts. They are relevant for me today, as a student of the Torah, because I choose to hear and to do. I hear the words of Torah. I try my best in my everyday life to live Jewishly, and let those words resonate through who I am.
I believe these ideas are a beautiful metaphor for the challenged posed by viewing the Torah as a source of historicity. This questioning of a literal concept in the Torah parallels the questioning of many other “literals,” especially from a historical perspective. I believe the moral that can be learned from this example is that though all that is in the Torah may not be literal, we can still learn and grow from study. SImilarly, though all that is in the Torah may not be historically accurate, interpretations and pieces of truth can greatly contribute to the study of the Jewish people.
1. I believe that this is true, we were all there someway through our ancestors.
ReplyDelete2. I do agree with the notion that this is a continuous revelation. I am always striving to find more and more out about my jewish identity. Whether it is a revelation about what I want to do in the future, or finally figuring out what a prayer means to me.
3. I interpret "You shall do, and you shall hear" as a moto to go bye for everyday life. Everyday you should you respect the
commandments given to us by God, but sometimes you must listen to yourself and make your own commandments and beliefs.
4.When we study the Tanakh we should think about this. We can learn from these stories and see how our ancestors connected to God and Judaism. This helps me connect to God and Judaism as well. When I read from the tanakh i feel a direct connection to what my ancestors went through.
1.) I honestly do not know how to interpret the tradition because I believe it mostly to be mythology. Yes we did receive the Torah in the desert and yes we were slaves. But do I believe that the Torah is written by one man comprised from the words of a divine being? No I do not. So when someone says that we were all at Har Sinai during the giving of the Torah, I will listen to them out of respect and interest; but I do not believe we were all there.
ReplyDelete2.) I believe revelation is constantly occurring at almost all times of the day, every day. However, I do not believe that it is being shared with us by the voice of the Almighty Ruler of the Universe but whenever one happens to learn the Torah. For every time someone decides to learn a part of the Torah or even relearn, a new part will always be revealed to them; either because they didn't notice it before or they forgot, but either way, a new part of the Torah is always being revealed to them. Therefore, revelation is constant.
3.) To me it means that the Jews are willing to do the commandments which they now know and will listen to for more commandments to perform. They do relate to me though even though it was said by the Jews in the desert a good few thousand years ago. It relates to me because I am one of those people who will go with the flow; so if one were to tell me to do something, I probably would do what they asked and wait to see if there is more.
4.) These ideas helps us understand how the Jews of old thought. Why they did what they did and how they did it. All of these ideas just help us better understand the people of the certain time period. Lastly, it helps us understand how their thinking process has changed throughout the course of history leading to how it is now. Which also helps us better understand our own thought processes.
1. I believe that we were all there at Sinai from past, present, and future. Though we weren't there in body I feel like God used his Godliness as he did a lot back then to at least bring us there in spirit. This would be so that ALL of his people could receive the Torah together and at once.
ReplyDelete2. In terms of consistency I definitely think that the revelation occurs whether it be from God himself or just carrying out our daily activities. Like perhaps in class when we're learning or in some cases just looking over a story something new can always come about from that. I get the feeling that no matter how small that is it's nonetheless a revelation. Or just by going about mitzvot, I reckon even then we can learn about ourselves and relate to Judaism and furthermore the Torah.
3. "We shall do and we shall hear" I interpret this as we were willing to listen and take in the commandments. Which of course not each and every one of them is relevant to me however some of them I believe are still to be followed daily. Given the time differences it's only natural that some commandments drifted into obscurity however I feel like some of these are important to our people and in a way define us too.
4. When I look at these ideas, I look at it like a book maybe a series even. It tells the story of our people and it teaches us the way things were, how people thought/what was normal then, and also how time has progressed since then in terms of how we've been as a people. So when we read and teach Torah I believe that almost all is encompassed by this.