Pinchas Giller
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195118490
- eISBN:
- 9780199848874
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195118490.003.0006
- Subject:
- Religion, Judaism
This chapter further examines the origin of the divine flow, particularly the aspect, or tiqqunim, of the beards. The author discusses thoroughly the Flow of Hokhmah, Din and Hesed, and Mazal.
This chapter further examines the origin of the divine flow, particularly the aspect, or tiqqunim, of the beards. The author discusses thoroughly the Flow of Hokhmah, Din and Hesed, and Mazal.
Timothy P. Jackson
- Published in print:
- 2021
- Published Online:
- June 2021
- ISBN:
- 9780197538050
- eISBN:
- 9780197538081
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780197538050.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology
Paradoxically, no other subjects of modern inquiry are as likely to generate false consolation as the Holocaust and anti-Semitism. Even as we acknowledge the enormity of these twin evils and resolve ...
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Paradoxically, no other subjects of modern inquiry are as likely to generate false consolation as the Holocaust and anti-Semitism. Even as we acknowledge the enormity of these twin evils and resolve not to forget or repeat them, we deem them opaque or purely irrational phenomena, thereby minimizing them. We are tempted to relativize the effects of the Shoah and general hatred of the Jews by pointing to the emergence of the state of Israel on earth, or to the redemption of the elect in heaven, as compensation. More dangerously still, we blind ourselves to the objective causes of the pervasive malice by denying that there are objective causes. I argue, in contrast, that every Jew interred in a Nazi death camp was a prisoner of conscience, even as every Jew murdered by the Nazis was a martyr. It was Jewish conscience and Jewish faith themselves that the Nazis loathed and wished to eliminate by degrading and finally destroying the Jewish people. The pantheistic naturalism at the core of National Socialism—a.k.a. survival of the fittest—inevitably conflicted with Jewish moral monotheism. To this day, the erotic mind does not relish being dependent upon and decentered by God’s righteousness. If we insist the Holocaust was pure insanity without any objective basis, we fail to appreciate its radical evil. If we blind ourselves to how Christian supersessionism made the genocide possible (if not inevitable), we make the Shoah more likely to be repeated. This is not to blame the victims but to name the victimizers: our instinctually prideful selves.Less
Paradoxically, no other subjects of modern inquiry are as likely to generate false consolation as the Holocaust and anti-Semitism. Even as we acknowledge the enormity of these twin evils and resolve not to forget or repeat them, we deem them opaque or purely irrational phenomena, thereby minimizing them. We are tempted to relativize the effects of the Shoah and general hatred of the Jews by pointing to the emergence of the state of Israel on earth, or to the redemption of the elect in heaven, as compensation. More dangerously still, we blind ourselves to the objective causes of the pervasive malice by denying that there are objective causes. I argue, in contrast, that every Jew interred in a Nazi death camp was a prisoner of conscience, even as every Jew murdered by the Nazis was a martyr. It was Jewish conscience and Jewish faith themselves that the Nazis loathed and wished to eliminate by degrading and finally destroying the Jewish people. The pantheistic naturalism at the core of National Socialism—a.k.a. survival of the fittest—inevitably conflicted with Jewish moral monotheism. To this day, the erotic mind does not relish being dependent upon and decentered by God’s righteousness. If we insist the Holocaust was pure insanity without any objective basis, we fail to appreciate its radical evil. If we blind ourselves to how Christian supersessionism made the genocide possible (if not inevitable), we make the Shoah more likely to be repeated. This is not to blame the victims but to name the victimizers: our instinctually prideful selves.
Judith A. Kates
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- March 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780823225712
- eISBN:
- 9780823237067
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Fordham University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5422/fso/9780823225712.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Biblical Studies
Throughout the Talmud and early collections of midrash, one finds commentary and reflection on the book of Ruth. However, this chapter focuses on a coherently edited anthology called ...
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Throughout the Talmud and early collections of midrash, one finds commentary and reflection on the book of Ruth. However, this chapter focuses on a coherently edited anthology called Ruth Rabbah, a midrashic collection composed of verse-by-verse commentary, divided into eight chapters and introduced by a long proem or petiha (opening) that is connected thematically to the initial verses of the book. Ruth Rabbah includes material found in the Jerusalem Talmud as well as in some earlier midrashic collections, such as Pesikta d'Rav Kahana. It reflects an awareness of certain motifs that one finds explicitly in the Babylonian Talmud, giving it a plausible date of the sixth or seventh century CE. One can then argue that the book of Ruth teaches people that, despite her Moabite origins, Ruth is brought under the wings of God because of her extraordinary righteousness and because she is the examplar of hesed, as Boaz himself testifies.Less
Throughout the Talmud and early collections of midrash, one finds commentary and reflection on the book of Ruth. However, this chapter focuses on a coherently edited anthology called Ruth Rabbah, a midrashic collection composed of verse-by-verse commentary, divided into eight chapters and introduced by a long proem or petiha (opening) that is connected thematically to the initial verses of the book. Ruth Rabbah includes material found in the Jerusalem Talmud as well as in some earlier midrashic collections, such as Pesikta d'Rav Kahana. It reflects an awareness of certain motifs that one finds explicitly in the Babylonian Talmud, giving it a plausible date of the sixth or seventh century CE. One can then argue that the book of Ruth teaches people that, despite her Moabite origins, Ruth is brought under the wings of God because of her extraordinary righteousness and because she is the examplar of hesed, as Boaz himself testifies.
Moshe Rosman
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- February 2021
- ISBN:
- 9781906764449
- eISBN:
- 9781800340800
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Liverpool University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3828/liverpool/9781906764449.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Judaism
This chapter focuses on the story in Shivhei Ha-Besht about the two hasidim who were sceptical about the Besht, which may not accurately reflect early eighteenth-century attitudes toward ba’alei ...
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This chapter focuses on the story in Shivhei Ha-Besht about the two hasidim who were sceptical about the Besht, which may not accurately reflect early eighteenth-century attitudes toward ba’alei shem. It analyzes a logical question of whether the Ba’al Shem Tov was the founder of Hasidism and confirms if there was hasidim before Hasidism. The once dominant, and still popular, view is that the Hasidic movement arose de novo, in contrast and opposed to normative rabbinic Judaism as it was believed and practiced in eighteenth-century Poland. The chapter explains the long history of the word “hasid” in Hebrew. Its root, “hesed,” is usually translated as “love” or “lovingkindness”; hence a hasid can be someone who practices lovingkindness or compassion.Less
This chapter focuses on the story in Shivhei Ha-Besht about the two hasidim who were sceptical about the Besht, which may not accurately reflect early eighteenth-century attitudes toward ba’alei shem. It analyzes a logical question of whether the Ba’al Shem Tov was the founder of Hasidism and confirms if there was hasidim before Hasidism. The once dominant, and still popular, view is that the Hasidic movement arose de novo, in contrast and opposed to normative rabbinic Judaism as it was believed and practiced in eighteenth-century Poland. The chapter explains the long history of the word “hasid” in Hebrew. Its root, “hesed,” is usually translated as “love” or “lovingkindness”; hence a hasid can be someone who practices lovingkindness or compassion.
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- June 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780804741583
- eISBN:
- 9780804785020
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Stanford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.11126/stanford/9780804741583.003.0006
- Subject:
- Society and Culture, Jewish Studies
This chapter focuses on social welfare institutions, societies, and associations that were established in Pinsk, Belarus during the period 1881–1914. In 1844, the kehillah (autonomous Jewish ...
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This chapter focuses on social welfare institutions, societies, and associations that were established in Pinsk, Belarus during the period 1881–1914. In 1844, the kehillah (autonomous Jewish community administration) system was dissolved, eliminating the formal, legal leadership authorized to levy taxes and provide for the communal needs of the Russian-Jewish population in the city. Authorities often co-opted “wealthy and distinguished” Jews in order to increase the city's income. Several societies were formed to address the needs of the poor, including a gemilut hesed society, the Somekh Nofelim Ve-Yoledot (support for the distressed and for new mothers), and a society called Honen Dalim (compassion for the poor). Other charitable institutions during the period included the Karlin Bikur Holim (visiting the sick) hospital, the Pinsk old-age home, Beit Ha-Asaf Le-Zekenim Ve-Halashim (home for the aged and infirm), Hevrat Ha-Tzedakah Ha-Yehudit (the Jewish charitable institution), and the Linat Tzedek (hospice for the poor) society.Less
This chapter focuses on social welfare institutions, societies, and associations that were established in Pinsk, Belarus during the period 1881–1914. In 1844, the kehillah (autonomous Jewish community administration) system was dissolved, eliminating the formal, legal leadership authorized to levy taxes and provide for the communal needs of the Russian-Jewish population in the city. Authorities often co-opted “wealthy and distinguished” Jews in order to increase the city's income. Several societies were formed to address the needs of the poor, including a gemilut hesed society, the Somekh Nofelim Ve-Yoledot (support for the distressed and for new mothers), and a society called Honen Dalim (compassion for the poor). Other charitable institutions during the period included the Karlin Bikur Holim (visiting the sick) hospital, the Pinsk old-age home, Beit Ha-Asaf Le-Zekenim Ve-Halashim (home for the aged and infirm), Hevrat Ha-Tzedakah Ha-Yehudit (the Jewish charitable institution), and the Linat Tzedek (hospice for the poor) society.
Ellen F. Davis
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- June 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780190260545
- eISBN:
- 9780190260583
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780190260545.003.0016
- Subject:
- Religion, Biblical Studies
The book of Ruth stands in contrast to the story of Judges as an account of redemptive human relationships, marked not by violence but by ḥesed—mutual loyalty practiced among people who are all in ...
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The book of Ruth stands in contrast to the story of Judges as an account of redemptive human relationships, marked not by violence but by ḥesed—mutual loyalty practiced among people who are all in some way vulnerable. Ruth in her own person embodies the classic biblical categories of the vulnerable: she is widow, orphan, and sojourner. But she is also the mother of the Davidic and messianic line, and so the story of Ruth the Moabite, in partnership with Naomi and Boaz, is emblematic. It indicates how vulnerable persons and groups may make a commitment to the practice of mutual respect, risk-taking, and protection—and through that practice, open up genuine hope for the future.Less
The book of Ruth stands in contrast to the story of Judges as an account of redemptive human relationships, marked not by violence but by ḥesed—mutual loyalty practiced among people who are all in some way vulnerable. Ruth in her own person embodies the classic biblical categories of the vulnerable: she is widow, orphan, and sojourner. But she is also the mother of the Davidic and messianic line, and so the story of Ruth the Moabite, in partnership with Naomi and Boaz, is emblematic. It indicates how vulnerable persons and groups may make a commitment to the practice of mutual respect, risk-taking, and protection—and through that practice, open up genuine hope for the future.
Timothy P. Jackson
- Published in print:
- 2021
- Published Online:
- June 2021
- ISBN:
- 9780197538050
- eISBN:
- 9780197538081
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780197538050.003.0003
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology
I argue that the objective contrast between Judaism and Nazism is the perennial either/or between love and hate, humanity and inhumanity, a contrast that Hitler recognized in outline. The foremost ...
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I argue that the objective contrast between Judaism and Nazism is the perennial either/or between love and hate, humanity and inhumanity, a contrast that Hitler recognized in outline. The foremost natural law for Hitler was Darwinian survival of the fittest, but the basic divide between the biblical God and Hitler’s pantheism resonates through five related pairs of axiological poles and is applicable to both men and women: (1) a transcendent Creator who governs human life with love and justice versus an immanent creator that governs human life with survival of the fittest and will to power; (2) human solidarity based on sharing the image of God versus a master race destined to subordinate and/or eliminate inferiors; (3) universal moral norms binding on all human beings versus elitist privileges applicable only to the dominant few; (4) the relativizing of tribe and bodily instinct versus the valorizing of tribe; and (5) the treasuring of life, especially for the weak and vulnerable versus the celebration of death, especially for the weak and vulnerable.Less
I argue that the objective contrast between Judaism and Nazism is the perennial either/or between love and hate, humanity and inhumanity, a contrast that Hitler recognized in outline. The foremost natural law for Hitler was Darwinian survival of the fittest, but the basic divide between the biblical God and Hitler’s pantheism resonates through five related pairs of axiological poles and is applicable to both men and women: (1) a transcendent Creator who governs human life with love and justice versus an immanent creator that governs human life with survival of the fittest and will to power; (2) human solidarity based on sharing the image of God versus a master race destined to subordinate and/or eliminate inferiors; (3) universal moral norms binding on all human beings versus elitist privileges applicable only to the dominant few; (4) the relativizing of tribe and bodily instinct versus the valorizing of tribe; and (5) the treasuring of life, especially for the weak and vulnerable versus the celebration of death, especially for the weak and vulnerable.
Lenn E. Goodman
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- February 2018
- ISBN:
- 9780198796497
- eISBN:
- 9780191837760
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780198796497.003.0012
- Subject:
- Religion, Judaism
Romanticism favors feeling over reason, first separating and isolating the two. Taking too narrow a view of reason, both admirers and detractors may regard religion as a blind leap of faith. But a ...
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Romanticism favors feeling over reason, first separating and isolating the two. Taking too narrow a view of reason, both admirers and detractors may regard religion as a blind leap of faith. But a prudent leap needs orientation, moral and epistemic. We need to oriented ourselves ontologically and axiologically if we are to pursue transcendent goals and not mistake emotional intensity for a criterion of truth, confusing violence with power, or freedom with caprice, as if wilfull choices were somehow self-justifying and could create moral or spiritual truths. Echoing Maimonides’ theses thatx reason is humanity’s link to God, and rejecting Kierkegaard’s tendentious misreading of the Binding of Isaac, I defend an ideal of holiness that finds expression in a life uniting the active and practical with the thoughtful and spiritually uplifted and uplifting—seeking holiness not in irrational excesses but in the irenic discoveries of reason.Less
Romanticism favors feeling over reason, first separating and isolating the two. Taking too narrow a view of reason, both admirers and detractors may regard religion as a blind leap of faith. But a prudent leap needs orientation, moral and epistemic. We need to oriented ourselves ontologically and axiologically if we are to pursue transcendent goals and not mistake emotional intensity for a criterion of truth, confusing violence with power, or freedom with caprice, as if wilfull choices were somehow self-justifying and could create moral or spiritual truths. Echoing Maimonides’ theses thatx reason is humanity’s link to God, and rejecting Kierkegaard’s tendentious misreading of the Binding of Isaac, I defend an ideal of holiness that finds expression in a life uniting the active and practical with the thoughtful and spiritually uplifted and uplifting—seeking holiness not in irrational excesses but in the irenic discoveries of reason.
Lenn E. Goodman
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- October 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780190698478
- eISBN:
- 9780190698508
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780190698478.003.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Biblical Studies, Judaism
Chapter 1 discusses the notion that immanence and transcendence meet in the idea of God. Morally we find holiness in kindness (hesed), mirroring the generosity of God’s act of creation and the ...
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Chapter 1 discusses the notion that immanence and transcendence meet in the idea of God. Morally we find holiness in kindness (hesed), mirroring the generosity of God’s act of creation and the ongoing work of emergence, salient in evolution but dynamic throughout the cosmos. Intellectually holiness can be found, perhaps where least expected, in the sciences. For reason is our link with God, not cold but very much alive in the spontaneity and creativity that make it God’s image within us. Nature is no inert passivity but active and conative, a living theater in which God’s creativity tells its tale. And the transcendence visible in the liveliness that is God’s hallmark in nature can be emulated, as God commands: You shall be holy, for I theLORDthy God am holy (Leviticus 19:2). For God is the infinite Source of being, goodness, truth, and beauty. Every finite good points in the direction of its unbounded Source.Less
Chapter 1 discusses the notion that immanence and transcendence meet in the idea of God. Morally we find holiness in kindness (hesed), mirroring the generosity of God’s act of creation and the ongoing work of emergence, salient in evolution but dynamic throughout the cosmos. Intellectually holiness can be found, perhaps where least expected, in the sciences. For reason is our link with God, not cold but very much alive in the spontaneity and creativity that make it God’s image within us. Nature is no inert passivity but active and conative, a living theater in which God’s creativity tells its tale. And the transcendence visible in the liveliness that is God’s hallmark in nature can be emulated, as God commands: You shall be holy, for I theLORDthy God am holy (Leviticus 19:2). For God is the infinite Source of being, goodness, truth, and beauty. Every finite good points in the direction of its unbounded Source.
