Matan Torah - HW for Sunday
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
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
1. I interpret the tradition that all of us were present at Sinai as not necessarily all Jews being in a physical place, but the time where we were given or created the values and morals our religion is based off of. Because of this, I don't celebrate Shavuot for the Jews receiving the ten commandments, I celebrate it because this is the day we remember the values that we use in our everyday lives.
ReplyDelete2. I fully agree that this revelation is continuous. In fact, I honestly had never thought about Jewish customs giving us the ability to connect on a deeper level with past and future generations. I also have great grandparents who I was never able to connect with on a personal level, so with this perspective, I have a deeper connection than I realized. As a modernist, this gives me a better way to understand Shavuot and still immerse myself in Judaism.
3. I interpret this as listening and then actually taking action. I could relate this to me by learning more about social justice and then actually taking action.
4. I loved reading this article because, like the many interpretations of the Tanach, no matter what part of the spectrum you are, anyone can relate to this.
1. I don't think that we were all physical present while receiving the Torah at Sinai but where spirituality present. As for whether or not this happened, I believe basically the same as above that even though it might not of happened it was definitely at least a spiritual revelation
ReplyDelete2. Yes I believe for the most part that revelation is continuous. Our ancestors agreed to obligate and fulfill these terms from god so I think we should too but in some cases the modern sense of the rule or law.
3. I think that this means that we will do what you told and we've heard what you said and we will listen to you if you want to talk to us
4. It relates to that Tanaka because there are multiple interpretations and you can elbow what you want but we'll never know what right, which is bad in some ways but great in others.
1. I think the tradition that we were all at Sinai when we received the torah is a way of connection us to our ancestors and other jews. All though we weren't all physically present when we received the torah, we all still read the same book of scriptures.
ReplyDelete2. For the most part I think the relevation is continuous. I think from generation to generation our interpretation of the torah may change, but not our faith torwards the Jewish community. When I study torah I am reading the same book of teachings my grandparents did and their grandparents as well. I am not follow it the same way they did but I am more in touch with them and community because of it.
3. I think this means that we will listen to what's around us and the torah and take action. By taking action I mean repairing the world and doing what's right. For example if you look around your community (listening to the community's needs) then work to make it a better place (to do or to take action).
4. This article was like many different stories in the Tanakh. It could have a lot of different interpretations. But we use the Tanakh as a resource to help us question and find new interpretations such as this one. And in that way it helps us to think more in depth of our religion and our history.
1.) I believe that all Jews weren’t there physically, but spiritually and emotionally. The tradition is meant to remind Jews that we were given something great at this date and it holds a very significant place in Judaism. I don’t celebrate Shavuot, but it does have symbolism and is a reminder of the daily beliefs and morals and rules that most Jews use to this day.
ReplyDelete2.) I do believe that this revelation is continuous. It relates to me personally because my grandparents took the Torah very literally and seriously and when I think about this and immerse myself into the Torah, it makes me feel a great connection to them even though they aren’t with me now.
3.) The interpretation to me means that the Jewish people are willing to follow the Ten Commandments and learn Torah and do as the Torah says. I also interpret this to mean that they are willing to listen to god and change if something is not working out.
4.) The Tanach is a great way to learn and think and wonder about the Torah and the many stories. People are supposed to ask questions while reading it. The history of our people is told by the many stories in the Tanach.
1. As a strictly cultural Jew, I find the idea that we were all present at Sinai to be a very fascinating idea. Personally I don't believe that we were. However, I deeply appreciate the sentiment that is expressed in the story. It is a sentiment of togetherness and eternal community. These are very important in Jewish tradition, and is part of why Jews have always stayed together.
ReplyDelete2. As I mentioned before, I am a strictly cultural Jew. I don't believe in god and I don't believe in any of the stories in the Tanach that aren't corroborated by numerous other sources or generally accepted as true by the scientific community. Because of this, I very dejectedly use the term revelation. Instead I would prefer to say tradition. I much appreciate the idea that the Torah is passed from generation to generation and is an ongoing thing. I find that this is more of a cultural tradition than a religious revelation. With that said, I do appreciate that this is a tradition that has been going on for ~3,000 years. I still remember the first time I read directly from the Torah. I was 7 years old, and I read the first day of creation from the nicest Torah at the largest Synagogue in town, Temple Beth Israel. At the time I believed in god and appreciated only the religious aspect of reading from the ancient scrolls. 8 years later I am able to appreciate the cultural significance in that instance. At the time I felt I was communicating with god. Now I realize that I was also, in that moment, connecting with my ancestors by reading the same thing they had for thousands of years.
3.This phrase caught me by surprise. Jewish thinking tends to go in a very different way. Usually it goes something like: נשמע, נידין, נסכים, ונעשה. In English, we'll listen, we'll argue, we'll agree, and then we'll do it. I find the blind agreement rather disturbing. After all, we are עם ישראל.
4. When I was in second grade, I had to make a choice. Judaism or science. When I told my teacher, she told me to stay after class so we could talk about it. She sat me down and said, "Zachary, you don't need to make a choice. The Torah is not supposed to be a historical document. It is a story, a set of morals from which we draw subjective ethical guidelines. Science is the opposite. It is an objective source from which we can draw conclusions about the world around us, not to draw ethical conclusions from." I still remember that conversation. I no longer believe in god, but that conversation helped me understand what the Torah is. It's not a history book or a guide to every day life. Instead it is an ethical code, a reference book for living a healthy and balanced and beneficial life. It opened up an entire sect of Judaism to me: cultural Judaism. I could believe what I wanted and still be Jewish, do Jewish things, and think like a Jew, whatever that means to me. This text reflects much of what I have learned after years of personal and familial struggles about my beliefs. An Acknowledgment that there is more to Judaism than a blind faith in the exact words of the Torah, and instead that every Pasuk and every Parshah is open to individual interpretation. That the very meaning of being Jewish and how to express that varies from Jew to Jew.
1. I definitely don't believe that we were all physically present at Sinai, but I feel like the spirituality of the moment has been passed down, generation to generation.
ReplyDelete2. I agree that the revelation is continuous, but in a continuously changing way. My family is not very religious and I am mainly a cultural Jew, however we have all read from the same books, which connects us in a much deeper level. The tanakh gives us stories to relate to and to help with our moral compasses.
3. I feel like this is a way of explaining tikkun olam. We will do what's needed to help save the world and renew it, but we will also listen to differing options and opinions of what's rights.
4. I feel like the tanakh is a much more cultural source for me. As said before, I'm much more a cultural Jew than religious and typically don't believe what's in the tanakh unless there's tangible evidence. I do believe what is physically found could be connected and referenced back to the tanakh.
1- I think that the people who believe in the traditions of the Torah were there but if you don't believe in them then you weren't
ReplyDelete2- I do because new things could happen at any time. It relates to my personal life because new people come into my life or leave at random times so there are always new experiences to be had.
3- I interpret the words like they will listen and do the actions described in the Torah. They are not completely because I am not a very religious person however I still believe in some things.
4- They relate to reading the Torah as a sore because it could change our perspective of it.
1.I don't believe that all Jews were physically present at Sinai, but when we celebrate Shavuot I feel as if at the moment I am there.
ReplyDelete2. I agree that this revelation is continuous. When I read the Torah, I feel the connection with my grandparents and their grandparents because we all were reading the same texts.
3. To me this phrase means that we will do as it says in the Torah and as God says. It means to me that we will do what is right- fight for justice and fairness.
4. They relate because they tell us what happened. I believe in a lot what is written in the Torah and to me the events that are written in the tanach are really historical.
1. I believe that when it's said we were present at mount. Sinai it means we as Jews are connected to one another my the Torah and that by "remembering what it was like" means we should remember the Torah and what it teaches.
ReplyDelete2. Yes, I think the revelation is continuous through each generation. I mean it will definatly change over the years. I think it can relate to my life because I'm constantly teaching other people (or trying to) and sometimes I will learn something and change the way I say it the next time.
3. "We shall do and we shall hear" simply mean that we shall do what is right by the means of the Torah and we shall listen to the words of god.
4. It relates to the tanakh because they both have different perspectives and it's good to read/see other perspectives. I do believe that the tanakh isn't the best source for learning about our people's past but if it's what we have then so be it.
1. I believe that the we weren't present to receiving the Torah rather the Torah and the midrashim explain to us how the Torah was received therefore by passing on the story of receiving the Torah gives people the feeling of receiving it with moses.
ReplyDelete2. I believe that the revelation is continued through the story of Moses receiving the Torah. Every time the story is told it could extract the same feeling of being there while the Torah was handed to Moses.
3. This phrase probably means that the Hebrew people would follow the Torah because they will do what the Torah says. As in the 613 commandments that the Torah contains. Today, we, as reform Jews, do not follow these 613 commandments thus making the words said by the people meaningless to our lives.
4. This article really spoke to me because it demonstrated the double reasoning and how they could both be valid.
1. It reminds me about the collective memory that we learned about in class. I do not personally believe that either my body or my soul was at Sanai. That was the story of my ancestors. I may live to tell their story, but it is not my own. I need to fight my own struggle and create my own story as a jew.
ReplyDelete2. I do not believe that we are given the torah everyday. I do however believe that it is a symbol for us having to live by the torah and follow the commandments. This influences me to spend each day with kindness and fulfilling the mitzvot.
3. I interpret this as hearing the stories of those who came before us and to continue to tell those stories and tell our story to generations to come. I live by this by listening to what I am told by others. Whether true/false, school or drama, I will listen.
4. This relates to our idea of collective memory. Even though I do not believe the stories are true, I think that the lessons and ideas that we take out of it are for each Jew to live their life.
1. I think that although I was not at Sanai physically or mentally, there is a jewish spirit that is passed down to me from my ancestors and to every other jewish person from theirs. I think of this slightly different than collective memory (as Dani mentioned), as I see no possible way that every jew currently could have been there or remember it, but mo0re as a collective spirit which allows jewish people all over the world to feel connected.
ReplyDelete2. I do not agree that every jewish soul gets the Torah. I believe that there is a way for someone to be jewish without having to know the stories of the Torah or all of its meaning, and I think it is just as valid. Personally, I like learning the stories and meaning but before I came here, I had a completely cultural relationship with Judaism and it still taught me a lot.
3. I think these words mean that the current jewish people will do things that will be told in jewish stories for years to come. If every jewish persons soul was at Sanai, than "we" could mean past, present, and future generations of jews.
4. I think that the Torah is a good source to learn morals from, and a guidline for living life to the fullest. I do not believe all (most) of the stories, but I always learn something from them, even if it is just how different the world is today. Even if it is not accurate, it is extraordinarily important.
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?
ReplyDeleteI interpret it as more of a set of rules that are to be passed down to all generations. I don’t think that all Jews were present there, only the Israelites who were leaving Egypt.
2. Do you agree with the notion that this revelation is continuous? How does this relate to your personal life?
I believe the revelation of the rules of god are continuous. Not in a spiritual sense, but in a physical one that society should follow. More like divine guidelines that make a society worthy of gods protection. This relates to my personal life as it gives me a set of basic moral values to follow. Like loving a neighbor or not killing.
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?
I interpret it is the people saying that they accept the guidelines and that we will follow them. That is relevant to me because it shows that the promise that the Israelites made is still to be carried out by me.
4. How do these ideas relate to our reading of the Torah as a source for studying the history of our people?
It relates by showing that the history of our people is a history that is still going on. As god’s chosen people, will are still fulfilling the promise of living in a society worthy of him.
1) It's very hard to interpret this question. Of course, we were not there in our lifetime but I take it as our soul was there. Maybe in another after life. I honestly believe that we weren't there, or at least not all of us, and the most annoying part about it is that we will never know. It's just like opinions on if god was real or not.
ReplyDelete2) I have to say that I do agree with this concept that the revelation is continuous but it is not that relevant to me. I agree with what Zach said, I'm not as religious as I am cultural when it comes to Judaism. But it does connect to my personal life because I know how important Israel was to my moms grandfather, and I know that he would believe it, so that affects me...
3) I interpret these words "We shall do and we shall hear" by the Jews agreeing to study the torah and abide by the commandments.
4)This article relates to the torah because it tells a story that ties in our anncestors and old days, and makes us think about how we lived in the past. Also, the torah has a different meaning to everyone, as well as this story.