RABBI ARTHUR SEGAL:ECO-JUDAISM:soul is willing, the flesh is weak:Isaac
JEWISH SPIRITUAL RENEWAL:SHABBAT 11/7/09:PATH OF TRANSFORMATION
Shalom again my dear Talmidim, Chaverim v' Rabbanim:
Another week has passed and I pray that it was a shavuah tov, a good week, for all of you.
For those new to the class this week, last week's class can be accessed at
In that post is a link to the prior week's class, which was the first class. In it are links on how to get class materials via the web.
Our Talmud on Derek Eretz (how we should live in retaliation to others), teaches "Regard as trifling the great good you did to others, and as enormous the little good others did to you." As someone who lived the opposite way for almost a half a century, I can tell you from personal experience, that allowing the stings and arrows of others to float off our backs, and live with an armor of Teflon, and not taking credit for any good deeds, beats a life of living where one is constantly finding fault with others, seeing others as slighting us, and then wanting news press and ataboys for the good deeds we are supposed to do.
Living in harmony with God's universe and with others, means that we, in our thoughts and actions, must de-emphasize dissonance and rejoice in beauty. It is easy to find another's faults. I live a life where I try to see the beauty in every person. I limit my fault finding to my own daily accounting, not for purpose of self flagellation, but for the greater good, of growing spiritually.
This does not mean that we cannot discern. Living spiritually does not mean we are to be doormats. There are many people who wake up each day, it seems, with their sole purpose in being how to vex others. Unless they sincerely wish our help, the Talmud tells us to avoid them. But we don't judge. Rabbi As Reish Lakish said, ''Correct yourself before rectifying others." (Talmud Bavli Tractate Bava Batra 60a). Since none of we humans were achieve pure 'correctness,' it remains to be seen how any of us can truly be in a position to finger point and offer reproval, unless if one asks this of us.
The Zohar teaches us that we humans are needed by God. We are needed to do Tikkun, repair of the world. In Kabbalistic terms, this means that by doing acts of chesed, we are removing the husk from the Holy Sparks of Light, that came from God's shattered face when He voluntarily contracted, to make room for the world and us.
The Zohar further teaches that God created us out of Pure Love. Love becomes the central force of the Universe. Love is the reason, according the Zohar, of the existence of every thing. Only one with freedom of choice can love. Humans can love God back and each other. The Angels cannot. They have no free will in Judaism. The are given a task, do it, and wither away.
Since God is One, and is the power of true transformation, all of us are a part of God, and co-joined. When we hurt another, or do lashon ha ra, we are only hurting ourselves. We become apart from God, and not a part of God. Show the Sages someone who is a gossip, or always finding fault with others, playing the victim or the victimizer, and the Talmud says this person does not love God and is spiritually disconnected.
Our class in Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew, will help us learn to live life harmoniously with our fellows and with God.
''Your deeds will bring you closer to God or take you further from God" (Talmud Bavli Tractate Eduyot 5:7). This class, this path, is not for those who need it, it is for those who want it. To me, the word ''Jew '' is a verb. That is why Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, z'l, could teach that for Jews what is needed is not a leap of faith but a leap of action.
Living Spiritually takes us from the 3 worlds of Assiyah, [function], Yetzirah [formation], and Beriyah [creation] to the Divine world called Atzilut. [emanation ]. It is the place of those who are Spiritually awakened. When we feel connected to God as a loving parent, throughout the day, turning our face to God, and knowing that God is shinning His face towards us, we are in the world of Atzilut.
Let us continue with Chapter One of the Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal.
The first thing you need to know is that the Torah includes the Talmud, also known as the Oral Torah, Midrash and even Kabballah. In its purest form, Torah means "instruction." The religion of the Five Books is Hebraism. It is sometimes called the religion of the Sadducees. This is a Greek word derived from the name of the head Kohan priest, Zadok. It survives today in a Judaism sect known as "Karaites" whose practitioners are found in Turkey, Israel, and some in the United States.
Now, I need you to pay careful attention. The problem that I will help you resolve in this book can be summed up with the following statements: Hebraism, as I have just defined it, is not Judaism. In 586 B.C.E. and for 1,000 years of Rabbinic teaching via the Talmud, Hebraism was turned into Judaism. Therein lays the crux of the problem that most modern Jews face. The religion that most think is Judaism is actually Hebraism. Hence when one embarks upon a more spiritual existence, one turns incorrectly to Hebraism. Hebraism, as we have defined it, does not make one feel welcome and therefore cannot help one along the road to the spiritual, joyous life that one seeks.
Let me explain how this happened. In 586 B.C.E., when the last remaining two tribes of the Hebrews (Judah and Benjamin) were taken to Babylon in captivity, they immediately discovered that they had no way to worship. Their priests had no Temple in which to offer sacrifices. Within time their scribes (sofers) wrote the Torah over generations without any errors because they counted every letter (sofer means to count). They developed thrice-daily prayers to replace the thrice-daily Temple sacrifices. Soon the first book of Mishna's first section, Beracoth (Blessings) was formulated.
Most of us were not taught this in Hebrew school or synagogue. Most of our curriculums taught us to support the State of Israel and to keep an eye out for signs of anti-Semitism in America. In prior generations a proper Judaic education was the hope and dream of Jewish parents for their children, but a shift occurred in our generation, particularly in America, to an emphasis on secular education. We were not encouraged by our parents to become rabbis. We were encouraged to become doctors and lawyers and to be successful financially. We followed suit.
So we attended secular schools and did well. We tried to fit in.
Our teachers would ask us to share something of importance. Little Becky said, "For Christmas, I'm getting a new dolly." Young Tommy said, "I'm getting a new baseball bat," and little Benji proudly announced, "For Yom Kippur, I pledge a thousand dollars." In time we did fit in and we became successful.
But for everything we gained in the promise of America, we lost something in the promise of God and Judaism that had sustained our ancestors. We did not learn the wisdom of our sages in the Mishna and Gemora, which make up the Talmud, or of Kabballah or Midrash. Instead, most of us learned biology, U.S. history, etc., in secular school. We'd lost our spirituality.
To find that spirituality, we must first turn to our ancestors' lessons of Judaism.
For over 1,000 years, scribes (who later became known as Rabbis from the Aramaic for "my master") developed learning and discussions called Gemora, which, when combined with the six sections of Mishna, formed 63 Tractates of Talmud. This 1,000-year period lasted from circa to 586 B.C.E. to 500 C.E. when the Talmud was finally put into writing.
Traditionally we are taught that the Talmud was given to Moses in oral form on Mt. Sinai and that it carries as much weight as the laws of the Five Books of Moses. However, as we will see, Talmudic law trumps Mosaic law. We are also taught traditionally that Moses passed the Talmud orally to Joshua, who passed it to the Elders, who passed it to the Prophets, who passed it to the Rabbis of the Great Assembly in Babylon. Noticeably absent in this transmission are Aaron and the priests as are David and the kings. Their absence is very important because Rabbinic Judaism rose to replace, both politically and spiritually, the priests and kings who were corrupted by the Romans from circa 100 B.C.E. to 100 C.E.
As we have read, Hebraism's God is the judgmental God with an unnerving smite habit. In contrast, the rabbis of Talmudic Judaism created a theology around a God of love, forgiveness, mercy, grace, kindness and all of the other attributes that we seek and hold dear.
The rabbis could not do away with Torah laws as they were "given from God to Moses," so they found ways to liberalize many of these laws. For example, according to the Five Books of Moses there are 36 sins punishable by death. The Talmud, on the other hand, makes it extremely difficult to find one guilty of a capital offense. In fact, it states that if a court puts a person to death more than once in seven years, it is a bloody court (Talmud Bavli Tractate Makkoth 7a).
Many Jews today, grounded only in their elementary education, think Judaism is a legalistic, cruel religion. They do not think much better of the Jewish Deity, and turn away. They will curse God for their problems and in the same breath deny His existence. Does it surprise you that there is a Yiddish expression, "If God lived on earth, Jews would throw rocks though his windows?"
Is this all new to you? Are you feeling blindsided and wondering why this was not taught to you before? Well, you're not alone. In fact, there is a passage in the Talmud where Moses, looking into the future and seeing himself at Rabbi Akiva's First Century C.E. Talmudic academy, is clueless about the laws being discussed (Talmud Bavli Tractate Menachot 29b). Akiva told Moses to go sit in the 18th row with the new students. There is even a passage that tells of the sages finding a way around a particularly restrictive Mosaic law. They essentially told God to stay out of the discussion because Torah is now in man's hands. According to the passage, when God heard of it He rejoiced, smiling and twice declaring, "My sons have defeated Me!" (Talmud Bavli Tractate Bava Metzia 59a-b).
Even where the Talmud spends pages upon pages explaining various rules and regulations of Shabbat, the rabbis tell us in the very same Tractate that God is more interested in how we treat our fellow man than if we keep Shabbat or keep kosher (Talmud Bavli Tractate Shabbat 31a). Frankly, the Talmud makes it clear that the whole of Torah boils down to loving our fellow man as ourselves and loving God. All the rest is commentary to get us to that point.
We will learn more from Chapter One in next class. A d'var Torah for Parasha Va'yeira is below for the Shabbat of November 7, 2009.
Shalom uvracha:
Rabbi Arthur Segal
Via Shamash Org on-line class service
Jewish Renewal
Jewish Spiritual Renewal
Jewish Spirituality
Eco Judaism
Hilton Head Island, SC, Bluffton, SC, Savannah, GA
Rabbi Arthur Segal
Via Shamash Org on-line class service
Jewish Renewal
Jewish Spiritual Renewal
Jewish Spirituality
Eco Judaism
Hilton Head Island, SC, Bluffton, SC, Savannah, GA
"Tie Me Up; Tie Me Down"
There's a lot going in in this parasha, so I'll begin with a two-paragraph synopsis.
Abraham is having a bad day. He has just circumcised himself at the age of ninety-nine. Ninety-nine! Can you even imagine doing that at any age? Then he plays host to visiting angels. His wife, Sarah, announces that she is pregnant. He gets the news from God that He is about to destroy Sodom, and attempts to bargain with Him to save the city. Meanwhile, Abraham's nephew, Lot, is busy holding off a mob of Sodomites who want to rape some guests in his home.
Abraham is unable to make his case to God, and He proceeds with the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, but Abraham does mange to save Lot, his wife, and their two daughters. Unfortunately, Lot's wife just had to look back as they were escaping and is turned into a pillar of salt. Later, Lot's two daughters get their father drunk and have sex with him. King Abimelech abducts Sarah. Sarah is rescued and Isaac is born. Abraham listens to Sarah and expels his first wife, Hagar, and their son, Ishmael. God tells Abraham to sacrifice Isaac. And you think you have tsourres (Yiddish for aggravation)! Now, let's look at how Abraham copes with these events and what we can learn from them.
Like I said, there's a lot going on. At the end of the preceding parasha, Abraham has been commanded by God to circumcise himself and the males in his camp. Afterwards, Abraham is sitting at his tent's doorway "in the heat of the day" (Gen. 18:01). God appears to him. From this first verse, our sages teach us the mitzvah of visiting the sick. God Himself visits Abraham while he was recovering from his circumcision.
In the next verse Abraham sees three strangers and, despite the fact that he has just performed surgery upon himself and is recovering in the heat of the day, he runs to them and offers them hospitality. He offers them water, shade, and a footbath. He orders Sarah to make three cakes of the "finest flour." He orders Ishmael to prepare a "tender and good" calf and serve it with cream and milk. Abraham did not eat with the guests, but stood and attended to their needs.
Although Abraham did not know this at the time, these three visitors, according to the traditional view, are angels. The Talmud says that an angel does a "function that God wishes to have performed." An angel can only do one function at a time, according to the Midrash. The sages explain it was angel Michael who told Sarah she would give birth, angel Gabriel who would overturn Sodom, and angel Raphael who healed Abraham and saved Lot. Raphael means "Healer of God." It is from the root word "refu," and we use this word when we wish someone to get well (r'fua). Note that Abraham leaves his first guest, God Almighty, to take care of these three travelers. Our sages teach in Talmud Shabbat 127A, that "hospitality to wayfarers is greater than receiving the Divine Presence."
The Jewish notion of hospitality is so important that it is one of the 613 commandments. It is called "hachnotot orchim." Talmud Tractate Bava Metziah 86B says that whatever good deeds Abraham did that day, God reciprocated later. Abraham gave a calf; God gave us quail (Num. 11:31). Abraham gave milk and cream; God gave us manna (Ex. 16:04). Abraham stood and attended to his guests; God stood before us by the "rock of water" in Horeb (Ex. 7:06). Abraham escorted his guests; God lead the Israelites with a pillar of clouds (Ex. 13:21). Abraham gave his guests water; God gave us water from the rock (Ex. 17:6).
So we see that taking care of our fellow humans is more important than taking care of God or ritual. And God rewarded Abraham's children for making this proper judgment. Tractate Kiddushin 7A says that when we give to others, and when they accept the gift, we have received something important back from them.
The Talmud in Tractate Shabbat 88B goes a step further. The rabbis say that if not for of Abraham's hospitality, Moses would not have received the Torah. The sages say that the angels saw God about to give the Torah to Moses and they protested. The angels said that man was not worthy to have the Torah. God gave Moses Abraham's face and said to the angels, "Is this not the very person who you visited and ate with in his home? Now you are claiming that humans should not get the Torah?" A little bit of kindness can go a long way.
Visiting the sick (bikur cholem) is also a commandment. Tractate Nederim 39B says, "whoever visits a sick person, takes away one-sixtieth of his suffering." Whoever visits a sick person causes him to live, but whoever does not visit a sick person causes him to die." (Nederim 40A). The themes of comforting the sick and hospitality are repeated in this week's Haftarah (II Kings 4:1-37) in which a woman prepares meals for the prophet Elisha, the disciple of Elijah. She goes so far as to give him his own private room, with a bed, table, chair and lamp. The woman is barren so Elisha prays that God will bless her with a son, and she gives birth to a son. When the boy later becomes ill and dies, Elisha revives him with mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
The rabbis of the Talmud were perplexed by Abraham's serving milk with meat. They teach that Abraham learned Torah, not yet given to the Israelites at Sinai, in the "yeshiva of Shem." Shem was a son of Noah. They posit that Abraham served the dairy first, and then waited the appropriate interval before serving the meat. The rabbis also note that while mention is made of the calf, cream, and milk being served, there is no mention of Sarah's three cakes. They say that she had just begun her menses and was not ritually pure and, therefore, could not serve food. The rabbis then ask why, if she had her menstrual period (she was 90 years old), she would laugh when the angel told her she would give birth? They decide that it really was not the onset of menses, but just a spot of dark discharge that Sarah misinterpreted.
Hospitality also saved Lot's life. When two of these angels, Gabriel and Raphael (Michael had completed his mission and returned to God), came to visit Lot in Sodom, Lot saved their lives. Lot begged them to enter his home and not sleep in the town's square. He also offered them a footbath and a feast. Later, the men of Sodom came banging on Lot's door and demanded that Lot surrender these two visitors so that they could have sex with them. Lot refused to give up his guests and offered his two virgin daughters as substitutes. God strikes the Sodomites with blindness, but they continued their attack, albeit unsuccessfully. The angels told Lot to flee Sodom with his daughters, their fiancés, and his wife. Lot's future sons-in-law refused to listen to Lot because he "appeared like a jester in their eyes."(Gen. 19:14).
When we think of Sodomites, we have been told to think of the homosexual rape that the men of Sodom wished to conduct on Lot's guests, but this is not what our sages teach us. The sin of Sodom was that they believed, "What is mine is mine, and what is yours in yours." (Pirkei Avot, Ethics of the Fathers, 5:10). Ezekiel 16:49 says the sin of Sodom was arrogance. They had "plenty of bread and untroubled tranquility, yet Sodom did not support the poor and the needy." The Midrash says that Sodom was so rich that "there was not a path that did not have the foliage of seven trees over it, each shading the one below it – vine, fig, pomegranate, walnut, almond, apple, peach – so that each lane was fully sheltered." The Sodomites knew they had fertile land and did not wish newcomers to settle there. This is why they went out of their way to mistreat travelers. Ramban (13th-century Spanish Nachmanides) says, "the Sodomites prevented the entry of all strangers...They refused to share their bounty with the less fortunate."
The Sodomites were not sexual perverts, as our Western misreading of the Bible makes them out to be. The Bible charges them with lack of justice (Is. 1:10; 3:9), disregard for ethics and moral values (Jer. 23:14), and ignoring the needs of the poor (Ez. 16:48-49). The rabbis of the Talmud call them "mean, uncharitable, unjust, and inhospitable."
After the destruction of Sodom and the death of Mrs. Lot, Lot's two daughters believe that they are the last three human survivors in the world. They get Lot drunk and seduce him, as they think he is the only man left to repopulate the earth. The eldest names her son Moab, meaning "from my father." The youngest daughter names her son Ammon, meaning "of my people." Please note that Ruth, the great-grandmother of King David, was a Moabitess. Naahmah was also from Moab. She was queen of King Solomon and mother of Solomon's son and successor King Rehoboam. The rabbis say that this shows that God knows the daughters' motives were pure, and hence it was permissible for them to break the Noahide commandment against incest. However, they say that while Lot may have been hoodwinked the first time his eldest daughter got him drunk and seduced him, he was lecherous in allowing it to happen again with his youngest daughter. The Midrash also says that when Lot chose to reside in Sodom in last week's parasha, he did so not because of the grazing land, but because he was attracted to the immorality of this city.
Time passes and Isaac is born to Sarah. She sees Ishmael "making sport of" or mocking him (Gen. 21:09), so she orders Abraham to expel Hagar and Ishmael. She does not want Ishmael sharing Isaac's inheritance. Abraham is "greatly distressed" (Gen. 21:11). God tells him not to be upset and to listen to Sarah. The next day, he sends Hagar and Ishmael into the wilderness with bread and water. Rashi says that Sarah was not concerned about Isaac sharing Ishmael's first-born rights of inheritance, but was concerned that Isaac would learn bad behaviors from Ishmael.
When we study parasha Ki Seitzei, we will read the following verses from Deuteronomy 21:15-17: "If a man will have two wives, one beloved and one hated, and they bear him sons, the beloved one and the hated one, and the firstborn son is the hated one's, than it shall be that on the day that he causes his sons to inherit whatever will be his, he cannot give the right of the first born to the son of the beloved one ahead of the son of the hated one, his firstborn. Rather he must recognize the first born, the son of the hated one, to give him the double portion in all that is found with him; for he is his initial vigor, to him is the right of the firstborn." Since Abraham supposedly knew Torah law from Shem, he chose to disobey it in order to listen to his wife and keep shalom bayat (peace in the house).
Hindsight is always 20/20 vision. If Abraham took the time to reason with Sarah, and gave Ishmael two thirds of his land (a double portion), and Isaac one third, would we even be discussing the sharing of Jerusalem and other sections of the land promised to Abraham in today's peace talks? It would instead have been shared a long time ago. Perhaps this is the real reason that Hagar and Ishmael's expulsion are known as Abraham's eight and ninth trials (refer to last week's D'var Torah). Did Abraham fail or pass these two tests?
The Talmudic rabbis justify this expulsion by pointing out that Hagar is carrying the provisions in the dessert but the 17-year-old Ishmael is not. They further say that Abraham gave them enough water for their journey, but that Ishmael drank it all. They also say that Ishmael took up archery. For these reasons, Sarah did not want Isaac to be influenced by Ishmael. Tractate Rosh Hashanah 17B tells of how the angels argued with God for Him not to save Ishmael and Hagar in the dessert. They said, "Ishmael's descendents would one day be responsible for killing Jews, so why save him and have Jews suffer later on? Let him die now." God answered, "At this moment, is he righteous or evil? I only judge man as he is, here and now."
The parasha ends with Abraham's tenth trial. He is commanded by God to take his son Isaac to be sacrificed. This event is referred to euphemistically as the "binding" (akeidah). The Talmud tells us that this event took place on Rosh Hashanah (new year of the World), which is why these verses were also read on Rosh Hashanah. When God calls Abraham, he answers, "Here I am" (Gen. 22:1). When he is told that God wants him to sacrifice Isaac, he gets up early the next day, saddles his donkey, and rushes to fulfill God's command. Isaac was 37 years old. Abraham could not force a 37-year-old to go to his own death. He had to have convinced Isaac to come along. Tractate Sanhedrin 89B records Abraham's conversation with God:
"God said, 'Take your son.'
'But I have two sons, which should I take?'
'Your only one!'
'But each of them is the only son of his mother!'
'Whom you love!' God answered.
'But I love them both.'
'I mean Isaac.' God replied."
The Midrash questions how Abraham could say to God that he has two sons if he sent Ishmael away. The sages say that for Rosh Hashanah Ishmael and Eliezar came to visit Abraham. The Midrash says that Satan tried to talk Abraham out of sacrificing Isaac. Satan also says to Isaac, "Remember the cute toys that your mother, Sarah, made for you to play with? If you die, Ishmael will inherit them." The Midrash does not explain how this argument would work on a 37-year-old man. Later, Satan forms a river to block their path. Abraham and Isaac wade into the water until it is up to their necks and plead to God to make the river go dry so that they can complete their mission.
When Isaac and Abraham go up the mountain to make this human sacrifice, Abraham tells Ishmael and Eliezar that "we both will return to you." (Gen. 22:05). God does call this a test (Gen.22:01). Does Abraham suspect that he will not have to follow through with this horrible commandment? Isaac allows himself to be bound on the altar. What is Isaac thinking? He had asked his father a few moments before, "where is the lamb for the offering?" (Gen. 22:08). For Isaac and Abraham, this Rosh Hashanah really was a "day of awe."
Luckily, Abraham is stopped by an angel, and a ram is slaughtered instead. The Torah records that when the event was over, "they stood up and went together." (Gen. 22:19). The Talmud does not record this conversation. Nor does it record the conversation Sarah had with Abraham when he left to kill her only and long-awaited son. The Talmud does record that Sarah dies from this trauma at the age of 127. The Targum Yonatan (Aramaic paraphrase of the Chumash by Yonatan ben Uziel, circa 100 C.E.) records that Satan lied to Sarah when Abraham and Isaac were away and told her that Abraham had actually killed Isaac. She died lonely and broken-hearted. Luckily, Sarah was not alive to witness what happens later. Abraham soon remarries, as we will read in the next parasha. His third wife, called Keturah (Gen. 25:01), whose name means "beautiful incense" in Hebrew and "restrained and chaste" in Aramaic, is supposed to be Hagar, according to the Midrash. Poor mixed up Isaac. His familial dysfunction will carry into the next generation.
What was the purpose of this tenth test? Soren Kierkegaard, the19th-century Christian Danish philosopher, in his 1843 book Fear and Trembling, calls this act a "leap of faith." He used this chapter from Genesis to posit that religion was absurd. He argued that God requires us to hold beliefs and perform actions that are ridiculous and immoral by rational standards. He called Abraham a "knight of faith." Kierkegaard said that true faith is measured by the sincerity and passion of the believer and that "religion's truth is subjectivity." He criticized all attempts to make religion rational, and said that God wants us to obey Him, not argue for Him.
But Jewish philosophers say that it is love that Abraham had for God, not just faith. The Kaballistic Zohar states, "so it is written, 'thou did love righteousness and hate wickedness,' (Ps. 45:8) and it is further written, 'Abraham who loves Me.' (Is. 41:8). Abraham is said to have loved God because he loved righteousness; this was Abraham's love of God in which he excelled over all of his contemporaries." Is this "leap of love" for God better than love for one's son or another human? Philo of Alexandria (1st Century C.E.) thinks not. He said if the sacrifice of Isaac (whose name means "will laugh") were carried out, then all of the laughter in the world would be eradicated. What would be left of Abraham's love of God if this sacrifice were fulfilled? It would be a spiritual death for Abraham and would show him that his God was fickle. Abraham's life philosophy was one of chesed (kindness). He tried to emulate God's kindness and love. Sacrificing Isaac was going against his entire philosophy. Was it God testing Abraham, or Abraham testing himself? Or was Abraham testing Isaac?
Dr. Victor Frankel of 20th Century Germany, who survived the concentration camps to become an existential psychiatrist, writes in his Man's Search for Meaning that the need for man to have meaning in his life is his most profound need. Abraham was not only asked to kill Isaac, he was asked to kill his entire life's meaning. His spiritual life was at risk as well as his son's corporeal life. In Kaballistic terms, the opposite of kindness is justice. It is strict, exacting justice. When God calls on Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, God is called "Elohim" (Gen. 22:1-2). Elohim are judges. When God, through his angel, tells Abraham to stop, He is called "Adonai," the name of God that is associated with kindness (Gen. 22; 11-12). Abraham learns, perhaps that pure kindness must be tempered with judgment if one is really to be a father of a great people.
And what of Isaac on this day? Abraham is not commanded to tie up Isaac. The Midrash says that Isaac asks to be bound. He says, "Father, the soul is willing, but the flesh is weak. Tie me down in order to restrain me, to prevent me from flinching upon seeing the blade." We do not hear about Isaac again until two chapters later when he is standing in a field praying to God. Later Isaac goes blind. The Midrash says that his eyes became blinded from the tears of the angels that fell in his eyes when it appeared that Abraham would go through with the sacrifice.
The sages are astounded with the entire story. They say in Tractate Shabbat 89B that when Jews sin, Abraham and Jacob tell God to "wipe them out." It is only Isaac who pleads for mercy by saying "remember that I sacrificed my soul in front of You for You." This is the lesson that Isaac learned and that all of us need to learn. Every day our souls and lives are potentially ready to be sacrificed and taken from us. We need to be kind and merciful to others as well as be kind and merciful to ourselves.
What can we learn from the juxtaposition of these four events discussed in this D'var Torah? Both Abraham and Sodom are blessed with bounty. Both make choices. Abraham uses his wealth for chesed. The Sodomites use theirs for stinginess. America is a great, rich country. We Jews have prospered here. Should America and we be miserly? Or like our father, Abraham, should we hear the outcry of others in need? Can we actively run and seek out those that need our aid, or wait passively until it is too late to help? Can we open up our doors on Shabbat or other days to feed a newcomer or someone less fortunate? Can we visit those in the hospital or those who are homebound? Can we do a better job of taking care of our communities' aged? And once we have mastered taking care of others, can we learn from Abraham's test with the "binding of Isaac" and the resulting death of Sarah, or from his expelling Hagar and Ishmael, to treat our families with the love and chesed with which we should treat strangers?
The crux of this whole convoluted parasha is found in verse 18:19 of Genesis. "For I have singled Abraham out, that he may instruct his children and his posterity to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is just and right." Quoting from the 8th Century B.C.E. prophet, Micah (6:8), "What is good and what does the Lord require of you? ONLY (emphasis mine) to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk modestly." More than a millennium later, the rabbis of the Talmud would invoke it as a proof text that the Jewish people's main goal is to be "merciful, modest, and purveyors of good deeds" (Tractate Yevamot 79A).
Shabbat Shalom:
Rabbi Arthur Segal
Via Shamash Org on-line class service
Jewish Renewal
Jewish Spiritual Renewal
Jewish Spirituality
Eco Judaism
Hilton Head Island, SC, Bluffton, SC, Savannah, GA
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| Rabbi Arthur Segal reveals the path to Jewish Spiritual Renewal - and happiness in troubled times... Is Joy and Happiness
Still Possible in
Times Like These? | 
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YES, it is possible. Even when the world seems to be turning upside-down, you can follow a simple, step-by-step process that will have you loving life every day no matter what is going on around you. It's no secret, but nobody's been talking about it for generations...until now. In His New Book: 
| THE HANDBOOK TO JEWISH SPIRITUAL RENEWAL:
A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew
Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal brings Judaism back to its roots for the millions of modern Jews who have become disenchanted with "normative" Judaism. In The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew, Segal reveals how Judaism leads you up the path to a happy, fulfilling life. And he casts aside the long, boring sermons and tedious litany of rules and regulations in favor of plain English, humor, and life examples that we can all relate to. Click Here to Order
| $19.99
254 Pages
Published by Amazon's BookSurge
ISBN: 1439223394 | "The Handbook To Jewish Spiritual Renewal by Rabbi Arthur Segal has given me the foundation to approach each day with honesty, reverence, hope and gratitude. I feel like I am having a personal conversation with a wise prophet with a jovial sense of humor." Diane Weinberg,
Washington, D.C.
Shalom. My name is Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal, and in my years of rabbinic counseling I've met an awful lot of fellow Jews who are short on faith that Judaism can deliver the happiness and joy that it promises, especially in these turbulent times. Their emotions run the gamut: sadness, loneliness, bitterness; fearfulness of what the future holds for them. Some are just downright cynical and angry.
I've been there myself; stuck with a feeling of, "Is this all there is?" But I found the way out. That's why I became a rabbi after retiring from my dental practice; to help others up the path to a life of joy and freedom that I couldn't find in "normative" Judaism. I want to show you that path today. "You lead the spiritual practices of the entire program and offer our followers a unique spiritual opportunity." Hune Margulies, Ph.D.
Founder, Martin Buber Institute Reclaim Your Spirituality...And Your Life 
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| THE HANDBOOK TO JEWISH SPIRITUAL RENEWAL:
A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew
Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal distills millennia of sage advice into a step-by-step process to reclaim your Judaism and your spirituality in a concise easy-to-read and easy-to-follow manner.
If you find yourself wishing for the strength to sustain you through the ups and downs of life; if you want to learn how to live life to its fullest without angst, worry, low self-esteem or fear; or if you wish that your relationships with family, friends and co-workers were based on love and service and free of ego, arguments, resentments and feelings of being unloved...this book is for you.
Price: $19.99
254 Pages
Published by: Amazon's BookSurge | In The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew, I distill teachings from our sages that have been passed along for thousands of years, along with lessons from the Torah and the Talmud. But unlike other Jewish spiritual texts that you may have read, or sermons you may have heard, this book presents these lessons in a concise, easy-to-read, easy-to-follow life transformation process that you can follow step-by-step at your own pace. And it is written in plain English with relevance to the modern world. I even threw in a few jokes to make it fun! This is stuff we were not taught in Hebrew school or in most synagogues, but it is what Judaism is really all about. "Wonderful stuff! I'm savoring it, bit by bit." Samuel Hughes, Senior Editor
The Pennsylvania Gazette
University of Pennsylvania In The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew, you will learn: - That "normative" Judaism as you have known it throughout your life is not really Judaism at all, why it may leave you uninspired, and how spiritual renewal will help you recapture that inspiration (Chapter 1).
- That your ego is your own worst enemy, and how to win the battle against it (Chapter 2).
- How to stop struggling for control over things you cannot control, and be happier because of it (Chapter 3).
- How spiritual renewal conquers the fears and character flaws that are holding you back in life (Chapters 4 and 5).
- To actually get rid of your character flaws forever (Chapter 6).
- How to turn negative relationships in your life positive (Chapter 7).
- How simple it is to make prayer a regular part of your days...without going back to Hebrew school (Chapter 8).
- How to to find peace of mind through meditation (Chapter 9).
- How to simplify life's toughest decisions (Chapter 10).
- How spiritual renewal transforms you into the best individual you can be, and how to stay on track (Chapter 11).
- How to celebrate the Sabbath and the Jewish Holidays with meaning (Chapters 12 and 13).
- How to live with happiness, joy, and freedom every day of your life (Chapter 14).
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to Enlarge | THE HANDBOOK TO JEWISH SPIRITUAL RENEWAL:
A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew
Price: $19.99254 PagesPublished by: Amazon's BookSurge
| A Question for You Let me ask you a question: Are you enjoying life like the people in the cartoon at the top of this letter? Or, do you spend your days worrying about the economy... ...in conflict with friends, family, and co-workers... ...stressed out about the future? If the latter sounds like you I'm not surprised. As I said earlier, I counsel many fellow Jews who are in the same boat, and they look to their Jewish faith to find a happier life. However... Some have trouble understanding what they read in the Torah and how it relates to their own lives. Others find that their synagogues are more about social climbing and fundraising and less about spiritual awakening. Many simply give up, believing that Judaism has failed them, and they walk away from their Jewish faith. In my book, The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew, I will show you that true Judaism has not failed them...or you...and that you can return to your Jewish faith and enjoy your life to its fullest, even when the news of the day keeps going from bad to worse. "I couldn't have written the book or expressed my pain and concern for the Jewish people returning to Judaism. Thank God that He put this desire in your heart." Janelle Vechi
California It's simpler than you may think, and you don't have to become a rabbi as I did. To give you an idea what I am talking about, here is an excerpt from The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew: We become so far removed from God, our loving Sovereign Parent, that when we pray, (if we pray at all), we pray to meet an immediate need. We desire an immediate fix, rather than to seek renewal (return) and the wisdom to work toward renewal. We are satisfied for a moment if our trivial need is met. We therefore never achieve happiness in the long term. We are constantly searching and striving for our secular notions of success and happiness. While in this all-too-common state our egos "lock horns" with the egos of others, putting us in a sustained state of human conflict and resentment. This is not the Jewish way to live; but most of us cannot find the way out. In this book, I will give a map to the tools of the process in simple terms and in language easily understood, to turn your life around to a much more pleasant state. If you follow the map faithfully and honestly, you will find that the journey is life-changing and life-affirming. "Nice Rabbi Segal! Thank you! Peace." Deepak Chopra's Intent.com What Would You Say Something Like This is Worth? Think about it… The teachings of the Torah and the Talmud all distilled into an easy-to-read, easy-to-understand, and easy-to-follow step-by-step process that will help you: - Overcome the challenges that life throws at you every day
- Stop letting ego, resentment, and other conflict strain your relationships with family, friends, and co-workers
- Get the angst and worry out of your life
- Eliminate low self-esteem from your life
- Overcome your fear of failure and other fears
I know it sounds priceless and in reality…it is. But I sincerely want to share what has helped me and countless others with you. In other words, I want to show you the path to the happy and joyous life that your were meant to live. So I want you to have The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew for only $19.99. "The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal is an invaluable resource for anyone who is searching for more in their life. I was involved with organized Jewish religion, but something was always missing. Using this guide, and taking each chapter to heart, has transformed my views and put me on the track my life is supposed to be on, filled with love, trust and emunah (faith). Thanks Rabbi Segal!" Ben Pincus
Houston, TX Like I said, I've been where you are: in a life missing spirituality; seemingly unable to cope with life's difficulties; and unable to find peace and inner shalom. But I found it and now I want to share with you the path that I have found and passed on to others with consistent success. It took me many years of work and study, and rabbinic ordination. But it didn't have to. And it doesn't have to for you. You can travel the same path that I did, but you can do it in only 254 pages! We are living in a historically turbulent time. Economic uncertainty, political corruption, threats of aggression, and religious conflict are everywhere. I know that I would find it difficult to find comfort without the peace and inner shalom that I have found through Jewish Spiritual Renewal. Please join me now.
Start your journey UP the path of Jewish Spiritual Renewal so that it may bring the same joy, happiness, freedom and shalom that I now enjoy into your own life! Many Blessings,
Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal P.S. Another thing that I've noticed over the years in my Rabbinic Counseling is that many modern Jews are not as familiar with the Torah and the Talmud as they might be. They find it difficult to understand and interpret in a way that makes sense and has relevance to their lives in the modern world. This is quite often the root cause of the kind of spiritual disconnection that I described earlier. So, as a companion to The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew, I have also written: 
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| A SPIRITUAL AND ETHICAL COMPENDIUM
TO THE TORAH AND TALMUD
Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal dissects each of the Torah's weekly sections (parashot) using the Talmud and other rabbinic texts to show the true Jewish take on what the Torah is trying to teach us. This companion to The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew brings the Torah alive with daily relevance to the Modern Jew.
All of the Torah can be summed up in one word: Chesed. It means kindness. The Talmud teaches that the Torah is about loving our fellow man and that we are to go and study. The rest is commentary. This compendium clarifies the commentary and allows one to study Torah and Talmud to learn the Judaic ideals of love, forgiveness, kindness, mercy and peace. A must read for all Jews and deserves a place in every Jewish home.
Price: $24.99
494 Pages
Published by: Amazon's BookSurge | "Very informative and timely. It allows many people to benefit from Torah lessons, where many of them may not otherwise have an opportunity receive such content." Mauricio Benzipporah
Founder, Beta-Gershom Organization A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud dissects each of the Torah's weekly sections (parashot) using the Talmud and other rabbinic texts to interpret its lessons. "Shalom. What a blessing your insights have given me. I am interested in reading more of your writings of Talmud. I find it difficult to find good Talmudic readings. Excellent work, Rabbi!" Rabbi Daniel Ben Shmuel A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud brings the Torah alive with daily relevance to the Modern Jew. All of Torah can be summed up in one word: Chesed. It means kindness. The Talmud teaches that the Torah is about loving our fellow man and that we are to ''go and study.'' The rest is commentary. A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud clarifies the commentary and allows one to study the Torah and the Talmud to learn the Judaic ideals of love, forgiveness, kindness, mercy and peace. It is a must read for those seeking Jewish Spiritual Renewal and is the ideal complement to The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew. Here is an excerpt from A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud:
Since each parasha is the weekly Torah portion, you may read each of the chapters in the book during the course of a week while also reading the actual Torah portion. By doing so, you will learn a modern Jewish Spiritual view of each Torah portion. At the same time, your world will be open to the ethical teachings of the Talmud. While many read the Torah as a history book, or a deed to land, or see it as a boring book full of legalisms and ritual for a priesthood that no longer exists, this book aims to show you the spiritual ethical lessons in each parasha. In a sense this book will hopefully help you enjoy reading and understanding the Five Books of Moses, what we call Chumash from the Hebrew word for "five." You may even discover that you want to continue your study with the Talmud and other Jewish texts. "...most insightful (Torah) essay I could find was written by Rabbi Arthur Segal." Leslie Palma-Simoncek
Staten Island Advance Complete your journey UP the path to Jewish Spiritual Renewal with a better understanding of the Torah's lessons through A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud for only $24.99... ...certainly a small amount to pay for the priceless wisdom contained within the Torah and the Talmud. You can purchase each book individually, but if you purchase them together as a set, I will donate a portion of the sales price in your name to a tzadakkah of your choice, such as your synagogue. Think of it as your first act of loving kindness in your spiritually renewed life! 
Click Image
to Enlarge | THE HANDBOOK TO JEWISH SPIRITUAL RENEWAL:
A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew
Price: $19.99254 PagesPublished by: Amazon's BookSurge
|
Click Image
to Enlarge | A SPIRITUAL AND ETHICAL COMPENDIUM
TO THE TORAH AND TALMUD
Price: $24.99494 PagesPublished by: Amazon's BookSurge
| About Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal's love of Judaism and his Ahavath Israel led him on his personal quest for Jewish Spiritual Renewal, beginning his studies after retirement from a successful oral medicine practice. Rabbi Segal graduated cum laude with BA and DMD degrees, Specialty, and Post-Doctoral studies in Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania in the 1970s. He is an author in these chosen fields as well. Rabbi Segal teaches classes on Jewish Spiritual Renewal and The Spiritual and Ethical Teachings of the Torah, TaNaK and Talmud via the Shamash online program. He teaches Torah, Talmud, and other great texts, such as Duties of the Heart by Ibn Pakudah of 1050 C.E. Spain, to adults in his hometown. Rabbi Dr. Segal does rabbinic counseling using the step-by-step process of Jewish Spiritual Renewal to help his fellow Jews achieve a spiritual life.
©2009 Dr. Arthur Segal, P.A. d/b/a Rabbi Arthur Segal Page header image is courtesy of Steve Greenberg (greenberg-art.com) |
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