Judaism and Scholarship

 

“Who is wise? He who learns from every person.”- Rabbi Ben Zoma (Pirkei Avot 4:1).

Learning and Education have always been a prime value in Judaism. Likewise, it was the fabric of my upbringing. “Study and Educate yourself,” my late mother repeatedly told me, quoting her own father’s words, “your scholarship is the only property no one will ever be able to take from you.”

The cultural centrality of learning was always part of my home environment. Since my late father was an observant Jew, Shabbat, and Holy Days, relieved from mundane duties, were dedicated to studying, furthering my Jewish education and knowledge. Every erev Shabbat or festive meal involved learning and had to have a Dvar Torah which included a verse from scriptures or the sages and structured in the form of question and answer. Occasionally, they laced with some funny stories or some anecdotes Those were some of the most memorable and precious moments.

The Mishnah, (Avot 3.3), goes as far as saying that a table where no Dvar Torah is shared is akin to eating from “the sacrifices of the dead.” Contrarily, a table where Dvar Torah is shared is comparable to G-d’s own table.

Scholarship and the empowerment of knowledge is also part of the three letter acronym that compose the word, Chabad (In Hebrewחב"ד  ). The abbreviation stands for the three forms of knowledge, Chochma – wisdom, Binah – comprehension and Da’at – knowledge.

Studying and learning are the source of knowledge. In many ancient societies and institutions such as in Mesopotamia, ancient Egypt, where writing involved many complicated symbols, these two were limited to the scribal class. That, according to Lord, Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, resulted in “a hierarchical society,” where “only an elite will ever know how to read and write. They are the knowledge class,” concludes Sacks. In such societies, the burden of preserving and transferring knowledge, clearly, rested on a select few. Sacks also suggests that “the intervention of the alphabet was the birth of the possibility of universal literacy and the beginning of the end of hierarchical societies.

And this is where the ancient Yisraelites differ from other Peoples of antiquity. They had an advantage. According to Professor Douglas Petrovich, “the world’s oldest alphabet was actually an early form of Hebrew.” Petrovich uses “Numerous examples of inscriptions that not only pointed to Hebrew as the first alphabet, but also validate(s) the biblical account of the Israelites in Egypt.” (https://www.ancient-hebrew.org/alphabet/new-discoveries.htm).   Mastering the skills of writing and reading certainly made the task of learning and increasing literacy easier and more accessible to many.

The Jewish culture has always cherished learning and stressed the importance of passing it on from one generation to the next. Our sages could not emphasize enough the importance of learning. Every Jew is compelled to study, each according to their ability and skills and establish a fixed time to study Torah (M. Maimonides, Mishneh Torah, Laws of Torah Study, Ch.1).

Already in the book of Devarim (Deuteronomy), 6:4, Am Yisrael is instructed to recite the Shema, the monotheistic dogma of the Jewish faith. Moreover, in Devarim 6:7, we were commanded to teach it to the young ones, day, and night, wherever they are, at home or on the road, “You shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.” The duty to pursue learning was a never-ending one.

Torah is more than what we know as the “Five Books of Moses.” The foundation texts in the Jewish culture include the entire Tanach and the Talmud, compiled between the first and seventh centuries. The Talmud is comprised of the oral tradition as well as debates, commentaries and insights of the sages aimed at helping us perceive and discern G-d’s teachings and how to apply them in our daily lives.

Noting the importance and above all the imperative of Torah study, the Babylonian Talmud went as far as saying that “the study of Torah is equal to all the other commandments,” (Shabbat 127a).

It is essential to mention that Torah study is not limited to a specific age. When Rabban Gamliel declared “Provide yourself a teacher,” it was with the intention that one should continue the learning process through one’s life, under the guidance of a teacher regardless of age or social standing (Pirkei Avot 1:16).

The duty of studying the Torah is also reinforced in Joshua 1:8, “This Book of Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it.”

There are rewards attached to such an undertaking, as the last part of the verse states, “For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” The Midrash even argues that Torah can be compared to water. Just as our physical subsistence depends on water, our very spiritual, moral, and educational growth begins and ends with Torah.

Furthermore, according to Rabbi Meir, “anyone who involves himself in Torah for its own sake merits many things, and, moreover, the entire world is worthwhile for his sake.” (Pirkei Avot 6:1).

Although this article merely scratches the surface of the vast subject of Judaism and scholarship, one should not be surprised when Benjamin Nathans (Nathans B. Beyond the Pale: The Jewish encounter with Late Imperial Russia. Berkeley: University of California Press; 2002. Pp.111-13) infers that literacy rates and levels have generally been higher in Jewish communities than those of other groups among whom Jews dwelled.

Shavua tov to all fellow Jews. May it be a week of joy, abundant health, saturated with learning and growth.

One Difference of Opinion that I Refuse to Dignify

 

“The test of faith is whether I can make room for difference.” – Chief Rabbi, Lord Jonathan Sacks, “The Dignity of Difference.”

There is not a single person who could attest to me being someone who lacks faith. In fact, I believe that I am one of the most optimistic people I know. I am willing to accept and embrace the other (sometimes too quickly!). I am open to listen to their constructive criticism and comments, acknowledge dignify them and respond graciously.

However, there are some red lines that I refuse to cross.

I realize that not everyone is a warrior who is ready to risk that which they consider important to them, be it their family, their job, or their own safety. I also understand that to ask anyone to sacrifice that which is dear to them at the expense of adhering to integrity and truth, is, perhaps, unfair.

But when they ask me, in return, to dignify their approach and their opinion and accept their stand, they use the occasion to reprove me, label me with their own made-up titles and mock me. And why? Because I refuse to let go of my belief and become their “yes” person.  

Let me be specific. Anyone who has known me, even for a short while, is aware of how staunchly I support Trump and fight obstinately against the injustice and evil that was committed against him. I am, especially, referring to the results of the latest U.S. elections.

I doubt that there are many who will disagree that these elections were rigged. And no, I am not suggesting that there is overwhelming proof that Trump received more votes that Biden. What I am saying, though, is that there is enough proof of irregularities that occurred which, in my view, deems revisiting the subject for the sake of transparency and respect to every single voter. Neither do I demand, nor do I think that everyone who supported and voted for President Trump in the past should continue to exercise loyalty to the person who has been good to many of us, Americans first, and to the rest of the world, as I do. Likewise, I would never expect anyone not to capitulate to political and social pressure and stand by the side of the man, who has been wronged by so many, during his hard times, as they did during his good days.

In that respect, yes, I do dignify their right to hold a different opinion. Freedom of choice and expression are central pillars of the U.S. Democratic Republic. 

My question, rather, my dilemma, though, has nothing to do with my loyalty to one candidate or another. It has everything to do with upholding and dignifying the ethical principles and moral compass upon which this country was founded.

In other words, the rigged election results, the fraudulent manners in which some were obtained and the certification of the electorate, despite the abundant evidence which was not even granted a court hearing, is, in my view, a slap and a spit in the face of the Constitution of “We the People.” This is what, I believe, every decent, law abiding American citizen should also have an issue with.

Instead, I witness nonchalance among some of my fellow Americans who, even upon being presented with evidence of the deceit and the lies employed to produce the fraudulent election results, merely shrug their shoulders, click their tongues, blindly accepted such antics, and move on with their lives as if everything is normal.

They are, of course, entitled to their stance which is light years away from mine. However, to expect me to dignify their difference on this matter is to ask me to embrace lies, fraud, evil and lawlessness. That, I will never do. That, I could never do.

Crossing that red line would go not only against my Jewish upbringing. It would also amount to a violation of the oath of allegiance “to support and defend the American Constitution,” an oath I proudly took when I became a naturalized citizen of this great country, the United States of America.