Righteous Mountain: Torah Trivia Study for Parashah 47. Re'ih (118.12.13)

118.12.13

ושלום אהבא , Family and Friends.

שלום.नमस्ते.สมาธ.Pax.سلام.Peace.SatNam.صلح.Kwey.Amani.Barış.ειρήνη.Pace.Paz.Paix.Fred.Frieden.Vrede.Siochana.мир.امن.和平.平和.평화.Aloha...

This week’s Parashah is “Shoftim,” however, I am still catching up. Thus, I provide the “review” Torah Trivia session for the previous week’s Parashah, “Re’ih;” addressing the relationship between Israelis and foreign nations, prohibitions from the idol worship of foreign nations, the 2^nd provision of the laws of Kashrut, and additional considerations.

The featured Hebrew term for this Parashah is: “הר,” (“her,” meaning, “mount”), as this term is utilised within the opening of Parashah Re’ih (Devarim 11:29), to describe Mount Gerizim (“Her Gerizim”) and Mount Ebal (“Her Ebal”): “גרזים על־הר” and “על־הר עיבל.”

The Torah Trivia question of the week is:

Can you describe the number of Parshiyot, chapters, and/or verses that exist between the proceeding passages and teachings: “There shall be no needy among you…”, and, “For there will never cease to be needy ones in your land…”?

We are also provided with a kind contribution that significantly remedies many of the technological difficulties that I previously describe.

Additional Torah study resources include:

USCJ Torah Sparks: http://www.uscj.org/JewishLivingandLearning/WeeklyParashah/TorahSparks/Archive/Default.aspx.

Orthodox Union: http://www.ou.org/torah/index.

URJ: http://urj.org/learning/torah/

Masorti Olami: http://masortiworld.org/molami/parashat_hashavua.

Reconstructionist: http://jrf.org/recon-dt.

Chabad: http://www.chabad.org/parshah/default_cdo/jewish/Torah-Portion.htm.

Aish: http://www.aish.com/tp/.

,שלום שבת

,ושלום אהבא

Peter

ૐ. אמן

Torah Trivia for Parashah 47. Re’ih (Questions Only)

1.) Amidst Moshe’s instructions for Israelis to recite the blessing and the curse upon entering Eretz Israel, can you describe which of the 2 (blessing or curse) are to be recited upon Mount Gerizim, and which of the 2 are to be recited upon Mount Ebal?

2.) Can you list the correct sequence of proceeding directional/locational orientations that Moshe provides for Israelis to reach both Mout Gerizim and Mount Ebal?

a.) Beyond the West Road;

b.) Of Merah;

c.) On the other side of Yordan River;

d.) Near Gilgal;

e.) In the Arabah;

f.) By the terebinths; and,

g.) In the land of the Canaanites

3.) Can you describe which of these items/locations are either: א.) referenced places of idol worship that Moshe demands to be destroyed; or: ת.) referenced places where Moshe deems it appropriate for Israelis to pray and make sacrifices to Adonai?

1.) Mountains and hills;

2.) Luxuriant trees;

3.) Altars;

4.) Pillars;

5.) Sacred posts;

6.) Images of deities;

7.) A site selected by Adonai;

8.) Machpelah;

9.) Rehoboth, Beer-sheva, and Shivah;

10.) Bethel;

11.) Adonai Nisi; and/or,

12.) Mishkan?

4.) Can you describe which of these items Israelis are to bring to the location(s) that Adonai commands, as an offering: a.) Burnt offerings; b.) Additional sacrifices; c.) Tithes; d.) Votive offerings; e.) Freewill offerings; and/or, f.) Firstlings of flocks and herds?

5.) Within Parashah Re’ih, there is an extended repetition of the laws of kashrut (Devarim 12:16, 23 – 24; and 14:3 – 21); can you describe which Parashah these laws of kashrut are 1^st described?

5.) Can you describe which of the proceeding items can be eaten within א.) local areas; and which item(s) can only be consumed within the ב.) 1 location designated by Adonai:

a.) Animals hunted in the field;

b.) Cattle slaughtered for ordinary meals;

c.) Tithes of first grains;

d.) Tithes of wine;

e.) Tithes of oil;

f.) Firstlings of the flock;

g.) Sacrificial votive offerings; and/or,

h.) Freewill offerings?

6.) Can you describe the instructions that Moshe provides for the appropriate process in adding mitzvoth and/or removing mitzvot from the original list that he provides:

a.) Such a decision must be made by a minyan of 10 men;

b.) Such a decision must be made by a minyan of 10 people;

c.) Such a decision must be made through majority, democratic vote;

d.) Such a decision must be made through consensus;

e.) Such a decision must be made through a rightly elected president;

f.) Such a decision must be made through a just an noble king;

g.) Such a decision must be made through either rolling dice, a numbers lottery, cutting a deck of cards, or the roulette wheel?

7.) Can you describe which instruction(s) Moshe provides to Israelis concerning how to respond to a Prophet or dreamer who leads people to practise the same idol worship as other nations:

a.) Israelis are to give the Prophet/dreamer all the lottery winnings;

b.) Israelis are to elect the Prophet/dreamer as president;

c.) Israelis are to elect the Prophet/dreamer as king;

d.) Israelis are to chastise the Prophet/dreamer into becoming part of the egalitarian proletariat;

e.) Israelis are to put the Prophet/dreamer in jail, with the bakers and the cupholders;

f.) Israelis are to listen to Prophet/dreamer only when he is with a minyan of 10 men;

g.) Israelies are to listen to the Prophet/dreamer only when he is with a minyan of 10 people?

8.) Within Parashah Re’ih, there is reference to the prohibition against a man shaving the hairs of the front of his head, when mourning:

“You are children of the LORD your God. You shall not gash yourselves or shave the front of your heads because of the dead.” (Devarim 14:1);

Can you describe within what previous Parashah/Parshiyot, there are similar prohibitions against a man cutting his hair?

9.) Can you describe which of these Hebrew terms is utilised to describe the mitzvah of the “forgiveness/remission of debts” that is commanded within Parashah Re’ih (Devarim 15:1 – 3):

“Every seventh year you shall practice remission of debts. This shall be the nature of the remission: every creditor shall remit the due that he claims from his fellow; he shall not dun his fellow or kinsman, for the remission proclaimed is of the LORD. You may dun the foreigner; but you must remit whatever is due you from your kinsmen.”:

Hebrew Only: a.) שמטה; b.) צדקה; c.) שלום; d.) חסד; and/or, e.) יובל?

Latinised Transliteration (of the Same Terms): a.) Shmittah; b.) Tzedakah; c.) Shalom; d.) Chesed; and/or, e.) Yovel?

10.) Can you describe which of these Hebrew terms (transliterated) represents the mitzvah of the “Jubilee” (previously described within Parashah B’har)?

Hebrew Only: a.) שמטה; b.) צדקה; c.) שלום; d.) חסד; and/or, e.) יובל?

Latinised Transliteration (of the Same Terms): a.) Shmittah; b.) Tzedakah; c.) Shalom; d.) Chesed; and/or, e.) Yovel?

11.) Can you describe the number of Parshiyot, chapters, and/or verses that exist between the proceeding passages and teachings:

“There shall be no needy among you—since the LORD your God will bless you in the land that the LORD your God is giving to you as a hereditary portion—”

“For there will never cease to be needy ones in your land, which is why I command you: open your hand to the poor and needy kinsman in your land.”?

12.) From the proceeding list of categories of people, and according to Moshe’s teachings provided within Parashah Re’ih, can you describe which category(ies) of people are explicitly described as being able to experience the proceeding activities:

Categories of People: Permitted Activities:

a.) sons; א.) eating tithes at the 1 location ordained by Adonai;

b.) daughters; ב.) being sold unkosher food;

c.) male slaves; ג.) eating from the triennial tithes;

d.) female slaves; ד.) being imposed with perpetual debts;

e.) Levis; ה.) observing Pesach;

f.) strangers; ו.) observing Shavuot; and/or,

g.) foreign nations; ס.) observing Sukkot?

h.) orphans; and/or,

i.) widows;

Torah Trivia for Parashah 47. Re’ih (with Answers)

Answer: The blessing is to be recited upon Mount Gerizim, and the curse is to be recited upon Moutn Ebal:

“When the LORD your God brings you into the land that you are about to enter and possess, you shall pronounce the blessing at Mount Gerizim and the curse at Mount Ebal.” (Devarim 11:29).

2.) Can you list the correct sequence of proceeding directional/locational orientations that Moshe provides for Israelis to reach both Mout Gerizim and Mount Ebal?

a.) Beyond the West Road;

b.) Of Merah;

c.) On the other side of Yordan River;

d.) Near Gilgal;

e.) In the Arabah;

f.) By the terebinths; and,

g.) In the land of the Canaanites

Answer: The correct sequence is:

c.) On the other side of Yordan River;

a.) Beyond the West Road;

g.) In the land of the Canaanites;

e.) In the Arabah;

d.) Near Gilgal;

f.) By the terebinths;

g.) Of Merah:

“Both are on the other side of the (Yordan), beyond the west road that is in the land of the Canaanites who dwell in the Arabah—near Gilgal, by the terebinths of Moreh.” (Devarim 11:30).

1.) Mountains and hills;

2.) Luxuriant trees;

3.) Altars;

4.) Pillars;

5.) Sacred posts;

6.) Images of deities;

7.) A site selected by Adonai;

8.) Machpelah;

9.) Rehoboth, Beer-sheva, and Shivah;

10.) Bethel;

11.) Adonai Nisi; and/or,

12.) Mishkan?

Answer:

The answer for א.) is: 1.) Mountains and hills; 2.) Luxuriant trees; 3.) Altars; 4.) Pillars; 5.) Sacred posts; and, 6.) Images of deities;

The answer for ת.) is: 7.) A site selected by Adonai

“You must destroy all the sites at which the nations you are to dispossess worshiped their (deities), whether on lofty mountains and on hills or under any luxuriant tree. Tear down their altars, smash their pillars, put their sacred posts to the fire, and cut down the images of their (deities), obliterating their name from that site.” (Devarim 12:2 – 5).

8.) “Machpelah” is the burial site that Avraham acquires from the Hittis in Parashah Chayyei Sarah (Beresheit 23:17 – 20);

9.) “Rehoboth” is the well that Yitzak completes in Peace, after disputes with locals regarding previous wells (Beresheit 26:22); Beer-sheva is land where Yitzak builds an altar after Adonai speaks with him Beer-sheva (Beresheit 26:23 – 25); and Shivah is the well that Yitzak completes after making a Peace Pact with Abimelech (Beresheit 26:26 – 33); all within Parashah Toldot;

10.) “Bethel” is the location where Yaakov builds an altar after his vision of the ladder with angels (Parashah Vayishlah; Beresheit 28:10 – 22); and where we revisits before returning to Eretz Israel (Parashah Vayetzei; Beresheit 28:10 – 22);

11.) “Adonai Nisi” is the altar that Moshe constructs after Israel defeats the Amelikis (Parashah B’Shellah; Shmot 17:14 – 17);

12.) “Mishkan” is the sanctuary whose construction instructions Moshe begins to receive in Parashah T’rumah (Shmot 25:1).

Answer: The answer is: “g.)”: All the above:0

“There you are to go, and there you are to bring your burnt offerings and other sacrifices, your tithes and contributions, your votive and freewill offerings, and the firstlings of your flocks and herds.” (Devarim 12:6).

Answer: It may be considered that the laws of kashrut are first described, “In the beginning…,” within the very 1^st chapter of Beresheit:

“God said, ‘See, I give you every seed-bearing plant that is upon all the earth, and every tree that has seed-bearing fruit; they shall be yours for food. And to all the animals on land, to all the birds of the sky, and to everything that creeps on earth, in which there is the breath of life, I give all the green plants for food.’ And it was so. And God saw all that (Adonai) had made, and found it very (beneficial). And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.” (Beresheit 1:29 – 31);

Although it may be considered that the direct laws of kashrut, specifically regarding the consumption of animal flesh, are 1^st described within Parashah Noach:

“God blessed (Noach) and his sons, and said to them, ‘Be fertile and increase, and fill the earth. The fear and the dread of you shall be upon all the beasts of the earth and upon all the birds of the sky—everything with which the earth is astir—and upon all the fish of the sea; they are given into your hand. Every creature that lives shall be yours to eat; as with the green grasses, I give you all these. You must not, however, eat flesh with its life-blood in it.’” (Noach, beresheit 9:1 – 4);

And the prohibition regarding the combination of dairy and animal flesh is 1^st directly described within Parashah Mishpatim:

“The choice of the first fruits of your soil you shall bring to the house of the LORD your God. You shall not boil a kid in its mother’s milk.” (Beresheit 23:19);

However, the 1^st extended description of the laws of kashrut are provided within Parashah Shemini (Vayikra 11:1 – 47).

5.) Can you describe which of the proceeding items can be eaten within א.) local areas; and which item(s) can only be consumed within the ב.) 1 location designated by Adonai:

a.) Animals hunted in the field;

b.) Cattle slaughtered for ordinary meals;

c.) Tithes of first grains;

d.) Tithes of wine;

e.) Tithes of oil;

f.) Firstlings of the flock;

g.) Sacrificial votive offerings; and/or,

h.) Freewill offerings?

Answer:

The answer for א.) is: a.) animals hunted in the field; and, b.) cattle slaughtered for ordinary meals;

The answer for ב.) is: b.) tithes of first grains; c.) tithes of wine; d.) tithes of oil; f.) firstlings of the flock; g.) sacrificial votive offerings; and, f.) freewill offerings:

“Take care not to sacrifice your burnt offerings in any place you like, but only in the place that the LORD will choose in one of your tribal territories. There you shall sacrifice your burnt offerings and there you shall observe all that I enjoin upon you. But whenever you desire, you may slaughter and eat meat in any of your settlements, according to the blessing that the LORD your God has granted you. The impure and the pure alike may partake of it, as of the gazelle and the deer. But you must not partake of the blood; you shall pour it out on the ground like water.

6.) Can you describe the instructions that Moshe provides for the appropriate process in adding mitzvoth and/or removing mitzvot from the original list that he provides:

a.) Such a decision must be made by a minyan of 10 men;

b.) Such a decision must be made by a minyan of 10 people;

c.) Such a decision must be made through majority, democratic vote;

d.) Such a decision must be made through consensus;

e.) Such a decision must be made through a rightly elected president;

f.) Such a decision must be made through a just an noble king;

g.) Such a decision must be made through either rolling dice, a numbers lottery, cutting a deck of cards, or the roulette wheel?

Answer: The answer is: “h.)”: an absence of any of the above; such a decision is prohibited:

“Be careful to observe only that which I enjoin upon you; neither add to it nor take away from it.” (Devarim 13:1).

7.) Can you describe which instruction(s) Moshe provides to Israelis concerning how to respond to a Prophet or dreamer who leads people to practise the same idol worship as other nations:

a.) Israelis are to give the Prophet/dreamer all the lottery winnings;

b.) Israelis are to elect the Prophet/dreamer as president;

c.) Israelis are to elect the Prophet/dreamer as king;

d.) Israelis are to chastise the Prophet/dreamer into becoming part of the egalitarian proletariat;

e.) Israelis are to put the Prophet/dreamer in jail, with the bakers and the cupholders;

f.) Israelis are to listen to Prophet/dreamer only when he is with a minyan of 10 men;

g.) Israelies are to listen to the Prophet/dreamer only when he is with a minyan of 10 people?

Answer: the answer is: “h.)”: an absence of any of the above; Israelis are to condemn the Prophet/dreamer, and the followers, to death:

“If there appears among you a prophet or a dream-diviner and he gives you a sign or a portent, saying, ‘Let us follow and worship another (deity)’—whom you have not experienced—even if the sign or portent that he named to you comes (True), do not heed the words of that prophet or that dream-diviner. For the LORD your God is testing you to see whether you (Really) love the LORD your God with all your heart and soul. Follow none but the LORD your God, and revere none but (Adonai); observe (Adonai’s) commandments alone, and heed only (Adonai’s) orders; worship none but (Adonai), and hold fast to (Adonai). As for that prophet or dream-diviner, he shall be put to death; for he urged disloyalty to the LORD your God—who freed you from the land of EGYPT and (Who) redeemed you from the house of bondage—to make you stray from the path that the LORD your God commanded you to follow. Thus you will sweep out evil from your midst.” (Devarim 13:2 – 6).

“(You) shall investigate and inquire and interrogate thoroughly. If it is (True), the fact is established—that abhorrent thing was perpetuated in your midst—put the inhabitants of that town to the sword and put its cattle to the sword. Doom it and all that is in it to destruction: gather all its spoil into the open square, and burn the town and all its spoil as a holocaust to the LORD your God. And it shall remain an everlasting ruin, never to be rebuilt. Let nothing that has been doomed stick to your hand, in order that the LORD may tyrn from (Adonai’s) blazing anger and show you compassion, and in (Adonai’s) compassion increase you as (Adonai) promised your fathers on oath—for you will be heeding the LORD your God, obeying all (Adonai’s) commandments that I enjoin upon you this day, doing what is right in the sight of the LORD your God.” (Devarim 13:15 – 19).

8.) Within Parashah Re’ih, there is reference to the prohibition against a man shaving the hairs of the front of his head, when mourning:

“You are children of the LORD your God. You shall not gash yourselves or shave the front of your heads because of the dead.” (Devarim 14:1);

Can you describe within what previous Parashah/Parshiyot, there are similar prohibitions against a man cutting his hair?

Answer: Such prohibitions can be respectively found within Parashah Kedoshim, and within Parashah Naso:

“You shall not round off the side-growth on your head, or destroy the side-growth of your beard. You shall not make gashes in your flesh for the dead, or incise any marks on yourselves: I am the LORD.” (Vayikra 19:27 – 28).

“Throughout the term of his vow as nazirite, no razor shall touch his head; it shall remain consecrated until the completion of his term as nazirite of the LORD, the hair of his head being left to grow untrimmed.” (B’midbar 6:5)

9.) Can you describe which of these Hebrew terms is utilised to describe the mitzvah of the “forgiveness/remission of debts” that is commanded within Parashah Re’ih (Devarim 15:1 – 3):

Hebrew Only: a.) שמטה; b.) צדקה; c.) שלום; d.) חסד; and/or, e.) יובל?

Latinised Transliteration (of the Same Terms): a.) Shmittah; b.) Tzedakah; c.) Shalom; d.) Chesed; and/or, e.) Yovel?

Answer: The answer is: a.) שמטה; Shmittah.

10.) Can you describe which of these Hebrew terms (transliterated) represents the mitzvah of the “Jubilee” (previously described within Parashah B’har)?

Hebrew Only: a.) שמטה; b.) צדקה; c.) שלום; d.) חסד; and/or, e.) יובל?

Latinised Transliteration (of the Same Terms): a.) Shmittah; b.) Tzedakah; c.) Shalom; d.) Chesed; and/or, e.) Yovel?

Answer: The answer is: e.) יובל; Yovel:

“(And) you shall hallow the fiftieth year. You shall proclaim release throughout the land for all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you: each of you shall return to his holding and each of you shall return to his family.” (Vayikra 25:10).

11.) Can you describe the number of Parshiyot, chapters, and/or verses that exist between the proceeding passages and teachings:

“There shall be no needy among you—since the LORD your God will bless you in the land that the LORD your God is giving to you as a hereditary portion—”

“For there will never cease to be needy ones in your land, which is why I command you: open your hand to the poor and needy kinsman in your land.”?

Answer: There are 6 verses that exist between these 2 passages/teachings; the 1^st passage is: Devarim 15:4; and the 2^nd passage is: Devarim 15:11; the passage between these 2 verses provides the proceeding proclamation:

“—if only you heed the LORD your God and take care to keep all this Instruction that I enjoin upon you this day. For the LORD your God will bless you as (Adonai) has promised you: you will extend loans to many nations, but require none yourself; you will dominate many nations, but they will not dominate you.

“If, however, there is a needy person among you, one of your kinsmen in any of your settlements in the land that the LORD your God is giving you, do not harden your heart and shut your hand against your needy kinsman. Rather, you must open your hand and lend him sufficient for whatever he needs. Beware lest you harbour the base thought, ‘The seventh year, the year of remission, is approaching,’ so that you are mean to your needy kinsman and give him nothing. He will cry out to the LORD against you, and you will incur guilt. Give to him readily and have no regrets when you do so, for in return the LORD your God will bless you in all your efforts and in all your undertakings.” (Devarim 15:5 – 10).

Categories of People: Permitted Activities:

a.) sons; א.) eating tithes at the 1 location ordained by Adonai;

b.) daughters; ב.) being sold unkosher food;

c.) male slaves; ג.) eating from the triennial tithes;

d.) female slaves; ד.) being imposed with perpetual debts;

e.) Levis; ה.) observing Pesach;

f.) strangers; ו.) observing Shavuot; and/or,

g.) foreign nations; ס.) observing Sukkot?

h.) orphans; and/or,

i.) widows;

Answer:

The answer for א.) eating tithes at the 1 location ordained by Adonai; is: a.) sons; b.) daughters; c.) male slaves; d.) female slaves; and, e.) Levis:

“You may not partake in your settlements of the tithes of your new grain or wine or oil, or of the firstlings of your herds and flocks, or of any of the votive offerings that you vow, or of your freewill offerings, or of your contributions. These you must consume before the LORD your God in the place that the LORD your God will choose—you and your sons and your daughters, your male and female slaves, and the Levite in your settlements—happy before the LORD your God in all your undertakings.” (Devarim 12:17 – 18).

The answer for ב.) being sold unkosher food; is: f.) strangers; and, g.) foreign nations:

“You shall not eat anything that has died a natural death; give it to the stranger in your community to eat, or you may sell it to a foreigner. For you are a people consecrated to the LORD your God.” (Devarim 14:21).

The answer for ג.) eating from the triennial tithes; is: e.) Levis; f.) strangers; h.) orphans; and, i.) widows:

“Every third year you shall bring out the full tithe of your yield of that year, but leave it within your settlements. Then the Levite, who has no hereditary portion as you have, and the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow in your settlements shall come and eat their fill, so that the LORD your God may bless you in all the enterprises you undertake.” (Devarim 14:28 – 29).

The answer for ד.) being imposed with perpetual debts; is: g.) foreign nations:

The answer for ה.) observing Pesach; is: “j.”: an absence of any of the above; whilst the observance of Pesach is explicitly commanded within Parashah Re’igh, there is an absence of any explicit description of the categories of people who are permitted to partake within the observance of Pesach; however, within the an initial description of the observance of Pesach, there is the prohibition against any uncircumcised stranger, former, male slave, or female slave eating from the Peschal sacrifice and observing Pesach:

“Observe the month of Abib and offer a Passover sacrifice to the LORD your God, for it was in the month of Abib, at night, that the LORD your God freed you from Egypt. You shall slaughter the Passover sacrifice for the LORD your God, from the flock and the herd, in the place where the LORD will choose to establish (Adonai’s) name. You shall not eat anything unleavened with it; for seven days thereafter you shall eat unleavened bread, bread of distress—for you departed from the land of Egypt hurriedly—so that you may remember the day of your departure from the land of Egypt as long as you live. For seven days no leaven shall be found with you in all your territory, and none of the flesh of what you slaughter on the evening of the first day shall be left until morning.

“You are not permitted to slaughter the Passover sacrifice in any of the settlements that the LORD your God is giving you; but at the place where the LORD your God will choose to establish (Adonai’s) name, there alone shall you slaughter the Passover sacrifice, in the evening, at sundown, the time of day when you departed from Egypt. You shall cook and eat it at the place that the LORD your God will choose; and in the morning you may start back on your journey home. After eating unleavened bread six days, you shall hold a solemn gathering for the LORD your God on the seventh day: you shall do no work.” (Devarim 16:1 – 8).

“The LORD said to (Moshe) and Aaron: This is the law of the Passover offering: No foreigner shall eat of it. But any slave a man has bought may eat of it once he has been circumcised. No bound or hired labourer shall eat of it. It shall be eaten in one house: you shall not take any of the flesh outside the house; nor shall you break a bone of it. The whole community of Israel shall offer it. If a stranger who dwells with you would offer the Passover to the LORD, all his males must be circumcised; then he shall be admitted to offer it; he shall then be a citizen of the country. But no uncircumcised person may eat of it. There shall be one law for the citizen and for the stranger who dwells among you.” (Shmot 12:43 – 49).

The answer for ו.) observing Shavuot; is: a.) sons; b.) daughters; c.) male slaves; d.) female slaves; e.) Levis; f.) strangers; h.) orphans; and, i.) widows:

“You shall count off seven weeks; start to count the seven weeks when the sickle is first put to the standing grain. Then you shall observe the Feast of Weeks for the LORD your God, offering your freewill contribution according as the LORD your God has blessed you. You shall rejoice before the LORD your God with your son and daughter, your male and female slave, the Levite in your communities, and the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow in your midst, at the place where the LORD your God will choose to establish (Adonai’s) name. Bear in mind that you were slaves in Egypt, and take care to obey these laws.” (Devarim 16:9 – 12).

The answer for ס.) observing Sukkot; is: a.) sons; b.) daughters; c.) male slaves; d.) female slaves; e.) Levis; f.) strangers; h.) orphans; and, i.) widows:

“After the ingathering from your threshing floor and your vat, you shall hold the Feast of Booths for seven days. You shall rejoice in your festival, with your son and daughter, your male and female slave, the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow in your communities. You shall hold a festival for the LORD your God seven days, in the place that the LORD will choose; for the LORD your God will bless all your crops and all your undertakings, and you shall have nothing but joy.” (Devarim 16:13 – 15).

Discussion Questions:

Amidst the mitzvot to abstain from stealing, killing, adultery, coveting, and to observe Shabbat; what is the deal with committing war during Shabbat, killing enemies to maintain the wives and/or daughters as female slaves, and stealing the land as 1’s own? What is an appropriate way to transcend the implementation of the “justifiable right” to commit wrongs?

What considerations can be extrapolated from the notion of the intrinsic nature of “Israel” (as a concept) being a “stranger” (as a concept) amidst the concept of “indigenous land” (or simply, the concept of “indigenousness”)? What are intrinsic dynamics, implications, and continuing implications and characteristics of this relationship between the people and the land, connected essentially through ordination? How is this relationship appropriately communicated, established, legitimised amongst additional tribes wanting to settle within the land or any land (without abrogating the respective connexions/relationships that additional tribes maintain with additional lands)? Does the recognition of the ordained connexion with Eretz Israel essentially solicit a certain experience of proselytisation, to have additional tribes recognise the legitimacy of this relationship (and, perhaps, the distinction/uniqueness of this relationship and/or Israel, ourselves)? What are the principles governing/legitimising Israeli stewardship of Eretz Israel that can be similarly applied to the respective relationships that additional tribes respectively maintain with additional lands? What is the intrinsic nature of the relationship between Israelis and the land of foreign nations? How does reliance upon the ordination principle (“specialness”)—and the affirmation of self (and self-interest), establishing strategic allegiances, and wielding physical power—, compare with practise of establishing a prevailing culture of benevolence and simply living off the basic minimum that is provided to all within the society?

What is the contemporary notion regarding the practise of the same beliefs as foreign nations? Do we believe in the same “God” as other religions? How would the personage of Balam appear to us in contemporary form? Are there certain practises that are OK to share? How do examples of Avraham bowing at Machpelah amongst the Hittites, and the visitors, exist within this notion? What is the extent between (dividing line between) conducting economic trade and actually worshipping together (understanding that Divine relevance exists within all elements of the Universe and within all aspects of human behaviour, and particularly within the very pragmatic nature of the aggregate of the 613 mitzvot)? What are the appropriate social dynamics in “lending to other nations”? How are these notions tangibly answered within the episodic examples within the Torah, Tanakh, and the temporal tradition of B’nai Israel?

What is the nature of Holiness of Israel amongst all nations, amidst the liberties that Israel is permitted to take with all other nations (such as perpetually imposing debts beyond Shmittah; charging interest; lending money without borrowing; selling unkosher food, and additionally)? Whilst there is an absence of a doctrine for proselytising Israel’s mitzvoth from Adonai (and perhaps for judging other nations by adherence, or lack thereof, to such mitzvot), is it appropriate to maintain the same discretion when interacting with other nations (to abstain from charging interest, imposing debt, selling kosher food)? From what other manner are all nations, including or excluding Israel, to be judged (Noachide Laws)? Which is the larger, increasingly woeful, imposition: treating other nations as Israelis, or treating other nations as foreigners/slaves/enemies? And when treating foreigners as slaves/enemies, to what extent does Israel become reliant/dependent (indebted/enslaved) to that very distinction (and to perpetuating that distinction), and eventually intrinsically enveloped within the exact experience of the foreigner/slave/enemy (as a foreigner/slave/enemy)? Does the example of Yosef’s treatment towards the Egyptians have any relevance within this consideration? Where is the line to be drawn when interacting with people from other nations? How can an Israeli interact with a foreigner, in any manner, without necessarily being influenced by the practises/behaviour/beliefs/nature of the foreigner; and even by the very idea of “the foreigner”?

Amidst the notion of “first fruits,” “man’s selection,” and “natural selection,” there is the consideration that the “first fruits” are increasingly favourable; and man maintains the prerogative of selecting which fruits to consume; and with the intention of establishing one’s progeny in perpetuity, there is the consideration of a man making this selection in his own self-interest, to promote the competitive advantage of himself and his house amidst the aggregate of the Universe; however, survival very much requires cooperation beyond one’s self, and even one’s house, and exclusively making decisions (and behaving) in a self-interested manner seems to establish a reputation that results in exclusion (which may be considered as a “natural selection” facilitated through socialisation and additional phenomena); and thus, it seems beneficial to exist within a balance of both selfishness and sharing, although there seems to yet emerge an absolute consensus (or agreement) regarding what such an appropriate balance looks like for everybody; is there any legitimacy within this observation? And what may such an appropriate balance look like?

Is bowing towards the Torah an act of “idol worship”? If bowing to Torah is OK (different from idol worship), is it OK to customarily bow when greeting other people, and within other occasions? What is the nature of inappropriate “submission” or worship; and what are appropriate forms of “submission” (such as adhering to orders from tyrannical leaders, or protecting one’s self/others against an assault from an enemy)? Is intentionality a significant consideration within this distinction, and if so, how can such intentionality be effectively evidenced? To what extent is this all simply semantics? Where is the line drawn between blasphemous “tangible” forms of worship/submission (bowing head, kneeling, full prostration, verbalisation) and blasphemous “conceptual” forms of submission (praying/meditating towards other deities; believing within the existence of other deities; merely considering the possibility of the existence of other deities; denying the existence of Adonai; and perhaps simply denying sustenance to someone who is needy)?

How do the altars that Yaakov, Yitak, and Moshe construct (and additionally), coincide with the practises that Moshe proclaims and condemn?

Righteous Mountain

Thursday, August 30, 2012

Torah Trivia Study for Parashah 47. Re'ih (118.12.13)

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