Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel

For our blog readers, I wish to present some new ideas for you to consider concerning the verb (bärä´ = “created”). The font anomalies are due to Word Press’s limitations. This material comes from my new Genesis commentary, enjoy!

===========

בָּרָא – created – The verb בָּרָא (bärä´ = “created”) connotes God’s absolute effortless creativity. In the Tanakh, this term is used exclusively with respect to Divine creativity, for human creativity is limited by the materials it has access to—this is not so with God. This distinction may also explain why many medieval rabbinic thinkers like Saadia[1], Maimonides[2], Ramban[3], Abarbanel[4], Seforno[5] and others believe this verb alludes to the concept of creatio ex nihilo (creation from “nothing”) since only God can create from the non-existent. Elsewhere in the Tanakh, בָּרָא’ introduces something surprisingly novel, wonderful, and awe-inspiring.[6] For a theological exposition on the importance of novelty, see Excursus 8a and 8e.

However, Ibn Ezra is less convinced and contends that the linguistic evidence does not support such an interpretation.[7] The verb בָּרָא’ may also mean to fashion something out of already existing materials (e.g., the creation of man, whose body came from the dust of the earth, and whose soul issued forth from God’s breath).[8] Ibn Ezra’s comments could also suggest the universe was constructed out of pre-existent matter. However, pre-existent matter need not imply a dualism; it may imply that this ethereal substance is “pre-eternal” only in relationship to the world but not in relationship to God. In conclusion, Ibn Ezra theorizes that the primary meaning of בָּרָא means “to cut down” or “set a boundary.”[9]

S.R. Driver supports Ibn Ezra’s perspective and adds that the verb בָּרָא (bärä´) is related to the Arabic barā^y “to fashion” or “shape by cutting.” Nevertheless, Driver admits that “in its simple conjugation, it refers exclusively to God and denotes the production of something fundamentally new, by the exercise of a sovereign originative power, altogether transcending that possessed by man.”[10]

Some modern Hebraists contend that בָּרָא is related to the South Arabic word “br” meaning “to build,” or “to bring forth,” or “give birth to” and is probably related to the Aramaic word בַּר (bar), “child”[11] (as in the modern “Bar Mitzvah” = “a son of a precept”), or “son” (e.g., Ezek. 28:13,15). Creativity is expressed in the way we give birth to something from the very depths of our innermost being.^[12] Often, when the Scriptures speak about Creation, it involves “giving birth” to a new reality.^[13]

However, there is no clear consensus as to the meaning or origin of this important term. Lastly, the principle of creatio ex nihilo is not contingent upon the verb ברא. Light was created only when God spoke the words, “Let there be light” (v. 3); there is not even the slightest hint that God formed the light out of the primordial chaos and this theological approach has sometimes been called creatio per verbum—”creation from the word.” Such a concept reflects a more precise mythopoetic understanding concerning the nature of reality as a creative expression of the Divine (see notes on Genesis 1:3; 1:27 and Excursus 8). Continue Reading

 

December 8th happened to be the anniversary of John Lennon’s untimely death. Most of us who have grown up in the sixties remember John Lennon’s most famous song, “Imagine.” Chant along with me!

Imagine there’s no heaven

It’s easy if you try

No hell below us

Above us only sky

Imagine all the people living for today…

Imagine there’s no countries

It isn’t hard to do

Nothing to kill or die for

And no religion too

Imagine all the people living life in peace….

Like any great artist, Lennon’s song makes you think about his message. Is all religion necessarily bad? Or was he referring only to “organized religion,” because of its role in fostering hatred in the world? When one examines the hundreds of millions of people over the course of recorded history who were wiped because they refused to accept a religious dogma or faith, I have to admit: a world without this kind of religion would probably be a very good thing.

On the other hand, as Paul Tillich has often said, “religion is man’s ultimate concern for the ultimate.” Any kind of passion or obsession can become a religion—whether it’s organized or not.

Religion can become a good thing if it’s used properly. If we didn’t abuse religion, chances are we would misuse some of our other creative talents. It’s more a problem of human nature itself; we are a violent species and we probably would never have survived were it not for our ancestor’s realization that we cannot survive without adopting a more civilized approach to the alternative of continuous warfare. One might argue that religion even helped to rein in some of these (but not all!) violent impulses. Animal sacrifice took the place of human sacrifice, but religion still has plenty of dark aspects that make it less civilized; if religion is used for evil, it is because the heart that promotes violence in the name of religion is evil. The Romans used to say, Homo homini lupus—“man is wolf to man”—and this is the problem I believe John Lennon did not understand. We seemed to be hardwired to act barbarically-an obvious inheritance from our prehistorical genetic history.

From a different perspective, John Lennon’s denial of the afterlife is not without precedent in Jewish tradition. Over 2200 years ago, there was a brilliant Jewish philosopher named Jesus ben Sirach, commonly quoted in the Talmud as “Ben Sira.” He lived in the beginning of the second century B.C.E. and taught in Jerusalem (Ben Sira 50:27; cf. 51:23ff.). Given his disbelief or ambivalence regarding the afterlife, it is quite likely he was a practicing Sadducean. The work is believed to shortly after the famous Maccabean Revolt, probably around 180 B.C.E.

When a man dies, he inherits corruption; worms, gnats and maggots. — Ben Sira 10:11

• For it is easy with the LORD on the day of death to repay man according to his deeds. A moment’s affliction brings. A forgetfulness of past delights; when a man dies, his life is revealed. Don’t call a man “happy” before his death; but only how his life ends, is a man known. — Ben Sira 11:26-28

• The dead can no more give praise than those who have never lived; they glorify the LORD who are alive and well.[1] —Ben Sira 17:23

• Do not forget, there is no coming back; you do the dead no good, and you injure yourself. — Ben Sira 38:21

• All that is of earth returns to earth, and what is from above returns above.[2] —Ben Sira 40:11

Actually, Ben Sira’s attitude about the afterlife is not without precedent in the Tanakh itself. Consider the following passages:

• The heavens belong to LORD, but the earth He has given to the children of Adam. The dead cannot praise the LORD, nor do any that go down into silence. But we will bless the LORD from this time on and forevermore. Praise the LORD! —Psalms 115:16-18
  

• For the living know that they are to die, but the dead no longer know anything. There is no further recompense for them, because all memory of them is lost—Ecclesiastes 9:5

Then again, there are some rabbinical teachings that derive also from Sadducean influence (despite the protestations of the Orthodox, who claim these men were Pharisees, but that is another discussion for a different posting). Consider Antigonos of Socho who used to say:

“Don’t be like slaves who serve the master with a view to receiving a present; but be like slaves who serve the master not with a view to receiving a present: and let the awe of Heaven be upon you.”(Avoth 1:3) [3] This teaching is consistent with the classical Sadducean attitude about the afterlife.

Antigonos’s perspective also resonates with Ben Sira’s perspective. Don’t worship God because you expect to be “saved” in the afterlife. If you act that way, you are not serving God; you are only serving yourself—your ego. In the final analysis, “Let virtue be your own reward.”

There is another rabbinical source that speaks about the immortality of memory, which is similar to Ben Sira’s concept:

R. Johanan said: Jacob our patriarch is not dead.

R. Nahman objected: Was it then all for naught, that he was bewailed and embalmed and buried?!

R. Yochanan said: I derive this from a Scriptural verse, as it is said: “But as for you, have no fear, my servant Jacob, says the Lord, and do not be dismayed, O Israel; for I am going to save you from far away, and your offspring from the land of their captivity” (Jer. 30:10). The verse likens Jacob to his progeny Israel—just as his progeny will then be alive, in a sense so shall he too will be alive. [4]

In summary, Ben Sira seems to have felt that heaven is what you make in this world; and the same applies to hell. One is reminded of an old classical parable told in the Hassidic traditions, but versions of the story is told in other faith traditions as well.

• A tsadik (righteous man) once received a visitation from Elijah the Prophet one day and said, “Master, I would like to know what Heaven and Hell are like.”Elijah led the tsadik to two doors. He opened one of the doors and the tsadik looked in. In the middle of the room was a large round table. In the middle of the table was a large pot of stew, which smelled delicious and made the tsadik’s mouth water. The people sitting around the table were thin and sickly. They appeared to be famished. They were holding spoons with very long handles that were strapped to their arms and each found it possible to reach into the pot of stew and take a spoonful. But because the handle was longer than their arms, they could not get the spoons back into their mouths. The tsadik shuddered at the sight of their misery and suffering. Elijah said, “You have seen Hell.”They went to the next room and opened the door. It was exactly the same as the first one. There was the large round table with the large pot of stew which made the tsadik’s mouth water. The people were equipped with the same long-handled spoons, but here the people were well fed and plump, laughing and schmoozing. The tsadik said, ‘I don’t get it . . .’ ‘It is simple,’ said Elijah, “It requires but one skill. You see they have learned to feed each other, while the greedy think only of themselves.” Continue Reading