Why do Lubavitchers spit whenever saying the Alenu Prayer?

Why do Lubavitchers spit whenever saying the Alenu Prayer?

This is a great question, but to put it in perspective, we must first analyze the  Alenu Prayer and its historical development. Without a doubt, the Alenu is one of the most moving prayers of the Jewish liturgy; it calls upon all the members of humankind to accept the One and only King of Kings, as Lord and Master of all the earth. Its universal message envisions a time when all the pagan gods will cease to be as humanity unites together in soulful worship. Without going into too much detail of the prayer, we will look only at the section that is relevant to our current discussion.

Let us praise Him, Lord over all the world;

Let us acclaim Him, Author of all creation.

He made our lot unlike that of other peoples;

He assigned to us a unique destiny.

We bend the knee, worship, and acknowledge

The King of kings, the Holy One, praised is He.

He unrolled the heavens and established the earth;

The origin of the prayer dates back to the time of the third century and is attributed to the sage Rav, who was a famous Babylonian scholar. The Jerusalem Talmud also makes an occasional reference to it.[1]Assuming that Rav is the writer of the Alenu prayer, then it is reasonable to assume he was referring to the conversion of the pagan—and not the Christian, since Christianity had not really spread into Babylon in Rav’s day. The prayer also stresses the importance of Israel, God’s chosen messenger, who introduced ethical monotheism to the world.

With this introduction, the background of the Alenu has been fairly well-established. During the 12th-13th centuries, Jewish communities in Europe often suffered because of the blood libels that were issued against them. At one famous accusation in the French town of Blois, thirty-four Jews were burned at the stake for having “participated” in the blood ritual. As they died, they recited the Alenu prayer.

Oppressed peoples who lived under the powerful hand of the Christian world often fought an ideological battle with the more powerful Christian or Muslim enemy, who oppressed them on a daily basis.  Obviously, they could not openly criticize their tormentors, so they resorted to a more subtle method of expressing their anger. Like the psalmist who wrote Psalm 137, ordinary people of that persecuted generation demanded that God dispense justice for the wrongs committed against their communities. The language of this psalm is disturbing but understandable when seen through the eyes of the powerless victim.

Some rabbis ingeniously used numerology to express contempt toward the Christian and Muslim world as a form of silent protest. So, a number of scholars decided to rewrite the Alenu Prayer with a couple of lines calling on God to eradicate the oppressive religions whose devoted followers  threatened Israel.[2]

Continue reading “Why do Lubavitchers spit whenever saying the Alenu Prayer?”

Did Jesus believe in Original Sin?

Q. I know that Christians and Jews share many religious beliefs and are very close to each other in spiritual brotherhood. But Christians basically believe that they are created sinful and unclean and, therefore, need a Redeemer, Jesus, to take the sins of believers on Himself so that they may come to God’s Kingdom when they pass over. Since Jews do not have this Redeemer, how do they become pure enough to enter God’s Kingdom? I realize there is the Law, but human beings, being who and what they are, cannot keep these laws sufficiently to reach purity and freedom from sin. Christians also believe that they are able to receive the Holy Spirit and that the Holy Spirit directs their lives and brings them to true belief in God through Christ. How does Judaism look at the Holy Spirit and is the Holy Spirit considered to be active in bringing Jews to true belief? I can answer this question myself, from a Christian point of view, but that would be a one sided answer. I would very much appreciate learning what Judaism teaches in this matter. Thank you very much.

Answer: You are correct in assuming that most Christians believe in Original Sin, to a greater or lesser degree. As to whether Jesus himself really believed in Original Sin or not, I have serious doubts. In one of the Gospels, we read about how Jesus’ disciples once asked Jesus, Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’” (John 1:1). However, Jesus gives one of the most profound rabbinical answers imaginable, “Neither he nor his parents sinned; it is so that the works of God might be made visible through him” (John 9:2-3).

As a Jew reading the Gospel narrative, it seems to me that Jesus explicitly disapproved of any idea that man suffers from an inherited sin. By extension, every human fault we are born with serves a spiritual purpose so that we may glorify the Creator despite our natural shortcomings. Nowhere does Jesus ever speak of anything resembling the idea of a prenatal sin. Continue reading “Did Jesus believe in Original Sin?”

Can a woman serve as a Mohel?

Q. One of my congregants asked me a wonderful question. In Orthodox Judaism can a woman perform Brit Milah (ritual circumcision)?

I wrote back,

“ You have asked a great question! There is a controversy in tractate Avodah Zarah 27a regarding this very issue between Daru bar Papa who cites in the name of Rav and Rabbi Yochanan. Here is the substance of the argument. Daru b. Papa held that only someone who is obligated to observe the precept of circumcision can act as Mohel for others, whereas R. Yochanan felt that a woman can act as a Mohelet as indicated in the story of Tziporah (see Exodus 4:24‑26 for details). You could say she was a Moyhel of a goy’ol (pardon the pun!).”

In practical terms, R. Yosef Caro, the Halacha follows R. Yochanan and a woman may act as Mohelet (Yoreh Deah 264:1) but Maimonides adds one stipulation: this only applies in the event that a male Mohel is not available (MT, Hilchot Milah 2:1). However, Rema cites authorities who differ on this matter. Continue reading “Can a woman serve as a Mohel?”

Reflections on Interfaith Dialogue: My Recent Experience at Gordon College

Less than a month ago, I had the opportunity to be one of four national rabbinic scholars who spoke on the Psalms and their relevance for us today at Gordon College. For members of my community who are unfamiliar with this program, every year Gordon College produces a series of talks given by Jewish scholars from all around the country. As an evangelical school, Gordon College is a strong advocate for better Jewish and Christian relations. I must say it was a most memorable experience. While I was there, I met with the faculty, as well as with many classes of students where we engaged one another on the importance of interfaith dialogue in a society that has traditionally kept themselves apart from one another for centuries. True, Jews and Christian leaders do work on cooperative ventures, e.g., social issues, but seldom has there been an honest exchange where leaders speak honestly about the issues that have traditionally divided both our communities.

During the week I spent with the students and the local churches, I wanted to give a personal narrative how I came to embrace interfaith dialogue with the Christian as well as Muslim communities. True, there are many obstacles that face us all, but we have a duty to reach out. Rabbi Tarfun, a first century sage, expressed the thought best, “It is not incumbent upon you to finish the task. Yet, you are not free to desist from it” (Avot 2:21).

In my discussions, I maintain that it is essential for us to be honest with one another and speak about the historical mistakes each side has made over the ages. As with any family conflict, there are two sides of the story. Unfortunately, the family break-up of the Jewish and Christian communities that took place in the early centuries following the destruction of the Second Temple might have spared us centuries of anti-Semitic attacks; Jewish leaders were no less pluralistic then they are now; once the Jewish community threw out the Jewish-Christians from their synagogues, the seeds for revenge were sown for millennium that followed. Frankly, we can see many of the same intolerant attitudes threatening to split world Jewry today emanating out of the ultra-Orthodox circles in Israel today. Continue reading “Reflections on Interfaith Dialogue: My Recent Experience at Gordon College”

A Famous 20th Century Hassidic Rebbe Endorses Ptolemaic Science!

Why did the early rabbis of Late Antiquity believe that the sun revolves around the earth?

On the surface, the Sages wanted to uphold the belief that the earth is still the center of God’s universe.  However, in all honesty, one cannot blame the ancient rabbis for thinking that way; the majority of them were unacquainted with the science of the Greeks, many of whom (like Aristotle)  believed that the earth revolves around the sun. One would be hard pressed to find a modern rabbi of the last five centuries who would argue otherwise, yet, in modern times there is one famous rabbi who unabashedly believes in the science of Ptolemy over Copernicus–the late Lubavitcher Rebbe. Here is an extraordinary letter the Rebbe wrote (dated: September 16, 1968):

I am in receipt of your letter of September 10th, in which you touch upon the question of whether the sun revolves around the earth or vice versa, in view of the fact that you heard from a college student that the truth is that the earth revolves around the sun. It greatly surprises me that, according to your letter, the student declared that science has resolved that the earth revolves around the sun. The surprising thing is that a person making such a declaration would be about one half a century behind the times insofar as the position of modern science is concerned. This belief is completely refuted by the theory of Relativity, which has been accepted by all scientists as the basis for all the branches of science.

One of the basic elements of this theory is that when two bodies in space are in motion relative to one another (actually the theory was initiated on the basis of the movements of stars, planets, the earth, etc.), science declares with absolute certainty that from the scientific point of view both possibilities are equally valid, namely that the earth revolves around the sun, or the sun revolves around the earth.

Cited from Herman Branover, Joseph Ginsburg, and Menachem Mendel Schneersohn (trans. Arnie Gotfryd) Mind over Matter: The Lubavitcher Rebbe on Science, Technology and Medicine (Jerusalem: Shamir 2003), 75-77.

Hebrew Numerology: A Primer on Gematria — Part 1

While I am not a big fan of biblical numerology, I do believe that numerological patterns still play an important role in the sacred texts and spiritual imagination of a people; the mind instinctively looks for patterns in the strangest places. Such thinking is not unique to Jewish biblical interpreters or mystics; it is common with all people of all faiths–whether it be seeing the face of Jesus  or Mohammad in a cloud formation, or in some other peculiar place–as people, we impose our mental  images and conceptions about order on the world and universe  around us.

In this short posting, I thought it would be fun to show my readers some examples of how the rabbis sometimes utilize a “gematria,” to prove a point; of course, one could prove anything using this interpretive device. The great medieval commentator Abraham ibn Ezra warned us against what he considered, “bogus,” interpretations that say more about the mind of the interpreter than it does the actual text one is commenting upon.

Nevertheless, some of the numerological patterns are, if nothing else, interesting and even suggestive–especially when people talk about its significance. Continue reading “Hebrew Numerology: A Primer on Gematria — Part 1”

The Meaning of PaRDeS: The Four Levels of Scriptural Interpretation

One of the most important hermeneutical paradigms introduced by the early and medieval rabbis is a belief that the Scriptures contain more than one layer of exegetical meaning. This intertextual approach came to be known during the medieval era by the acronym  פַּרְדֵּס”PaRDeS,” standing for “Peshat,” “Remaz,” “Derash,” and “Sod.” Briefly defined, peshat is based on the literal and factual meaning of a verse[1] and roughly corresponds to the medieval concept of sensus literalis as developed by the medieval Christian scholars Thomas Aquinas and Nicholas of Lyra: “that which the author intends.”[2] It is also helpful to remember that the early rabbinic approach of peshat serves to define the practical character of a community.[3] Remez (allusions) refers to the subtle types of word games and puns that are embedded in the text (cf. Gen. 1:31; 2:23; 6:8). Sometimes this may take the form of Gematria (numerology) Temurah (anagrams) and Notarikon (acrostics). Continue reading “The Meaning of PaRDeS: The Four Levels of Scriptural Interpretation”

Genesis 1:2: Which rendering is more correct, “Spirit of God” or “Mighty Wind of God” ?qqqqqqqqq

What is the meaning of  וְרוּחַ אֱלֹהִים of Genesis 1:2?  Older translations[1] read, “Spirit of God”  (rûah °élöhîm) while newer translations seem to prefer “a wind of God,” or a “mighty wind . . . ”

Both readings are plausible.[2] The term רוּח (rûah) connotes a moving power that is both mysteriously intangible and unseen; hence, “mighty wind” is an apt metaphor. When read in this context, °élöhîm is used not as a noun but rather as a descriptive adjective connoting a sense of that which is “powerful” and “awesome.”[3] Accordingly, this translation suggests that God utilized a mighty tempest in the primal design of the earth.

The Septuagint  translates רוּחַ (rûah = spirit) as πνεῦμα  (pneuma), which has basically the same meaning in Greek as it does in Hebrew.  For the visionaries of the 8th century B.C.E.,  the rûah of God is the driving force (elan vital)  that seeks to liberate, heal, remake, and transform communities into spiritual centers of social justice; rûah is the life-breath and life-principle that points us toward the most profound dimension of human experience. Continue reading “Genesis 1:2: Which rendering is more correct, “Spirit of God” or “Mighty Wind of God” ?qqqqqqqqq”

How to create trouble for Mahmoud Ahmadinejad—Insist he’s Jewish!

Dear friends, I know the story is one month old. Originally, I wrote this piece for an adult ed class. As an afterthought, I decided to later post the material.

On October 3, 2009, the Daily Telegraph of London printed an article claiming that the world’s greatest anti-Semite, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has a Jewish background. But wait, it gets better yet! The article purports that Iranian dictator comes from a line of weavers–yes, tallit-weavers–who changed  their names recently, to prosper in the Islamic Republic. Apparently, it is alleged,  Ahmadinejad converted to embrace Islam after his birth.  At first the story seems to make sense. Jewish history is full of famous “Jewish anti-Semites”

One the surface, such a case would not be unusual for Jews. Noam Chomsky is one obvious example of a  modern-day Jewish anti-Semite, but he is hardly alone. Jewish liberals often  identify with the enemies of Israel. Such news is hardly an epiphany, but we–as Jews–are often our own worst enemies, as seen by the Neturei Karta and anti-Zionist Rabbi Yisrael Dovid Weiss, who describes  Ahmadinejad as “a man of peace and a friendly leader.” Continue reading “How to create trouble for Mahmoud Ahmadinejad—Insist he’s Jewish!”

Think like a Haredi?! The Roots of Haredi Misogyny

It has long been my contention that if you want to understand the mindset of the ultra-Orthodox world in Israel and in the Diaspora today, one must first learn how to think like one. Having been once an ultra-Orthodox Jew, I thought it would be helpful to deconstruct their way of thinking, which is probably a mystery to most normal thinking people.

וְשִׁנַּנְתָּם לְבָנֶיךָ  — You shall teach them to your children  . . .  (Deut. 6:7).

The Talmud in tractate Kiddushin 29b discusses the scriptural obligation of teaching children Torah and its limitations. Commenting on the Mishnah’s directive, “a father is obligated to teach his son Torah,” the Talmud later asks: “How do we know it? — Because it is written, “you shall teach them unto your sons” (Deut. 6:7). If his father failed to instruct him in Torah study, he is obligated to teach himself, for it is said, “ and you shall study …”

But does the mother have a duty to instruct Torah to her children? The answer to this question is not as obvious as it might seem. According to the Talmudic scholars, “The mother has no legal obligation to provide instruction since she is exempt from Torah study herself, and anyone who is exempt from Torah study has no obligation to instruct others!”

Obviously, the Talmudic discussion reveals some harsh economic realities of the age; unlike today, most families could not afford to provide a Jewish education to all their children. In terms of the hierarchy of responsibility, men had to first provide themselves with a good Jewish education so that they could teach their children. However, if a child was exceptional, the son took priority. With respect to a woman who was struggling to provide food on her table, the Sages out of compassion exempted her for survival of the family mattered most.  If she could not provide her children with an education, the responsibility fell upon the community itself (Kiddushin 29b).

Scriptural proofs more often than not are used as props for already existing social practices; this was undoubtedly the case in the centuries that followed the destruction of the Temple. Needless to say, בָנֶיךָ “your children,” invariably meant all children—sons and daughters alike, and one would be hard pressed to cite examples in the Tanakh where it is otherwise.

In  summary, the Talmudic discussion all depends  interpretation  on how literal one wishes to translate the word בָנֶיךָ “your children,” which many of the Sages understood as referring to בָּנִים—male children and not בָּנוֹת “daughters.”

While economics plays an important role in the development of the Halacha, so too does misogyny; one could say that misogyny is the original sin of human civilization–and its roots certainly can be traced throughout the bible, when Adam blames Eve for the problems of humankind.

Early rabbinical thinking reflected here certainly is consistent with the majority of Sages of Late Antiquity, but not everyone concurs. The Mishnah in Sotah 3:4 records the view of Simeon ben Azzai, who argues that a father is obligated to instruct Torah to his daughter since the term  בָּנִים can just as easily refer to daughters as well! Continue reading “Think like a Haredi?! The Roots of Haredi Misogyny”