Thank
you, Yaira, for sharing your insights & wisdom with She Answers
Abraham readers!
“You
shall completely destroy all the places there, where the nations that you’re
dispossessing worshiped their gods: on the high mountains and on the hills and
under every lush tree. And you shall demolish their altars and shatter
their pillars and burn their Asherot in fire and cut down the statues of
their gods and destroy their name from that place.”
(Deuteronomy 12:2-3)
Yaira:
On
first reading, this passage seems harsh and not at all fitting with the concept
of religious pluralism. These verses—when removed from their original context
and interpreted on a literal, surface level—can lead to fundamentalism and
trouble. So first, let’s put them back into context.
By
Divine decree, Moses will not cross with the Israelites into the Promised
Land—so by the bank of the River Jordan, he gives his final address to the
people. He begins by reviewing the exodus from Egypt and the subsequent forty
years of wandering in the wilderness. Then he offers guidance about how the
Israelites should conduct themselves moving forward.
The
central message that I hear in all of his advice, throughout the book of
Deuteronomy, is to keep God as the focus of their lives. They
are told to love God, “with all your heart and with all your soul and with all
your might.” (Deuteronomy 6:5) The people are told to demolish the worship
spaces, altars and statues of the former occupiers of the land because the
continued existence of these things would distract them from true service to
God.
Next,
let’s look beyond a literal interpretation. It’s important to know that what
happens in the Torah is not just an event in the distant past. Just as Moses
stood addressing the Israelite people thousands of years ago, he stands today,
here in my living room, talking to me. What I hear Moses saying to me is that
to enter the Promised Land—to uphold a sacred, covenantal partnership—I must
clear out all the things in my life that would distract me from a central focus
on God. All of those false idols of cash and comfort and consumerism must go,
and what must remain is true and constant devotion. When these verses are
interpreted in this light, they are a reminder that to live a life grounded in the
holy, we must keep our hearts clear of clutter and open to God.
* * * * * * * *
*Yaira is a Jew
who believes that honest interfaith engagement is an important part of the
connective, healing work so needed in the world right now. Yaira has a B.A. in
English and is working toward an M.A. in Theological Studies. She is married
with two boys and is fueled by laughter, gratitude and radical amazement.
