(blessing recited before studying/reading Torah, from the liturgy)
Tziporah:
Since
I began studying the 99 Names of God with Yasmina and discovering the
similarities in how we address God, I’ve been wondering about what this
blessing means to me. While I recite it every morning and hear it recited often
during the morning services when the Torah is read publicly, I am not certain
that I fully embrace its message. First, the idea that God chose the Jewish
people—even if I understand or interpret this to mean that God chose to give
the Torah to the Jewish people—rings hollow. Other religions espouse beliefs
and laws similar to those found in the Torah, especially those that fall into
the category of "natural law," such as laws against murder and
incest, as well as laws pertaining to social justice. In addition, I don’t
believe that God actually gave the Torah to Moses at Sinai; rather I
understand the emergence of Torah as a progressive revelation of God’s will,
written by human beings in the language of their day.
How
then, can I praise God as “Giver of the Torah?” Do Christians and Muslims
believe that God gave the Torah to the Jewish people? If so, do Muslims include
this appellation among the 99 names of God?
Even if Torah is seen as a progressive revelation, cannot God still be praised as the instigator?
ReplyDeleteI feel as though I straddle a duality between my head and my heart. I KNOW in my head that Torah was a process. Simultaneously, I KNOW in my heart that Torah was given at Sinai. I walk around with these opposing beliefs, struggling to synthesize them as I make my way through God's world.
Yes, on any given day I walk around with a multiplicity of truths in both my head & heart! That's how I can find the meaning of the words of the blessing challenging, yet continue to recite it (as I learned it in childhood) every single morning. I wouldn't dream of omitting it or changing it! If the standard equating is "two Jews, three opinions" then it must be "one Jew, at least two opinions," right? B'yideedut, Tziporah
DeleteIn some Jewish communities, this blessing has been slightly adapted to read אשר בחר בנו אם כל האמים, "Who has chosen us with all of the nations" -- in other words, we have been chosen to serve in this particular way and to receive this particular revelation, but other communities may have other ways of serving / other revelations / other ways of accessing the One. There's also the Reconstructionist version which reads אשר קרבנו לעבודתו ונתן–לנו את תרתו, "Who has drawn us near to God in service and has given us the Torah," which again doesn't presume that we are the only ones who draw near to God or that we have a monopoly on truth.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing the Reform & Reconstructionist versions of the blessing with our readers!
DeleteIndeed, my intellectual Jewish self is questioning, Elisha ben Abuya-style & my prayerful Jewish self is Open Orthodox. I wouldn't dream of reciting the blessing other than the way I learned it in childhood. That's the ritual that provides comfort for the heart when the brain over-thinks the matter!
B'shalom, Tziporah
The first version that rbarenblat quoted is definitely not "the Reform" one. In Reform siddurim the blessing is written in Hebrew and translated in English exactly the way you, Tziporah, wrote it in your quote from liturgy.
DeleteI find it interesting that the early Reform siddurim would include this blessing as I have translated it, since classical Reform ideology was to remove particularism in Jewish liturgy. The new Reform siddur have added back a lot of traditional liturgy and include several "options" for versions of blessings. The Reconstructionist siddur that I have (from the 1990's), Kol HaNeshamah, contains this version: "Blessed are you, Eternal One, our God, the sovereign of all worlds, who has drawn us to your service and has given us your Torah." I grew up in the Conservative Movement, so I can only really speak with authenticity about that liturgy tradition that I know best. I often wish that I could feel comfortable changing my prayer words to match my belief, but newly-constructed versions don't resonate for me in the same way. Thanks for your comment, Aviva! B'shalom, Tziporah
DeleteRbarenblat, "the Velveteen Rabbi", has an awfully good grip on the various versions of Reform siddur. She is also a superb Jewish poet as well as rabbi. It seems to me that if one is open to reading new work and new approaches, such as poetry, to liturgical language, we can allow ourselves to grow in our appreciation of new liturgy, so that we do not risk going stale or ossified as we grow older. that doesn't mean we throw out our older prayers but that we do not remain as children in our depth of understanding.
ReplyDelete(From Vinaigrette Girl)
I agree, Vinaigrette Girl, about Rabbi Barenblat's lovely, liturgical poetry. I enjoy reading her poetry on her blog, and I am certainly open to new approaches and interpretations of liturgical language. I like to use them in creative services, and as sources of text study. This is for me, however, an intellectual exercise -- much more head than heart-- and does not substitute for my prayers, which I never feel are stale or ossified when I am reciting them. Performing the liturgy & rituals the way I always have, since childhood, offers comfort --much more heart than head. When I stop to consider with my head as I pray, then I have to backtrack and find ways to say the familiar words even when my intellectual understanding of their meaning conflicts with the service of the heart. Wishing you well-spoken and oft-answered prayers, Tziporah
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