SHEMOT: The Nature Of Antisemitism

We just finished reading the book of Bereshit, Genesis. Bereshit is not a book of laws. It is a book about the origins of humanity and particularly about the beginning of “Israel”. The book of Bereshit, however, does not mention the “people of Israel”, only the “children of Israel”. In the book of Shemot, Exodus, the family of Ya’aqob is transformed into a people, a nation. It is here, in our Parasha, where we find for the first time the word ‘am: people, nation, to define “Israel”.

The words עם בני ישראל, “the nation of the children of Israel” is first mentioned by none other than Pharaoh, and in a very particular context. Pharaoh refers to the people of Israel in a negative, hostile, today we would say “anti-Semitic” tone. Pharaoh speaks directly to his people warning them about the threat posed to Egypt by the Jewish people and presents a plan for getting rid of them. Isn’t ironic, and incredible, that in the first scene in which “the Jewish people” appears the “final solution” appears for the first time as well ?

In the coming days I would like to take a more profound look on the speech of Pharaoh, his evil plan and its execution. I think that this exercise will help us understand better the deep roots of anti-Semitism.

How did antisemitism begin in Egypt?

In Shemot pasuq 1:8 the Tora presents the events that led to it.

“And a new Pharaoh arose in Egypt, who did not know Yosef”

Why would a new Pharaoh ignore the contributions of Yosef and wish to destroy the Jewish people? The Tora only mentions explicitly the surging of a new King. Following one of several interpretations I would say that we are dealing here with a very common political phenomenon. When a new government, say the “opposition”, takes over, it is natural that the allies of the former government would automatically become the enemies of the new government. Example: In a 180 degrees change from the previous government, the new Argentinian government does not consider Venezuela, Cuba and Iran as allies.

If in Egypt a new pharaonic dynasty surged, or as some historians suggest, if the native Egyptians regained the power that the Hyksos usurped two centuries earlier, in either case, it would be nothing but expected that, if the former government was friendly with the Jewish people, the new government won’t.

Following this assumption we can learn a great lesson about the nature of antisemitism. The hatred toward Jews is not necessarily the effect of something bad Jews have done to the non Jews. Sometimes, many times, antisemitism arises for reasons that are far beyond what Jews can do or avoid doing. When Jews live in exile, and a government is friendly with us, it does not mean that the next government will treat us well too. Even though we would do nothing wrong to deserve being mistreated. This phenomena happened hundreds of times in the history of the Jewish people in exile. For centuries the Jews lived in peace, tranquility and relative prosperity in Spain until 1492. Something similar happened in Germany before 1938. But when a new Pharaoh arose in Spain, Germany, England, France, etc. things turned very bad for the Jews, without deserving it….

Accordingly, anti-Semitism had nothing to do with what Jews did toward the non-Jew. For Hitler the Jews were Communists, for Stalin we were capitalists. When the antisemitic tyrant wants to hurt us , the only thing that changes is the excuse.

What we are going to explore now is the anti-Semitic propaganda by which the tyrant justified his determination to hurt, expel or eliminate the Jewish people.

אשר לא ידע את יוסף “A new Pharaoh who did not know [that is, who chose to ignore] Yosef”. The first thing an antisemitic tyrant in power would do is to ignore the contributions of the Jewish people. The more important or impressive those contributions were, the bigger the effort to conceal them (revisionism, demonization, etc.). The Nazi government ignored the participation and loyalty of the Jews who fought for the “motherland” Germany during the First World War. Nazi Germany chose to ignore the contribution of Jews in medicine, science, arts, etc. Men and women who contributed greatly to make from pre-Nazi Germany one of the most advanced countries in Europe.

The Spanish kings ignored the contribution of the Jews in the fields of medicine (think of Lorenzo Badoz, the physician to Queen Isabel), astronomy and navigation (think about Rabbi Abraham Zacuto) and especially in the area of trade and commerce, the main profession of Jews in pre expulsion Spain. .

Today we experience a similar phenomena. The world systematically ignores the enormous contributions of the State of Israel to the modern world. Israel excels in the fields of medicine, technology, agriculture, optical, irrigation, etc, etc. (see below). But instead of considering Israel as the most amazing country in the world, for their incredible contributions to humanity despite being the only country whose existence is threatened, Israel -the Jew among the nations- is according to a BBC poll, the country “that threatens world peace more than any other country”

Anti-Semitic propaganda did not change. In any case, it became more sophisticated.

YOSEF, and the secrets of his success # 6 EMUNA

Before we discuss the Emuna of Yosef, we must clarify what Emuna is all about. Emuna is usually translated as “faith,” and it is defined as the “belief” in the existence of God. Yosef’s Emuna, and the Emuna of a good Jew, as we will explain in the following lines, goes far beyond that kind of “faith”. Emuna is to remember God, think about Him and make Him present in our lives.

Now let’s talk about Yosef’s Emuna. There is a fundamental difference between Yosef and his ancestors. While HaShem spoke directly with Abraham, Isaac and Ya’aqob, He never spoke “directly” to Yosef. On the other hand we see that HaShem was very close to Yosef. The Tora tells us (Gen. 39:23) that thanks to His Divine intervention Yosef prospered in all his endeavors ואשר הוא עושה ה ‘מצליח.

Now, what did Yosef do to merit having HaShem near him, if God did not speak directly with him?

HaRambam, Maimonides describes a simple but very profound way to ensure that we are always under HaShem’s radar. Maimonides says that HaShem is as close to us as we are to Him. When we think of God and we make Him present, His Presence, כביכול gets “synchronized” with our thoughts of Him.

And this is exactly what happened to Yosef. In all circumstances in which he lived, Yosef had HaShem always in his mind.

Yosef made HaShem present when he was provoked by Potiphar’s wife (Gen. 39: 9). As explained by our Hakhamim, Yosef saw a vision of his father, who reminded him that what could potentially happen with Potiphar’s wife, would not be correct in the eyes of HaShem.

In the worst moments of his life, when he was imprisoned for a crime he did not commit, and with no logical hope of getting out, Yosef did not forsake HaShem. Many people probably would had not persisted in their Emuna in a similar situation. Why? Because when someone is really bad, especially when one is the victim of an injustice, one might think that HaShem abandoned him, or that God does not exist, ח”ו. But Yosef persevered. He had HaShem present in those moments and he did not stop thinking about HaShem and mentioning him (40: 8).

When Yosef sees that his time of glory was coming, when he effectively interpreted Pharaoh’s dreams, he also mentioned HaShem (Gen. 41:32). Any other person would have probably boasted of possessing a great wisdom and superpowers. But Yosef did not. He attributed to HaShem the dream’s interpretation.

And when Yosef finally got to the highest position, he also continued to think about God. HaShem was present in his mind and in his words when he forgave his brothers (50: 19,20). This is probably the most important achievement of a person of faith, remembering HaShem when one is rich and healthy. Many people fail in the challenge of wealth and welfare. They forget HaShem in those circumstances because they feel that now, they do not need God anymore in their lives, ח”ו. Our Hakhamim warned us about this phenomenon when they told us that “the challenge of wealth (remembering HaShem when one is rich) is more difficult than the challenge of poverty גדול נסיון העושר מנסיון העוני.

Now we can better understand why the Tora says that God was with Yosef. HaShem was with Yosef because Yosef had HaShem in his mind at all times. We also learn from Yosef that if we ever feel that Hashem is far from us, it is surely because we have moved away from Him.

YOSEF, and the secrets of his success # 5: INTEGRITY

Today we return to Yosef. Last week we said that Yosef’s success depended on haShem’s help (כל אשר הוא עושה ה’ מצליח) but also on the impeccable moral behavior of Yosef, which earned him the Divine help. We already talked about Yosef’s patience, his self-esteem, his proactivity and his ability to see the future from a Jewish perspective, as a dimension open to possibilities that we ourselves can create.

There is another feature of Yosef, perhaps the least unknown, that brought Yosef to succeed: his integrity.

Yosef’s integrity is implicitly or explicitly manifested in at least three cases

1. HONESTY

Yosef was bought by Potiphar as a slave. Shortly after being in Potiphar’s house, Potiphar assigns him as the administrator of his estate. The Tora says that Potiphar (Gen. 39: 6) “… left everything he owned in the hands of Yosef, and Yosef did not have to give him any reports of anything …”. Potiphar had total trust in Yosef. What did Potiphar see in Yosef that led him to appoint him as his administrator? It was very common for slaves to steal. The rabbis said in Pirqe Abot מרבה עבדים מרבה גזל “the more workers at home, the higher the rate of robberies the employer will suffer”. Domestic workers felt that their pay was never enough, and thought that it was their right to take whatever they wanted from their employers, as a just compensatory act. Yosef obviously behaved with an uncommon honesty, which was identified by Potiphar and made Potiphar promote Yosef as his manager. Rabbi Eliezer Papo, z “l, says in his wonderful book Pele Yoets that honesty is the key to professional and commercial success, because sooner or later the honest person acquires a reputation that becomes its greatest asset and his more important credit report (and vice versa).

2. FIDELITY

As we know, Potiphar’s wife tried to seduce Yosef. For a young man with not family and alone, the affection of a woman was not only a matter of instincts but also, or above all, the fulfillment of an emotional need. But Yosef contained himself. He was not carried away by his physical or emotional needs and instincts. Yosef guided himself by the moral principles he learned from Ya’aqob, his father. The Rabbis already warned us that there are two very sensitive areas, in which many people fall, and therefore we must redouble our efforts to overcome them. First, the area of financial integrity (גזל), and second the area of sexual behavior (עריות). This is not new: we permanently hear in the news how people of all social levels and even (or especially) individuals in prominent political positions, fell in disgrace because of matters related to economic corruption or improper sexual behavior. Yosef gives us a great example of moral integrity and loyalty.

3. NOBILITY

We all think that Joseph is called “tsadiq” (a righteous man) because he refused the advances of Potiphar’s wife. This year I heard from Rabbi Hayim Sabato ( you can listen to his class, in Hebrew here) that additionally (or mainly) we should consider Yosef as a great tsadiq because of his ability to forgive. When he finally reveals his identity to his brothers Yosef did not express any accusation, and said nothing about blame. He forgave them and tried to comfort them. In an incredible display of moral magnanimity Yosef told his brothers. 45: 6 “And now, grieve no more, and do not feel bad with yourself … because in the end, it was to save lives that God sent me before you came here.” 45: 8 “It was HaShem not you, Who sent me to Egypt.” Yosef tells his brothers not to feel guilty. That they were actually a tool Hashem used to save millions of lives from starvation. It would have been so natural and expected for someone who suffered so much to express a minimum reproach, a small oral and emotional revenge, something that would make his brothers feel bad or responsible for what they did… But Yosef did not do that. Yosef only thought to comfort his brothers, because they felt so guilty.

Rabbi Sabato explains that sometimes a person can be a great “tsadiq” in the religious area, while when facing a social situation (בן אדם לחברו) this person may not act with the same greatness and altruism. Yosef, we are shown, had a comprehensive impeccable character, he was loyal to HaShem and nobel to his peers. All these attributes made Yosef attain his great and unique title, Yosef haTsadiq, “Yosef, the righteous, the man of integrity”.

Who was Ezra haSofer?

Thursday, December 28, we will observe the Tenth of Tebet, a fast day which remind us of three tragic events (see here ). One of those events was the passing of Ezra haSofer, which occurred on a 9th of Tebet.

Seventy years after the destruction of the first Bet haMiqdash, about the year 516 before the common era, many Jews returned to Erets Israel with the blessing of the Persian Emperor Cyrus (Koresh). A total of 42,360 Yehudim returned to Israel, led by Zerubabel (see Book of Ezra 2:64).

Years later, in 457 before the common era, more Jews made Aliya led by Ezra the Scribe, who was appointed by Artaxerxes, the Persian emperor then. Ezra became the spiritual leader of the Babylonian Jews who came to Yerushalayim. And he had a very difficult mission. The Jews returning from Babel, where they had been exiled for four or five generations, had forgotten the Tora and its laws, and had adopted the values and culture of Babel. Many did not even know to speak or read Hebrew.

In Jerusalem, Ezra established the Anshe Kneset haGedola, the first Jewish Parliament, composed of 120 men, sages and prophets. With them, Ezra set a number of resolutions to revive the study and fulfillment of the Tora and reeducate the Jewish people. Ezra and his court, increased the times of public reading of the Tora; he composed the text of the Amida (main prayer) because people had forgotten how to pray properly; he implemented that the Tora reading be translated into Aramaic; he adapted the names of Hebrew months and changed the letters (=fonts) of the Biblical text (from ketab ‘ibri to ketab ashuri) to facilitate the study of Tora, etc.

Ezra also had to make important decisions, such as the exclusion of Samaritans, a semi-pagan mixed population living in Israel since the days of the exile of the 10 tribes (722 bce), who intended to be considered part of the Jewish people and partake of the services in the Bet haMiqdash. Ezra also had to deal with the issue of mixed marriages of many Yehudim who came from Babylon. This last dramatic event is narrated in chapters 9 and 10 of the book of Ezra.

Thanks to the wisdom and courage of Ezra, the Jewish people was able to survive and restart again in Israel its life as the nation of God.

Ezra HaSofer was considered by our rabbis as a second Moshe Rabbenu, and the historical link between the written Tora and the oral Tora. The Tora, our rabbis explained, was forgotten in the long Babylonian captivity, and it was recovered by Ezra haSofer.

Who is exempted from fasting on the 10th of Tebet?

Minors: boys under 13 and girls under 12 years old are exempt from fasting.

Nursing women: According to the Sephardic Minhag, after giving birth women are exempted from fasting for 24 months, even if they are not actually nursing their baby. In some Sephardic communities and in all Ashkenazi communities, nursing mothers are only exempt while they are actually nursing their babies.

Pregnant women are exempt from fasting.

A person who feels ill or who experiences symptoms of flu or fever, or a person with a chronic disease, such as diabetes, should not fast.

Elders should consult with their physicians if the fast will not affect their health. If it will, they are exempted (or prohibited) from fasting.

The fast is observed tomorrow from daybreak till nightfall. In NY from 6.11am to 4.52 pm. (Some communities have different times. See your community’s calendar and / or see this).

YOSEF, and his success. # 4. HOW TO SEE THE FUTURE?

No. 4. HOW TO SEE THE FUTURE?

During the last days, I wrote about Yosef and the secrets of his success. We mentioned his patience, his self-esteem and his proactivity. Today I’m going to write about his vision of the future. Later on, we will explore two more elements: Yosef’s integrity and ultimately Yosef’s Emuna. These six personality traits made of Yosef a role model for us all, his descendants.

What does a Jewish “vision of the future” mean?

I think this is one of the least appreciated elements in the story of Yosef. Let’s see…

Pharaoh dreamed of seven fat cows being devoured by seven skinny cows. But the skinny cows remained skinny, even after having devoured the fat cows. And so happened with seven ears of wheat as well. Pharaoh sought someone to interpret his dream, and the Torah says ואין פותר אותם לפרעה “And there was no one who interpreted Pharaoh’s dreams.” Does this mean that no one was able to interpret Pharaoh’s dreams? This is what most people think.

But there is another possibility. Actually, the interpretation of the dream of the Egyptian monarch was more than obvious. Egypt’s cattle industry, cows, and Egypt’s agriculture, ears of wheat, will collapse. But, if the interpretation of Pharaoh’s dream was so obvious, why none of the court’s wizards approached Pharaoh and interpreted his dream?

Perhaps what happened was not that no one was able to interpreting Pharaoh’s dreams, but no one wanted to bring Pharaoh the bad news: that after seven years of wealth, Egypt will end in bankruptcy. Who would dare giving these horrible news to Pharaoh?

First, because Pharaoh could react very badly and “shoot the messenger”.

But there’s more. Something much deeper. The court’s soothsayers understood that Pharaoh’s prophetic dreams conveyed an inevitable fate awaiting Egypt. The soothsayers were futuristic-fatalists, and thought that the future cannot be altered.

Here comes the genius of Yosef and his “Jewish wisdom”. For Yosef the future is not written in stone. The future is not static, it is dynamic. It can be changed. When the prophets of Israel spoke to the people about the future, and for example, prophesied that the Bet haMiqdash was going to be destroyed, they were not transmitting an unchangeable prophetic vision, they were warning about the future consequences of the misdeeds of the people of Israel. And thus, they called the people to do Teshuba, repentance, because they knew that “the future” is in men’s hands. The realization of that bad prophecy could be avoided.

The same happened with King Hizquia, who despite the prophecy of Yesha’ayahu Hanabi, saying that the King would die, prayed to HaShem and was cured.

Unlike Jewish society, where it is understood that the future can be changed by God or by men, in pagan society omens, prophetic dreams and oracles convey an “unalterable” vision of the future. For the diviners of Pharaoh, the seven years of famine would be hopelessly seven years of famine that will destroy Egypt. So, it is better to say nothing ….

But where others saw a big problem, Yosef, with his Jewish vision, saw a great opportunity. If during the seven years of wealth Egypt stores grain abundantly, Egypt not only will survive the famine, Egypt (and Pharaoh ) could end up becoming the richest country in the region, since everyone else will come to Egypt to buy grain.

The difference between Yosef and Pharaoh’s soothsayers had to do with a fatalistic vs. a creative vision of the future.

I think Yosef’s approach to the future characterized (and characterizes) deeply the Jewish view of the future, even in the professional or a commercial field. We Jews do not have a static or fatalistic vision of the future. As my grandfather, z”l, who came from Syria to Buenos Aires without a penny in his pocket, said. “If today I work mopping floors, it does not mean that I will have to do this for the rest of my life”. He saw the possibilities of the future as wide open.

This is also the message conveyed by Tefila, prayer: If the future is already determined, why would I pray to Hashem and ask Him to cure a loved one who is dying? We pray because we do not believe in fate or destiny. We pray because we know that the future is God’s hand. It depends on His Will.

The future is not limited by a destiny. And Yosef understood this very well.

Yosef, his secrets for success. # 3. PROACTIVITY

פתחו לי פתח כחודה של מחט ואני אפתח לכם כפתחו של אולם

Yesterday we explained that one of the keys of Yosef’s success was his self-esteem. Yosef, despite having lived very traumatic experiences, always maintained a healthy dose of self-worth, which at the end helped Yosef to appear before Pharaoh and change his life. Self-esteem should not be confused with vanity and arrogance. In fact, as we shall see later on, Yosef was extremely humble. When he interpreted Pharaoh’s dream, Yosef could have attributed it to his own wisdom, his superpowers, etc. However, Yosef repeated again and again that it was HaShem who reveled the interpretation, not him.

There is another very important element that helped Yosef to succeed: his proactivity.

When Pharaoh tells Joseph his dream, Yosef immediately explains that cows represent Egypt and wheat represent food. Pharaoh’s dream announces that seven years of plenty will be followed by seven years of famine.

Now, once Yosef explained the dreams to Pharaoh, his mission was over. Yosef was called solely fro that. However, after Yosef explained to Pharaoh his dream, he went on, almost without pausing to breath, and out of his own initiative he presented Pharaoh with an ambitious action plan to save Egypt’s economy (Gen. 41:33-35) “And now Pharaoh should find an intelligent and experienced man, and put him in charge of Egypt. And Pharaoh should assign officials to take 20% of the crops of the years of plenty. And gather a grain supply for the years of hungry.”

Yosef was proactive.

There are two kinds of people: reactive and proactive individuals. Reactive people do nothing until something happens. They act by reaction. And when nothing happens, they stand still, passive waiting for something to happen. If Yosef had been reactive, after finishing the interpretation of Pharaoh’s dreams he should have gone. Most probably, he would have been taken back to the dungeon. But Yosef did not wait for an opportunity. Yosef created it. Being proactive means to actively take control of a situation and decide what to do, anticipating events. A reactive person is a “victim” of what happens to him and her. While a proactive person feels he is empower to change what happens, to make things happen.

Yosef did not wait for Pharaoh to ask him, “And in your opinion, young man, what should we do about this prophetic dream?” . Yosef knew that if he did not bring his proposal, Pharaoh would not have asked for his opinion. Yosef created the opportunity. And he was right.

Sometimes business is tough, for example, because customers do not come to buy. “Reactive” businessmen would continue waiting for customers, and would be ready to declare bankruptcy because no one comes to buy. “Proactive” businessmen, on the other hand, when there are no customers they would go and look for them. And if they do not find customers, as the book “Who Moved My Cheese” explains, they might change their line of business. Proactive people will never be passively waiting for opportunities to arise. The would be looking for opportunities. Or try to create them. Proactive people would develop new ideas and try new things. They are never idle. This applies to virtually all areas, our professional life, our family relationships, and even in the area of Shiddukhim (finding a spouse).

Also in spiritual matters it is expected of us to be proactive. For example, regarding Teshuba, when we seek to restore our relationship with God, we cannot be passive. Our Hakhamim told us that HaShem expects us to take the initiative. We should take a first step, even a small step. “If you open up for Me a small little door, even as small as the eye of a needle, I’ll open a huge gate for You.”

Do not wait for the gates of glory and success to be opened for you. Go and open every good door you can. Even if, at the beginning, these doors look insignificant. That is a Jewish definition of proactivity

YOSEF, and the secrets of his success. # 2. SELF -ESTEEM

# 2. SELF ESTEEM

Yesterday we mentioned that by studying in depth the story of Yosef we can easily identify what were the characteristics that allowed Yosef to succeed, despite the challenging circumstances he lived. Yosef reached the top, coming from the lowest level. He was a former slave, sentenced to life imprisonment for a sexual offense he did not commit. And yet, he reached the highest peak: to be the second most important person in the mighty Egypt.

How did Yosef succeed?

We mentioned that Yosef had to cultivate his patience. And take the time to discover that many “bad” things that happen or “good” things that do not happen to us, may eventually result for our own good.

Another reason for Yosef’s success was Yosef’s self-esteem.

Yesterday we said that one of Pharaoh’s stewards returned to the court. He did not want to remember Yosef. Rather, he erased Yosef from his memory. Until one day Pharaoh had a mysterious dream that left him confused. The Egyptian monarch sought a solution, but no one among his soothsayers and counselors was able (or willing) to decipher Pharaoh’s dream. Now the steward did remember Yosef! And he told Pharaoh about the young Hebrew that had successfully interpreted his dream. Pharaoh sends for Yosef and brings him to his court. In the next scene, Yosef stands before Pharaoh, as equals. He listens to the dream of the monarch. And unhesitatingly interprets it. Next, on his own, he offers Pharaoh an action plan to save the economy of Egypt in the coming years.

Fascinating!

Just a few hours ago Yosef was in prison, probably cleaning the floors and bathrooms of the dungeon. Before that, Yosef was sold from one master to another. He was enslaved for many years. Forced to perform any job asked of him. For years Yosef was abused and humiliated… Most individuals, in less challenging situations would probably feel demoralized. With no pride, dignity and, not to mention, self-esteem. I know people who lived humiliating situations which affected their self-esteem tremendously. I have a friend who was out of work for several months. And I remember how much it took for him to find another job. Why? Because every time he went to a job interview he looked defeated, humiliated, and without a minimum dose of self esteem. And nobody wants to hire such a person … My friend had fallen into a self-destructive vicious circle. Those months without work had a very negative impact on his character, and that new “character” prevented him from progressing and moving forward.

What did Yosef do to maintain his self-esteem in the extreme circumstances he lived? What was his secret?

For Yosef, and for a Jew in general, self-esteem does not depend on “success” but on the effort involved. As Rabbi Noah Weinberg says, a Yehudi knows (or should know) that our personal responsibility is to do our best to achieve our goals. But the end results, if we did or did not achieve our goals, does not depend on us. It depends on God’s will. It is this EMUNA, knowing that there is Someone above me and above my endeavors, that determines the ultimate success of what I undertake, what sustains my self-esteem, regardless of the success I have or have not achieved. In the case of Yosef, ironically, his success did not facilitate his self-esteem. Rather, his self-esteem facilitated his success.

There are two elements that can destroy our self-esteem. First, when we think as they think in a materialistic and success-oriented society: that my own value depends on the success I have achieved, regardless of the quality of the effort I invested in the process. Only if and when I achieve my ambitious goals, I can feel good about myself. In this scenario, of course, 99% of people would suffer from very low self-esteem.

Secondly, what can destroy my self-esteem is when I know that I did not do enough. I was lazy. I did not act with integrity, etc. This feeling creates a “real” problem (which should be solved by changing course): real “guilt”. And there is probably nothing that destroys our self-esteem as much guilt ….

But when I know that I did my best to achieve my goals and I know that I acted with integrity, I should feel very good about myself, regardless of the final results. For years, Yosef was able to maintain his self-esteem because he judged his own value for the effort he invested in everything he did. He knew that he had acted with integrity and honesty. He was a hard worker. He did everything in his power to succeed. And although he was a slave or a prisoner, that knowledge, that feeling about his own efforts, helped him to maintain his self-esteem at a high level. Yosef knew that success is never guaranteed. It is a divine prerogative. וכל אשר הוא עושה, ה’ מצליח בידו. The end results, Yosef knows, ultimately, depends on HaShem’s will.

Rabbi Isaac Arama (1420-1494) and the Spanish inquisition

Rabbi Isaac Arama was born in the city of Zamora, in Castile, Spain, in 1420. for a while he was the head of the Yeshiba in Zamora until he was called to lead the Jewish community of Tarragona, and later the city of Fraga, in Aragon. In order to counteract the effects of the Christian preachers sermons to which the Jews of Aragon were compelled to listen, Rabbi Arama delivered his lectures focusing on the principles of Judaism. These lectures became the basis of his later works and contain interesting data on the history of the Jews in Spain, prior to their expulsion. Rabbi Arama engaged in several public disputations with Christian scholars. Finally he settled in the city Catalayud until 1492, the year of the expulsion of the Jews from Spain. That year he escaped to Naples, Italy, together with his son Meir. He was contemporary and friend with the famous Rabbi Don Itshaq Abarabanel, who use to come very often to the house of Rabbi Arama.

Rabbi Arama was a great Talmudist and a brilliant philosopher, he particularly admired and defended the philosophical ideas of Maimonides. Following Maimonides, Rabbi Arama sought to demonstrate the superiority of human reasoning over imagination, and the superiority of divine revelation (or nebu-a) over human reasoning. Reason, ultimately, should be subordinated to Scripture whenever the two are in conflict. Rabbi Arama explains than in the time of Abraham Abinu, besides idol worshipers there were also philosophers, i.e., people who were guided solely by reason and denied revelation. In their opinion reason and logic was the highest possible intelectual level a human being can access. Moreover, since reason and logic were given by God, all a person needs to follow the will of God is to follow the calls of his own logic and reasoning. “Revelation”, therefore, was unnecessary. Rabbi Arama explains that the binding of Ytshaq is the farthest one can go from logic. Killing one’s own son defies human basic reasoning. This is the reason God tested Abraham, to see if Abraham would be willing to follow God’s call, his private revelation, instead of his own logic. Abraham by following God instead of human logic, became yere Eloqim, “A God fearing individual” which is a level above that of the philosopher. Thus, when the test is over and God commands Abraham not to kill his son, God tells Abraham: ‘ata yadtati ki yere Eloqim ata… Now, I know, that you are a God fearing [individual]. It is possible that in this analysis of the binding of Ytshaq, comparing logic with revelation, rabbi Arama is also criticizing the Christian doctrine of natural law. According to Thomas Aquinas, the natural law is nothing else than the rational creature’s participation in the eternal law. For Aquinas God’s eternal law human wisdom, inasmuch as it is the directive norm of all movement and action.

The philosophical ideas of rabbi Arama had a double purpose. One the one hand, to explain Judaism in light of the new radical rationalism, represented by Aristotelian philosophers, who believed in the superiority of reason over revelation. And on the other hand, Rabbi Arama like his predecessors, had to articulate very clearly the cardinal Jewish principles. His writings against the Christian dogmas aimed to equip the Jews with the right arguments to withstand the missionary sermons of the Church, to which, under the laws then prevalent, the Jews were compelled to listen. These writings are often the summary of oral disputations between Rabbi Arama and Christian scholars.

HIS WORKS AND IDEAS

The most famous book of Rabbi Isaac Arama, which trascended his own age and time, is undoubtedly “Aqedat Yitshaq” (The Binding of Isaac). Rabbi Arama is frequently spoken of as the “Ba’al haAqeda” (author of the Aqeda).

The book is written as a commentary to the Pentateuch. It consists of chapters or portals (she’arim). Each sermon is divided into two parts: 1. “derisha” (“analysis”), and 2. “perisha” (“exposition”). In the “derisha” part, the author examines a philosophical idea in light of biblical or rabbinic sources. In the “perisha”, he exposes the difficulties which seem to appear in the text and solves them with the aid of a central idea. Thus, the gap between the two parts of the sermon is skillfully closed, and they merge into one harmonious whole.

Aqedat Ytshaq exercised a great influence upon Jewish thought, it is still much read and it is considered by many the classical work of Jewish homiletics, i.e., the art of building a religious sermon, which, modeled after the old petihtaot of the Rabbis of the midrash, begins with the exposition of a Biblical text, and evolves into philosophic disquisitions and interpretations.

In this book he deals with the most relevant philosophical issues of Judaism.

One example: Rabbi Arama examines in which circumstances we could or should understand a Biblical story as a prophetic vision rather than as an historical event. At one point he declares that even when we are allowed to interpret a passage as allegorical, this interpretation of Scripture should not deny its literal meaning. The commandants, however, can never be interrupted allegorically. This matter was very relevant in light of the Christian vision of the Old Testament commandments as allegorical, and what is popularly known as replacement theology, by which, for example, circumcision is replaced by baptism.

Rabbi Arama also deals with subjects such as Divine Providence and the dynamics between God’s omnisciency (that everything is known to Him) vs. man’s free will (If God knows what I’m going to do, was I free to chose what I did?).

Rabbi Arama also analyzes the lists of articles of faith drawn up by Maimonides (13), and he presents his own list which include only six principles. This summary might have been done in order to facilitate his contemporaries to comprehend what are the beliefs that stand in complete opposition to Christianity.

This is why, for example, the principle of the Messiah was left out, because although Jews reject Jesus, Judaism does not reject the idea of a Messiah.

They are:

1. The belief that God is the Creator of the world.

2. The belief that God possesses the power to suspend the laws of nature and perform miracles at will.

3. The belief that God revealed Himself to our patriarchs in Mt Sinai and to our prophets.

4. The belief in providence, i.e., the God knows our actions and rewards or punishes.

5. The belief in freedom of choice and repentance (teshuba).

6. The belief in the immortality of the soul.

Rabbi Arama also wrote a commentary on the five Megilot ; a commentary on Mishle, the Proverbs, called Yad Abshalom (“The Hand of Absalom” or “A Memorial for Abshalom) in memory of his son-in-law, Abshalom, who died shortly after his marriage.

Rabbi Isaac Aboab da Fonseca (1605-1693), first rabbi of the Americas

Rabbi Isaac Aboab da Fonseca was born in 1605 in the town of Castro Daire, Portugal. His birth name was Simão da Fonseca. His parents were “marranos”, Jews who had been forcibly converted to Christianity. When Isaac was seven, the family moved to Amsterdam. Many Portuguese Jews who for a century lived as Jews in secret to escape the Inquisition, emigrated to Amsterdam, where freedom of worship was declared in 1596, something inconceivable until then in Christian Europe. There, they created a community that became very prosperous in every way. Arriving at Amsterdam, the Aboab family was finally able to practice their religion openly. Simão renamed Isaac, with its ancient Jewish last name: Aboab (also spelled Abohab). In Amsterdam, Rabbi Aboab studied with one of the few rabbis who at the time were in the city: Rabbi Isaac Uziel, a native of the city of Fez in Morocco. At eighteen Rab Aboab was ordained as a Rabbi (hakham) of the Beth Israel community, one of three Sephardic communities that existed at that time in Amsterdam. In 1638 he was named as one of the four Rabbis in the main community of Amsterdam: “Talmud Tora”.

In those years the Dutch colonized several parts of Brazil. And many Jews from Amsterdam, who were prominent in international trade, moved to the city of Recife, in Pernambuco, Brazil. In 1641, Rabbi Isaac Aboab was sent to Recife as the rabbi of “Kehal Zur”, the new congregation in Recife, the first Jewish community in the Americas. Rabbi Isaac Aboab da Fonseca was therefore the first official rabbi in the Americas. Most European citizens of this city were Jews from Amsterdam. In Recife Rabbi Aboab developed a beautiful congregation, modeled after the Jewish community in Amsterdam. “Kehal Zur” had a synagogue, a Mikve and a Yeshiva, where Rabbi Aboab taught Torah, particularly Talmud.

Rabbi Aboab da Fonseca enjoyed a few years of prosperity in Recife. In 1645 the Portuguese began to attack the Dutch colonies in Brazil. The long history of these battles is too extensive to be discussed in these few lines. What we can say is that the Portuguese, when achieved victory, allowed an honorable surrender to all Dutch, but not to the Jews, who were ordered to convert. Several Jews escaped, among them the 24 Jews who in 1654 would reach the city of New Amsterdam, now “New York”.

On 26 January 1654 the Portuguese occupied the city of Recife in 1654. Rabbi Aboab escaped to Amsterdam. Back in Amsterdam, he was appointed as the chief rabbi of the Sephardic community in that city. In 1656, he was one of the rabbis who excommunicated Spinoza.

During the years 1664-1666 began a messianic movement around Shabbetai Zevi. Back then, most rabbis of the world, Sepharadim and Ashkenazim, believed that Shabbetai Zevi was the Messiah. And although he was not militant, Rabbi Aboab was no exception. In 1666 when the Turkish Sultan gave Shabbetai Zevi the choice between death and conversion to Islam, he decided to convert. Jews understood then that they had been victims of a huge hoax, with devastating consequences for the global Jewish community.

Despite all these difficulties, the Jewish community in Amsterdam flourished under the Rabbinate of rabbi Aboab and it produced, among other things, hundreds of Talmide Hakhamim who served the community and wrote thousands of books in Spanish and Portuguese.

In 1647 rabbi Aboab wrote a Hebrew grammar book that has not yet been published “melekhet ha-Diqduq. He also translated from Spanish to Hebrew (sic) a Qabbala book written by Abraham Cohen Herrera, called ” Las puertas del Cielo” in Hebrew “Shaar HaShamayim”.

Rabbi Isaac Aboab da Fonseca died in Amsterdam on April 4, 1693, at the age of 88 years.

13 PRINCIPLES: The right way of thinking about God

שהבורא יתברך אינו גוף, ולא ישיגוהו משיגי הגוף ואין לו שום דמיון כלל

Last week we began to study the third of the 13 principles of the Jewish faith: “God has no body, and we should not attribute to God human characteristics or conditions.”

In antiquity, this belief was as , or perhaps more, revolutionary than monotheism. Since for the pagan world gods were represented with human figures. The gods were born, died, fought, had insatiable appetites and a tremendous thirst for power. In a way, these gods were conceived at the imagine and likeness of those who worshipped them. For the pagan mind, an invisible god was an inconceivable god.

Now, the Tora repeatedly speaks of God in human terms. For example, the hand of God; God’s arm, God’s eyes, etc. Jewish tradition explains, however, that these are merely metaphors, expressions which’s purpose is to make Biblical ideas accessible even to the simplest human minds, for whom is very difficult to grasp abstract concepts.

There are many translations of the Tora into all languages. Do you know what is the official translation of the Tora, according to Jewish tradition? It is the Aramaic translation written by Onkelos haGuer (“Onkelos the proselyte” 35-120 of the Common Era), made under the supervision of one of the greatest rabbis of the Talmudic period, Rabbi Eliezer HaGadol. This translation is called “Targum” (“the translation”, par excellence), “Targum Onkelos” or “Targum Didan”, this latter name means “Our official translation”.

The Targum’s first objective is to debunk anthropomorphism, that is, explaining what those expressions, which apparently attributed to God a human image, really mean. For example, the arm of God can refer to His power; the hand of God, to His miracles; the eyes of God, to His permanent supervision on humans, etc. In this way, and through the Targum, our rabbis taught us to refrain from attributing to God images, or any human likeness, despite the apparent Biblical references.

Another important point: in the Tora says that God created man “in His image and likeness.” Loyal to its rejection of anthropomorphism, Jewish tradition explains that the image and likeness of God which man possesses, is no the human body. It means that human beings, unlike other living creatures, are endowed with free will. We have impulses, but we can dominate them. We can choose between doing good and doing evil. This power, our moral freedom, is what makes us similar to God, Who is the epitome of freedom (“Almighty”= the One Who can do anything).

Before ending this topic, I would like to briefly refer to a question that I have been asked many times: If God does not have an image, how can I think of God when I pray to Him? Is it wrong to “imagine” God?

Imagining or visualizing God like an angel, an old man or a giant, is typical of paganism. Personifying God is a misleading reflection of our imagination, which projects into God human attributes, in a superlative level. What to do then when you communicate with God, when you pray to Him, and somehow you need to hold on to an image in your mind? I think the answer is simple. When we Jews refer to God, we say “HaShem”, which in Hebrew means “The Name”. (As if saying “He, whose name is ineffable.”). Hence, if it is impossible to abstract, or concentrate while talking to God, without bringing a specific image into our minds, we could visualize the name of HaShem, i.e., the Hebrew letters of His name.

In short, it is a fundamental principle of the Jewish faith to know that God has no body, image, or any human likeness. Human attributes described in the Tora are mere metaphors, expressions, that make ideas about God more accessible to the most basic levels of human understanding.

Such is the distance between the human and the Divine reality that the way in which we Jews refer God is by calling Him, “The Name”. When we pray, we should abstain from projecting any images or figures that would ח”ו personify God. However, visualizing in our minds the name of HaShem, the Hebrew letters of His Name, is an acceptable way of thinking about God.