First of all congratulations to all who finished Zevachim today. May you return again and again to its teachings.
I just had an interesting conversation about a footnote in the Schottenstein Talmud from a few days ago (117a note 15). In it, the famous scholar from south France, the Meiri wonders why there were points in Israel's history that we were allowed to sacrifice anywhere, even on private alters, while at other times we were forced to all bring our sacrifices to the same place, like the Mishkan or the Temple.
His answer is fascinating. He explains that whenever we were given the right to sacrifice on private altars, it was because the Ark was separated from the central altar. Therefore, when we first entered the Promised Land and we set up the Mishkan in Gilgal, we were allowed to sacrifice anywhere we desired because the ark was out and about accompanying the Jews as they conquered the promised land. The same rationale applied to the time when the Jews were in Nov and Giveon. Because the Philistines had captured the ark, we were not required to bring all our sacrifices to a central place.
What does this have to do with us?
If we consider that the central altar today is the synagogue - the Talmud calls it a mikdah me'at, a little Temple - and the ark today is the people's spirituality and connection to God, one has to wonder whether for many young Jews, their "ark" is in a separate place from their "central altar." And if that's true, can the synagogue really do the work it needs to do?
So what can we do? First of all, we do what our ancestors did and validate that in this time, one's spirituality and connection to God can be found anywhere. If people don’t want to enter the synagogue, should we force them? Why limit prayer, meditation, and other forms of worship to the synagogue.
As I'm writing this, I wrestle with the most important question. In this analogy, and taking into account our history, the ultimate aim is to bring the ark and the central altar together. In other words, we should seek to bring the spiritual and the physical (Jewish institutions) together. I agree with this, however the question remains, should we bring the ark to the central altar (i.e. bring people into the synagogue) or bring the central altar to the ark (and purse a synagogue without wall model). There are lot's of organizations trying both approaches, and some like Brooklyn Jews and Congregation Beth Elohim trying to meld the two.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
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I agree with you, Marc. The Synagogue has been the center for two thousand years. It's taken a few knocks on the chin in the last fifty years but I would argue that it's making a serious resurgence and you are helping lead the way. Keep up the fight! And oh, by the way, ON WISCONSIN!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the vote of confidence. I have no doubt the the synagogue is here to stay. I just wonder in a few generations, will the synagogue look the same as it does today?
ReplyDeleteInteresting thought, Marc. The issue of the coexistence of the synagogue and other venues for engaging in religious/spiritual work makes me think of the tension between "bet knesset" and "bet midrash" in the Bavli (with rabbis encouraged to pray in the latter, not the former). It's also interesting to think about (and would be interesting to look at in more depth) how different Jews in different times and places viewed the synagogue. In medieval Ashkenaz, for example, Jews really did see it as very much a miniature Temple, but that wasn't necessarily true elsewhere. Our literature can perhaps shed some light on our current issues.
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