Rabbi Sacks questions whether we can understand our history without the “prehistory” – the narratives of Abraham and Sarah and their offspring, the narrative of Adam and Eve, the Flood, and the Tower of Babel. He cites Rabbi Isaac who stated that the Torah should have begun with Exodus 12:2 – the first of the months, when the first commandment was given to Israel.
Rabbi Creditor writes of the Ushpizin, mystical spirit guests who are invited in during Sukkot. Traditionally, they remind us of the brokenness of the world, and how to repair it. Yet there is a contrast between the celebration of plenty during Sukkot and the lives of many who are bereft of food and shelter. Rabbi Creditor writes of his experience in visiting Ghana and how it influenced his understanding of Sukkot.
Fragile rejoicing – songs for Sukkot
Rabbi Sacks writes of parallels and contrasts represented in the life of Moses. He died, as the text states, “his eyes undimmed, his energy unabated”, whereas Abraham died “an old man and full of years.” Moses never lost the vision that drove him to the end from his original encounter with God at the burning bush. Yet he was the ultimate in humility.
Rabbi Buchdahl teaches that “rebuke” – the usual translation of tochecha – doesn’t quite capture the meaning. The root means “evidence”; giving someone tochecha is like holding up a mirror to them. Tochecha, in reality, relates to love. What do love and tochecha have to do with Yom Kippur?
Rabbi Leibtag asks the question: Who’s to blame when something goes wrong? God states, as fact, that the people will go astray and break the covenant. Yet the purpose is not to depress Moshe, but to give the people the necessary tools in case the situation does arise. The tool comes from the Shira.
Scholars throughout the ages see Moses in different ways. He is said to have dialoged with the angels, who questioned why humans would be given something so sacred. He is unique when compared to other prophets; he was wide awake when he received his prophecies, God’s communications were not oblique, and God spoke to him as a man speaks to his friend.
(Duet for Elul) – אַחַת שָׁאַלְתִּי – Lea K & Rabbi T feat. Coleen Dieker
Rabbi Tuchman writes about the parashah as if it is another moment of revelation. The Torah exists within each of us. She writes that when we welcome Jews from all backgrounds into our communities, we find the Torah within them and it is deeper, and more spiritually alive.
As Moses is close to death, his concern for the people is to preclude any future generation saying that they are not bound by the covenant, only their ancestors. His statement “Whoever is not here” cannot refer to Israelites at the time who were somewhere else; the text informs us that the entire nation was present. Therefore, it can only refer to future generations. Rabbi Sacks questions how we can be obligated without consent.