At Simchat Torah: Continuity in Jewish thought

Continuity is a societal and individual’s experience that represents an important element of stability in our spiritual lives. This experience can be found in many of our sacred writings at this time of year as witnessed in the transfer of power from Moses to Joshua. And it is to be found in the readings on the festive celebrations of Simchat Torah.

As you may be aware, these readings are divided between readings from the conclusion of the Torah, and the Haftarah from the first chapter of Joshua. These two readings are the only example of two contiguous scriptural readings on the Jewish liturgical calendar. This reflects both an historical as well as a personal transference of power and change in geographic setting.

In the first chapter— “Did Joshua Lack Experience for His New Job?”— of Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin’s new book, “Unusual Bible Interpretations: Joshua” (Gefen Publishing House), Rabbi Drazin reflects upon this question and addresses this liturgical mandate by asking the following questions:

1. Who was Joshua?

2. When did Joshua’s conquest of Canaan occur?

3. Study day and night?

Within these three sections, Rabbi Drazin seeks to answer and explore a host of rather curious questions and scriptural oddities.

In his setup to this opening chapter, Rabbi Drazin states the following five points:

1. G-d gives Joshua his mission, after Moses’ death, to cross the Jordan and conquer the land — which is described as including what is today called Lebanon and parts of Syria.

2. G-d’s thrice repeated adjuration that Joshua remain strong.

3. Assurances of success in conquest.

4. Joshua’s commands to his officers to tell the people that they will begin the crossing in three days.

5. His reminder to the two and a half tribes who were planning on taking land in Transjordan that they must first lead the Israelite army in conquering Canaan.

In reading this chapter, please keep in mind all the above points. Hopefully this concentration will be forthcoming despite the raucous and jovial distractions of the Simchat Torah festivities.

Another literary work of recent vintage is, “Beautiful Days, Holy Days: The Majesty and Profundity of the Jewish Holidays” (Compass Books) by Rabbi Avraham Peretz Friedman. This interesting and spirited take of our calendar of festivals is not only most informative, but, given its breezy writing style, it is an enjoyable reading experience.

Permit me to present to you in full a sample of the author’s style in this segment entitled, “A Trip Backwards in Time.”

“On Rosh Hashanah, each of us resembles Adam after he ate from the Tree of Knowledge. Indeed, he ate from the Tree of Knowledge on the very first Tishrei 1 in history, and that’s why Rosh Hashanah, which begins on that day, marks the beginning of a period of judgment.

“One of the accomplishments of the Yamim Nora’im cycle of Rosh Hashanah, Yom HaKippurim, Sukkot, Shemini Atzeret is to purify us so that each of us resembles Adam before he ate from the Tree of Knowledge.

“Thus, the celebration of Sukkot–Shemini Atzeret is filled with images associated with Adam at the dawn of his creation, before his misbehavior.

“Consider these features of Sukkot– Shemini Atzeret: The mystical works teach that the sukkah is symbolic of pristine Gan Eden, Adam’s home before he misbehaved and was expelled; we use an etrog on Sukkot because, some say (Bereshis Rabbah 15); the tree of knowledge was an etrog tree.”

The Midrash Tanchuma (Emor) describes Sukkot as “rishon l’cheshbon avonot” (“the beginning of the accounting of sins”). We usually understand this to mean the beginning of the accounting of sins committed during the new year, after the purification process of Yom HaKippurim. But some commentaries understand the term as a reference to the first sin ever: eating from the Tree of Knowledge.

We pray for rain on Shemini Atzeret, just as Adam did before eating from the Tree of Knowledge.

Rabbi Friedman concludes this teaching for this coming holiday with the following observation:

“The incomparable gift of the Yamim Nora’im cycle, then, is to transport us back through time to a moment before we sinned and were wholly pure. It’s a chance to start over again, fresh. This time, we don’t have to sin; this time, with G-d’s help, we can do it right.”

Rabbi Michael Hattin of the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem recently published a scholarly and informed work, “Joshua: The Challenge of the Promised Land” (Maggid Books). Within the first two chapters, which reflect the haftarah readings for Simchat Torah, Rabbi Hattin goes into some depth concerning the development of the transition of spiritual leadership and political power between Moses and Joshua. Rabbi Hattin begins with a brief history of Joshua’s exploits, and of his role in completing the Torah. Please consider the following teaching:

“According to R. Judah, it is Joshua [in Bava Batra] who is responsible for completing the text of the Torah.”

Further on we learn more:

“The implication of this tradition is that Moses’ leadership and that of Joshua his successor are to be regarded as a seamless continuum. In essence, Joshua does not simply come to replace Moses as leader of Israel, but somehow to embody the spirit of Moses’ mission. Joshua is not simply Moses’ authority continued; he is the bearer of Moses’ legacy as lawgiver and servant of G-d.”

Thus, by reading and learning from the works cited above, we now come to better understand the rationale behind the structure of the theme of the Simchat Torah liturgy and the link of the Torah and Haftarah readings for that singular day.

FOR YOUR FURTHER STUDY

The latest volume in the series of the English translation and elucidation of the Mishnah Berurah (Vaturi Edition volume 3d) has been published.

In the special section dealing with contemporary halachah discussions the topic of ball playing on Shabbat is given extensive attention. This topic, the bane of many shuls in our community, seriously warrants everyone’s attention as well as communal concern. The authors of this work are to be commended for tackling this difficult and troubling topic in a most dignified and informed manner.