The fascinating study of Bible commentary

The Young Israel of Lawrence-Cedarhurst last Shabbat hosted one of America’s leading interpreters of the Bible text and commentaries, Rabbi Hayyim Angel, who presented to over 700 attendees.

As reflected in his literary output over the past decade, Rabbi Angel parses the inner workings of the text of the holy writ, to define to amcha, the methodology of peshat and derash, to enable the layperson to better understand the divine text’s basic content as well as its hidden theological message.

This review brings to your attention a sample of Rabbi Angel’s literary works; it is not an analytical study, just a taste of the wisdom and gifted thought of Rabbi Angel.

Recently, Kodesh Press published Rabbi Angel’s “Peshat Isn’t So Simple — Essays on Developing a Religious Methodology to Bible Study,” a collection of 21 essays spanning the entire Bible dealing with some of the most interesting chapters of Bible narrative. Within these pages are reflected Rabbi Angel’s method of analysis wherein we get a firsthand up ront view of what constitutes real Bible commentary.

Among the commentators given the “Angel treatment” are Rambam, Abarbanel, Sfor-no, Moshe Shamah, and Leon Kass. Rabbi Angel’s method in defining parshanut envelops much of this work making for some interesting and truly informative teachings.

From the very outset, Rabbi Angel defines for us his method for us to understand and to hopefully ultimately apply in our future study of the Bible.

Consider the following:

“Developing a religious methodology for learning Tanach requires many ingredients. Foremost, the belief in Revelation, that the sacred words of the Bible reflect G-d’s word speaking directly to us, lies at the very heart of learning.

“Tanach shapes our religious worldview, our religious and moral behavior, and our core values and ideals.”