An In-depth Journey into the Weekly Parsha: Shmot (Exodus)
By Shmuel Goldin
Gefen Publishing House, 2008, 363 pages
ISBN: 978-965-229-449-4
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Unlocking the Torah Text An In-depth Journey into the Weekly Parsha: Shmot (Exodus) By Shmuel Goldin Gefen Publishing House, 2008, 363 pages ISBN: 978-965-229-449-4 |
Reviewed by Israel Drazin - January 10, 2011
This is the second volume in the series of books delving into the lessons that can be derived from the weekly Torah portion by Rabbi Shmuel Goldin. My previous review of Rabbi Goldin's first volume, on Bereishit, tells some things about the author, the style of his books, the kind of perceptive questions that he raises, his intention not to accept Midrashim as necessarily true, and to extract the teachings of Midrashim and from traditional commentators, as one would extract a moral from a parable. He states that he is presenting the plain meaning of the biblical text. The meanings that he offers are generally lessons on how to act properly.
This volume addresses the portions in the second biblical book, Exodus, called Shemot in Hebrew. Since writing his first volume, Rabbi Goldin's books received the imprimatur of the Orthodox Union (OU), and this and subsequent volumes are published, therefore, by both Gefen Publishing House and the OU Press.
The following are some of the many interesting, perceptive, and thought provoking questions that the rabbi raises in this book. What is the "Oral Law," and why, if it is important, is it not in the written Torah? If every word of the Torah is significant and was written to teach important lessons that help guide human life, as the rabbi believes, why does the Torah dedicate twenty-two sentences to describe the enslavement of the Israelites? Why does the Torah omit the names of Moses' parents in the beginning of Moses' story and only reveal it in a later text? If we take the biblical text literally, as the rabbi does, how can Pharaoh be blamed for persecuting the Israelites when the Torah states that God hardened his heart? If the Torah teaches proper conduct, how can it allow slavery? And, why are the laws of slavery introduced immediately after the Israelites are themselves redeemed from slavery? Why does the Torah say that the punishment is "an eye for an eye" when the rabbis tell us that a person is compensated with money for an injury?
An example of the rabbi's "Approaches," which generally focus on proper behavior, is his discussion on why the Torah instituted the building of a Tabernacle. He cites Rashi and a Midrash that the building was the result of the "sin of the golden calf." He cites the views of others, such as Ramban that the Tabernacle is totally unrelated to the golden calf and that it was intended to be built from the time of creation as "a deliberate act of divine grace and thoughtfulness designed to strengthen the immanence of His presence." He offers his own view why "the Sanctuary is not a replacement for the golden calf at all but a true antidote for its root causes." It teaches us how to act.
An example of "Points to Ponder" is the rabbi's thoughts on the practice of "studying and quoting passages from the biblical text 'out of context.'" Another is his discussion on the rabbinic teaching about disagreements among sages: "These and these are the words of the living God."
