In Israel, an era of post-Talmudic Judaism is overdue (Parshat Nitzavim)
Our Torah reading this week, Nitzavim-Vayelekh, opens with the following:
אַתֶּ֨ם נִצָּבִ֤ים הַיּוֹם֙ כֻּלְּכֶ֔ם לִפְנֵ֖י יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֵיכֶ֑ם רָאשֵׁיכֶ֣ם שִׁבְטֵיכֶ֗ם זִקְנֵיכֶם֙ וְשֹׁ֣טְרֵיכֶ֔ם כֹּ֖ל אִ֥ישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃
You stand this day, all of you, before the Adonai your God: your tribal heads, your elders, and your officials—every man of Israel—
טַפְּכֶ֣ם נְשֵׁיכֶ֔ם וְגֵ֣רְךָ֔ אֲשֶׁ֖ר בְּקֶ֣רֶב מַחֲנֶ֑יךָ מֵחֹטֵ֣ב עֵצֶ֔יךָ עַ֖ד שֹׁאֵ֥ב מֵימֶֽיךָ׃
your children, your wives, even the stranger within your camp, from the chopper of your wood to the drawer of your water,
לְעׇבְרְךָ֗ בִּבְרִ֛ית יְהֹוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ וּבְאָלָת֑וֹ אֲשֶׁר֙ יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֔יךָ כֹּרֵ֥ת עִמְּךָ֖ הַיּֽוֹם׃
to enter into the covenant of Adonai your God, which Adonai your God is concluding with you this day;
(Devarim/Deuteronomy 29:9-13)
There is no more all-inclusive and all-embracing statement, no more equalizing a declaration anywhere in the Torah. None. And this covenant embraces every single type of Jew regardless of their position or station in life, and regardless of gender, age or origin.
And then the Torah makes an astonishing declaration:
כִּי֩ אֶת־אֲשֶׁ֨ר יֶשְׁנ֜וֹ פֹּ֗ה עִמָּ֙נוּ֙ עֹמֵ֣ד הַיּ֔וֹם לִפְנֵ֖י יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֵ֑ינוּ וְאֵ֨ת אֲשֶׁ֥ר אֵינֶ֛נּוּ פֹּ֖ה עִמָּ֥נוּ הַיּֽוֹם׃
For, both those who are standing here with us this day before Adonai our God and those who are not with us here this day. (29:14)
In other words, the all-inclusive human catalog applies not only for those who were living at that time, but for ALL time.
And yet, one type who would seem very important, indeed vital (at least according to themselves), is conspicuously missing here, namely RABBIS. The word “rabbi” means master. There is no mention of rabbis, not here and not anywhere in the Torah. Even our reflexive association of the term rabbi with Moshe, i.e. “Moshe Rabbeinu,” appears NOWHERE in the Torah and was first assigned to him by … rabbis. It is doubtful that Moshe – that most modest of men – ever considered himself anyone’s “master”.
Indeed, the concept of a rabbi first appears in Mishnaic times. It is a totally invented title that had absolutely no precedent. And, yet, we have been conditioned over two millennia by these self-selected men and their religio-academic heirs to accept their rulings over every aspect of our lives; religious and temporal, spiritual and material, social and sexual. Indeed, not only have they sought, successfully, to control our lives but they have literally stunted our own development and cauterized our independent agency by rigging a system whereby it is nearly impossible to make any move without getting their approval.
What’s more, these rabbis have come to monopolize Judaism, literally displacing God, and effectively disenfranchising every single Jew from their Torah-ordained agency.
For as it says later in our parsha:
כִּ֚י הַמִּצְוָ֣ה הַזֹּ֔את אֲשֶׁ֛ר אָנֹכִ֥י מְצַוְּךָ֖ הַיּ֑וֹם לֹא־נִפְלֵ֥את הִוא֙ מִמְּךָ֔ וְלֹ֥א רְחֹקָ֖ה הִֽוא׃
For, this Instruction that I command you this day is not too bewildering for you, nor is it out of (your) reach.
לֹ֥א בַשָּׁמַ֖יִם הִ֑וא לֵאמֹ֗ר מִ֣י יַעֲלֶה־לָּ֤נוּ הַשָּׁמַ֙יְמָה֙ וְיִקָּחֶ֣הָ לָּ֔נוּ וְיַשְׁמִעֵ֥נוּ אֹתָ֖הּ וְנַעֲשֶֽׂנָּה׃
It is not in the heavens, that you should say, “Who among us can go up to the heavens and get it for us and impart it to us, that we may observe it?”
וְלֹא־מֵעֵ֥בֶר לַיָּ֖ם הִ֑וא לֵאמֹ֗ר מִ֣י יַעֲבׇר־לָ֜נוּ אֶל־עֵ֤בֶר הַיָּם֙ וְיִקָּחֶ֣הָ לָּ֔נוּ וְיַשְׁמִעֵ֥נוּ אֹתָ֖הּ וְנַעֲשֶֽׂנָּה׃
Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, “Who among us can cross to the other side of the sea and get it for us and impart it to us, that we may observe it?”
כִּֽי־קָר֥וֹב אֵלֶ֛יךָ הַדָּבָ֖ר מְאֹ֑ד בְּפִ֥יךָ וּבִֽלְבָבְךָ֖ לַעֲשֹׂתֽוֹ׃
For this matter is very accessible to you, in your mouth and in your heart, to be observed.
(Devarim 30:11-14)
The Torah tells us explicitly – us meaning tribal heads, elders, officers, men, women, children, strangers, woodchoppers and water drawers that its words are clear, that they are within our grasp, and that we do not have to go long distances to find someone to interpret them for us. Henceforth, even the On High can remove Himself from the proscenium because we have in our own hands the manual we need to live as Jews.
Then along comes a new category of professionals – rabbis – who tell us that we have it all wrong. That neither God nor ordinary mortals (and all mortals are ordinary except for themselves) have any say or agency. That they, and they alone, know what it’s all about and to them, and them alone, must we follow and obey every waking and sleeping, birthing and dying, healthy and diseased moment of our existence.
Indeed, these rabbis twist the literal understanding of the Torah’a all-embracing declaration:
לֹא בַשָּׁמַ֖יִם הִ֑וא לֵאמֹ֗ר מִ֣י יַעֲלֶה־לָּ֤נוּ הַשָּׁמַ֙יְמָה֙ וְיִקָּחֶ֣הָ לָּ֔נוּ וְיַשְׁמִעֵ֥נוּ אֹתָ֖הּ וְנַעֲשֶֽׂנָּה׃
It is not in the heavens, that you should say, “Who among us can go up to the heavens and get it for us and impart it to us, that we may observe it?”
This, they claim, is not meant for any of us. it is meant exclusively for rabbis (who first appeared on the scene more than a thousand years after those words were written.)
One of the most famous stories in the Talmud (Bava Metzia 59b) tells of a dispute between Rabbi Eliezer and his colleagues concerning a particular kind of oven, the Oven of Achnai, and whether it is permissible to use it. Rabbi Eliezer disagreed with his colleagues and declared that Heaven will tell you that I am right and that you all are wrong. And indeed a voice came from Above and declared that not only in this case, but in all rulings, Rabbi Eliezer is indeed correct:
חָזַר וְאָמַר לָהֶם: אִם הֲלָכָה כְּמוֹתִי – מִן הַשָּׁמַיִם יוֹכִיחוּ. יָצָאתָה בַּת קוֹל וְאָמְרָה: מָה לָכֶם אֵצֶל רַבִּי אֱלִיעֶזֶר, שֶׁהֲלָכָה כְּמוֹתוֹ בְּכׇל מָקוֹם.
Rabbi Eliezer then said to them: If the halakha is in accordance with my opinion, Heaven will prove it. A Divine Voice emerged then from Heaven and said: Why are you differing with Rabbi Eliezer, as the halakha is in accordance with his opinion wherever he expresses an opinion?
עָמַד רַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ עַל רַגְלָיו וְאָמַר: ״לֹא בַשָּׁמַיִם הִיא!״ מַאי ״לֹא בַּשָּׁמַיִם הִיא״? אָמַר רַבִּי יִרְמְיָה: שֶׁכְּבָר נִתְּנָה תּוֹרָה מֵהַר סִינַי, אֵין אָנוּ מַשְׁגִּיחִין בְּבַת קוֹל, שֶׁכְּבָר כָּתַבְתָּ בְּהַר סִינַי בַּתּוֹרָה ״אַחֲרֵי רַבִּים לְהַטֹּת״.
Rabbi Yehoshua then stood up and said: It is written: “It is not in heaven” (Deuteronomy 30:12). The Gemara asks: What is the relevance of the phrase “It is not in heaven” (in this context)? Rabbi Yirmeya then said: Since the Torah was already given at Mount Sinai, we disregard the Divine Voice, as You already wrote at Mount Sinai, in the Torah: “To incline after the majority” (Exodus 23:2).
Hence, according to Rabbi Yermeya – speaking for the others – since a majority of this particular group of Rabbis disagreed with Rabbi Eliezer’s opinion, the halakha is not ruled in accordance with Rabbi Eliezer.
אָמְרוּ: אוֹתוֹ הַיּוֹם הֵבִיאוּ כׇּל טְהָרוֹת שֶׁטִּיהֵר רַבִּי אֱלִיעֶזֶר וּשְׂרָפוּם בָּאֵשׁ
They said: On that day, the Sages brought all the items deemed ritually pure by Rabbi Eliezer and burned them in a fire
The other rabbis rejected the word of Heaven outright, citing our verse from Parshat Nitzavim.
Their hutzpah here is twofold. First, it is outrageous to even assume that לא בשמים היא means that any human, let alone self-anointed rabbis, can preempt God. The Torah’s statement is very clear – that the Torah is accessible to everyone. There is no need for self-appointed intermediaries to tell us what we can read with our own eyes and grasp with our own intelligence.
But the hutzpah extends beyond that. Because Rabbi Eliezer’s opponents demanded that he submit to their point view on the basis of אַחֲרֵי רַבִּים לְהַטֹּת that the majority rules (Shemot 23:2) with the hubristic presumption that these handful of rabbis constitute the majority, when the Torah was clearly referring to klal Israel – a majority of Israel – and not to a majority of rabbis in a limited group of men whose very calling was their own invention and not something the Torah recognized or predicted in any way.
The precursor of Talmudic Judaism was the Babylonian exile. Then, as now, a majority of Jews – especially those who were materially successful – chose to remain in Mesopotamia, refusing to return to Israel when this was finally possible in 538 BCE.
Being disconnected from the center of Jewish cultic ritual, yet desiring nevertheless to remain Jewish, they invented an ersatz practice generated by a new leadership which showed no interest in returning to Israel. These leaders replaced cultic practices with legalisms that paralleled the Temple ritual. These proto-rabbis, like most rabbis today, were the very last to promote yishuv Eretz Israel – settling the Land of Israel – as that would be bad for their business.
It is no wonder, then, that following the destruction of the Second Temple, the Babylonian Talmud became the game-changer for a now exiled Jewish population. After all, the Jews of Mesopotamia already had a half millennium of experience with an ersatz Jewish practice.
Suddenly this new class of Jewish movers and shakers – rabbis – replaced kohanim and judges and officers and elders and proclaimed themselves the sole arbiters of Jewish life and practice. They demanded absolute fealty and respect. They claimed that their new-fangled methodology of exegetical extraction was actually an oral Torah given simultaneously at Sinai and transmitted over the centuries to select individuals who were entrusted with this oral law. That there is not even a hint of any of this in the Torah or the Prophets, is beside the point.
Rabbis were shameless in promoting and embedding their importance. No opportunity was missed – to this very day – to remind the hoi polloi that they must trust their rabbis, that they must have emunat hakhamim (faith in their wise men).
Rabbis seeded scraps of Talmud into the liturgy in order to warrant the interjection of a kaddish d’rabanan – a kaddish that quite literally exalts the rabbis as it does God Himself. And after the Shabbat Torah reading they imposed a prayer for the success and well-being of the rabbis BEFORE a lesser prayer for the Jewish community as a whole:
(יקום פורקן) May there be given a living and enduring seed … to our masters and teachers, the holy fellowship in the land of Israel and the land of Babylon, to the heads of the assemblies, the heads of the exile, the heads of the academies, and the judges of the gates. To their disciples, and the disciples of their disciples, and to all who occupy themselves with the words of the Torah. May the King of the Universe bless them, preserve their lives, multiply their days, and extend their years. May they be delivered and saved from all trouble and evil occurrences. May the Lord of heaven be their help in every time and season. And let us say: Amen.
Now one can certainly ascribe a certain practical validity to this new Judaism – a legalistic Judaism centered around an evolving, and ever-expanding body of laws and regulations called halakha. As had already been learned in Mesopotamia, conditions in exile – especially in self-imposed exile – required a new cohesion that would enable the continuity of Jewish life. And, indeed, the Talmud and its endless industry of halakha-making succeeded in restructuring society whereby living Jewishly mandated obeisance to an extraordinarily complex body of laws whose keys were held by rabbis. Hence their declaring themselves the masters, and rendering themselves indispensable for answering all questions and adjudicating all cases both religious and material.
To the extent that the Jewish People was able to exist in exile, credit must be given to this rabbinic-halakhic regime (although we will never know how things might have evolved otherwise.) Yet, by the start of the 19th Century – certainly in Europe – the system began to fray rapidly, whereby within a single century (to use a business term) the rabbis lost over 90% market share.
Nevertheless, one thing cannot be argued, the rabbinic-halakhic complex was designed exclusively for diaspora circumstances. It would be totally incompatible for the establishment and running of a Jewish State. But then, it was meant a priori to replace a Jewish State. With the advent of Zionism, rabbinic opposition to the establishment of a Jewish state was almost total. And, tragically, emunat hakhamim resulted in untold numbers of religious Jews following their rabbis up the chimney of Auschwitz. At least those rabbis who did not somehow manage to save themselves.
Over the last century, for what are called Orthodox Jews, Talmud – the bedrock of rabbinic Judaism – has become totemic to the exclusion of anything else. Indeed, it has become a virtual addiction, with Daf Yomi (a page a day) classes becoming ubiquitous, and thereby further cementing the stranglehold of the rabbinic-halakhic complex. And this is fundamentally inimical to the economy, maintenance and defense of modern-day Israel (as it would have been fundamentally inimical to the economy, maintenance and defense of ancient Israel.)
Hence rabbis, haredi rabbis especially, have imported the galut with them and have established themselves as the foes of the State. Their geography is not Tel Aviv, Haifa, Jerusalem, Tsfat, Metullah and Eilat. It remains Brisk and Bobov and Ger and Satmar and Slabodka and Mir. This extends to their lingua franca and to their various anachronistic costumes.
Unfortunately, Zionist rabbis are not up to the task of challenging the venal hostility of their Haredi counterparts as they, too, remain mired in what is a purely exile-appropriate and exile-intended system. And in this they even have something of an inferiority complex, because haredi rabbis and yeshiva heads are much better at this game because their loyalties and instincts are not divided.
If we are to survive and thrive as a (meaningfully) Jewish State it is necessary to begin a process whereby we can gradually decrease our dependence on a rabbinical law that only divides and stifles us, while reaffirming and reclaiming an original Judaism that is, at least according to the Torah, within the grasp of every single one of us.