…libertarianism, the condition that Sefer Shoftim describes as ish ha-yashar be-einav ya’aseh, “each doing what is right in his own eyes.” This presents Jews with a paradoxical situation. Never have we been freer to be Jews, but rarely have we faced a culture more antithetical to the values of Judaism, not superficially but at its very roots. Under such circumstances,…
There is a fascinating detail in the passage about the king in this week’s parsha. The text says that “When he takes the throne of his kingdom, he must write for himself a copy of this Torah on a scroll before the levitical priests.” Deut. 17:18 He must “read it all the days of his life” so that he will…
In his enumeration of the various leadership roles within the nation that would take shape after his death, Moses mentions not only the priest/judge and king but also the prophet: “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own brothers. You must listen to him.” Moses would not be the last of…
THERE IS NO SUBJECT ON WHICH THE TORAH IS MORE AMBIVALENT than the issue of monarchy in particular, and politics in general. The starting point of any discussion of the subject is in today’s sedra: When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you and have taken possession of it, and settled in it, and you say,…
…man and Ketubim, the words of human beings to God. And that’s why the book of Ruth appears in Ketubim. But if you were just ordering them chronologically, where would you place the book? It comes after Shoftim. And before Sefer Shmuel, the end of the Book of Judges, the beginning of the book, the four books of Kings, Samuel…
The contribution of Tanach, the Hebrew Bible, to political thought is fundamental, but not well known. In this study I want to look at the institution of monarchy. What does it tell us about the nature of government as the Torah understands it? The command relating to a king opens with these words: “When you enter the land the Lord…
…ein lanu Melech ela atah, “we have no King, but you,” In Israel, God’s kingship was manifest. And that is what happened during the whole of the biblical era. Either Israel had no kings, they had shoftim, they had Judges, charismatic military leaders, or they had kings beginning with Saul, David, Solomon. But uniquely in biblical kingship, biblical kingship is…
…gift we can give to another human being. RE’EH: Never define yourself as a victim. There is always a choice, and by exercising the strength to choose, we can rise above fate. SHOFTIM: To lead is to serve. The greater your success, the harder you have to work to remember that you are there to serve others; they are not…
…it was given through fire? From the verse in Shemot 19:18: “Mount Sinai was all in smoke as God had come down upon it in fire.” How do we know it was given through water? As it says in Shoftim 5:4, “The heavens and the clouds dripped water [at Sinai].” How do we know it was given through wilderness? [As…
…of blood vengeance, that protection was necessary. The purpose of the cities was to make sure that someone judged innocent of murder was safe from being killed. As Shoftim puts it: “And he shall flee to one of these cities and live” (Deut. 19:5). This apparently simple concept was given a remarkable interpretation by the Talmud: The Sages taught: If…