Sin and Exile

נמצאו 14 תוצאות חיפוש

1. Religious Sin, Ethical Sin, and the Punishment of Exile (Audio)

   Prof. Jonathan Grossman | 14 דקות

   Why are there numerous linguistic and thematic parallels between Adam and Kayin? The Torah vies moral-ethical sins at least as seriously as religious-ritual sins. Adam and Kayin's stories are an example of this standpoint. The consequence of exile is introduced. Will future generations learn the right messages from these "exile from Eden" paradigms?

2. I am Esau Your Firstborn - And Now, My Son, Listen to My Voice

   Rabbi Chanoch Waxman | 35 דקות

   Rivka is often viewed as the heroine in the story of the blessings: she disguises Yaakov as Esav so that her younger son will receive Yitzchak's blessing. The problematic deception, and the ensuing separation, exile, and suffering point to another perspective in the story. Does Rivka's daring plan exemplify the importance of human initiative alongside Divine Providence, or is it a tragic mistake?

3. The Fall and Exile of Shomron

   Rabbi Alex Israel

   Hoshea ben Ella rises to power as an apparent appointment of the Assyrian King, but soon after he joins an anti-Assyrian coalition. While Hoshea does not follow in the footsteps of the kings of Israel and residents of the northern kingdom participate in the Pessah Korban with Hizkiyahu in Jerusalem, this change is too late to stop the destruction and exile of the northern kingdom.

   The Assyrian policy of population transfer is aimed at crushing hostile populations. By dispersing the exiles to far-flung locations, Ashur succeeds in destabilizing and disorienting the defeated. This technique absolutely destroys the internal cohesion of the exiled community and strangles its political opposition. For Israel this policy is a death knell. Domestically, as alien populations are transferred to Shomron, along with a foreign governor, it essentially becomes impossible for Israel to reinstate itself as an independent entity and leads to the disappearance of the ten tribes.

   The people - not only the kings - of Israel chose to go in the ways of the surrounding nations and, just as the Torah warned, God and the land of Israel rejected them.

4. The Shomronim

   Rabbi Alex Israel

   The exile of the ten tribes ultimately leads to their disappearance as a distinct group. The Assyrian policy of population transfer brings in foreigners who worship idols and since the Land of Israel does not tolerate sinners they are attacked by lions. They are saved not by rejectiong the idols, but by accepting God as supreme. The strict monotheism mandated for Jews is different from the level of belief required of other nations. For Israel, icons are absolutely forbidden, even when they serve as intermediaries to God. This is the primary sin for which the inhabitants of Shomron were exiled. However, for other peoples, idolatry and other gods are tolerable as long as God is recognized as the supreme deity, even while other gods are worshipped alongside Him.

   The status of the Shomronim - Samaritans is a long historical debate spanning from the period of the rebuilding of the second Beit HaMikdash, in which they were not permitted to participate, and continuing into the time of the Sages.  

5. The Deeds of the People in the Temple

   Part 1

   Dr. Tova Ganzel

   Yehezkel pronounces a Divine vision whose message is that although the Temple is still standing, it is effectively empty and worthless. Yehezkel sees, by means of a Divine vision, four symbolic sins, each sight worse than its predecessor. Yehezkel uses terms unique to Devarim chapter 4 which describes the prohibitions of idolatry at length, the covenant with God and the warning of exile if the covenant is violated through idol worship.

6. The Deeds of the People in the Temple

   Part 2

   Dr. Tova Ganzel

   The consequence foretold in Sefer Devarim for idolatry is exile. Along with this message, Yehezkel’s prophecy again emphasizes that these acts by the people have caused the defilement of the nation, the land, and the Temple – a result not mentioned in Sefer Devarim but in Sefer Vayikra. However, there is a quantitative difference: in Vayikra, only two verses speak of idolatry as causing defilement of the people and of the Temple, while in Sefer Yehezkel this issue appears in no less than thirty verses. The necessity of repeatedly emphasizing this matter during Yehezkel’s time is understandable bearing in mind the constant presence of false prophets, who continued to insist that the Temple would not be destroyed.

    

   Yehezkel’s descriptions of the varieties of idolatry committed by the people deliberately follows the style employed in Sefer Devarim in the commands and warnings not to follow the deeds of the nations and not to serve their gods. This technique lends additional validity to Yehezkel’s prophecies about the sins – particularly about the punishment that God will bring. In addition, the nation’s sin is amplified through a broad generalization of all the different types of idolatry and their enumeration together in Chapter 8. In this way the prophet underlines the prophetic message that he is conveying: the sins of the people have included idolatry, and this represents justification for the imminent destruction and exile.

7. Kayin and Hevel: Structure, Parallel and Drama

   Rabbi Chanoch Waxman |

   Through analyzing the story of Kayin and Hevel, we sketch the outlines of three different sub-schools of the literary method of studying Tanakh: structuralist, parallelist, and dramatic-narrative approaches. These methodological approaches help us to delve into the story of Kayin and Hevel, raise questions and offer solutions that allow us to appreciate different facets of the story.

8. The Exile in Egypt and the Connection to Eretz Yisrael

   Hanan Porat

9. Selling Yosef for Shoes

   Rabbi David Silverberg

10. Avram in Egypt, Yaakov in Haran, and the Exodus from Egypt

    Dr. Yael Ziegler

    תאריך פרסום: תשס"ז | | 31 דקות

    This shiur looks at events in Bereisheet leading up to the Exodus from Egypt, in attempt to understand how these stories impact upon the message of Yetziat Mitzrayim - and the ideas of exodus and redemption.  We focus on two stories: Avraham's descent to Egypt, and Yaakov in the House of Lavan. We find linguistic and thematic connections to the story of the enslavement in and exodus from Egypt. These stories highlight the added challenge of leaving places of natural material wealth and fertility to return to the Land of Israel, where fertility, water, and resources are dependent on God.

11. Vayetze: The Parasha of Exile

    Rabbi Jonathan Snowbell | 20 דקות

    Parashat Vayeitze seems to be the parasha of galut. Both forced and voluntary aspects of exile are present. We attempt to define "galut" and ask why Yaakov - and later, Israel - is in exile? Is it merely a punishment, or is there something more - another purpose? Why is the Torah given outside of Eretz Yisrael? Perhaps acceptance is a step that is necessarily before the period of implementation - exile lessens responsibilities, and perhaps offers an important opportunity for growth and development.

     

12. Background of Shivat Tzion

    Rabbi Tzvi Sinensky

    Yirmiyahu predicted that within just seventy years the Babylonian Empire would be humbled and the Jews restored to their homeland.  However, Yirmiyahu alluded to multiple counts of seventy, underscoring the utter opacity of the prophet’s prediction.

    Cyrus was the king who finally fulfilled Yirmiyahu’s prophecy – at least the first count of seventy. Still, the mystery shrouding the end of the seventy years heightens the dramatic irony in the opening of Ezra. The people who had been expelled to Babylonia had not fully anticipated the destruction, preferring to believe the conveniently optimistic message of the false prophets. Those who did arrive were traumatized and had little meaningful hope of redemption. While Yirmiyahu had predicted that the Temple would be rebuilt in relatively short order, it wasn’t entirely clear when exactly it would be rebuilt, by whom and how. There was no meaningful plan in place for a return to Zion. The Jews were just becoming comfortable in their new surroundings as they received news of Cyrus’ proclamation. And so when Cyrus did issue his proclamation, relatively few heeded the call. Those who did return were reproached by Chagai and Zekharia for their apathy, and required constant goading and emphatic leadership to finally complete the Temple.

    It is against this backdrop of unanticipated trauma, unmitigated disaster, renewed comfort and prophetic uncertainty that the period of Shivat Tzion was ushered in. These challenges, and the overall sense of ambivalence, continued to plague the returnees.

13. Why Did God Reject Nadav and Avihu?

    Rabbi David Fohrman |

    In this week's parsha, we see the sudden and disturbing death of two of Aaron's sons, Nadav and Avihu. In exploring the text more closely, what earlier Biblical story shows parallel themes and language to this story, and what is the meaning behind this connection?

     

     

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14. V'Zot Habracha: Looking Towards the Future

    Rabbi David Fohrman |

    With this week's video, Rabbi Fohrman finishes the series of parsha videos by giving us a look at the Torah's vision of what happens after the text of the Torah officially ends, and reminds us that we today are a critical part of the timeline in Jewish history.

     

     

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