This week, I am reflecting on a poem by Rivka Miriam. Rivka Miriam is an Israeli poet and artist who has been instrumental in the Jewish secular religious renewal movement in Israel.
There is no need to explain why there will be no joy on Simchat Torah this year in the western Negev. The looming first anniversary of the massacre is causing anger, frustration, and despair to flood back. As long as hostages are still held in Gaza, residents of the region are still stuck on October 7.
The Torah reading for the Shabbat of Sukkot was certainly chosen for its reference to the holidays in Exodus 34:18-23. But at the end of Exodus 33, Moses makes a request for his wild and precious life, one which offers powerful lessons for Sukkot even today.
It is incredibly powerful that we are reminded on Yom Kippur, not (only) of God's power, but our own. So much High Holiday theology feels like it lies in stark contrast to this. We read of God's sovereignty and dominion; we beg Our Parent, Our Sovereign for goodness and mercy.
A quick glance shows that Haazinu is different from all other portions: it's laid out as a poem--unusual for the Torah, a text that is almost entirely prose. The poem in Haazinu creates room for so much else: blessings and curses, fears and hopes, and successes and failures.
Torah Commentary
In the Beginning, God Created Prayer
From Simchat Torah to Sichat Torah
Real and Imagined: A Sukkot Balancing Act
Shifting from Judgement to Mercy
Playing Hide-and-Seek with God