Haftorah This Week
Welcome to Haftorah This Week, the place where you will find thoughts and reflections by CLAL faculty and associates on this week's Haftorah.
HAFTARAT SHEMINI
(II Samuel 6:1-7:17)
The Haftarah describes King David's triumphant ascent with the Ark to Jerusalem--the three thousandth anniversary of which we will soon celebrate. The text conveys the sense of history, drama and awesomeness of the moment that David and the people entered what was to become the city of David, permanently etched into the collective consciousness of the Jewish people. The Parsha by contrast outlines the dietary rules, specifically listing the classifications of the prohibited and permitted animals.
What is the relationship between the Parsha and the Haftarah? Perhaps it hints at two modalities of Jewish identity. There is a quality of Jewish identity that is nurtured by historic, grand, dramatic events. This connection to Judaism is motivated by being involved in electrifying, history making, world creating drama such as the conquering of Jerusalem, the nation building enterprise of Israel, the gathering of hundreds of thousands of Jews from the four corners of the earth. This is a modality of identity in which one re-enacts the great dramas of Exodus, and entry into the Land. It is a way of being Jewish and experiencing meaning and community that have been unavailable for a major part of the past 2,000 years of history. It is intoxicating, awesome, redemptive and filled with kedusha.
There is a second modality of Jewish identity characterized by attention to the daily details of ordinary life. Here Jewish identity is nurtured by the way in which everyday routines of life are imbued with meaning (e.g., the way in which one eats). This way of Jewish identity is ahistorical and intimate, enduring the ordinary mundane activities of life with a rich interior meaning.
The challenge at the end of the 20th century is to maintain a dialectic between these two modalities of Jewish identity for ultimately Jewish life, in fact meaningful human life, depends on both. There are times when the awareness of the religious potential of history needs to be heightened and cultivated. At those times, it becomes our task to demonstrate how as a people we can redeem history, politics, and affluence from the rule of power, hatred, self-interest and cynicism. Such did King David do in establishing Jerusalem. But there is also a need to appreciate the profound meaning of the common deeds, such as eating, that make up most of life. Through these deeds, we demonstrate our sensitivity to the holiness and richness that can be found in the rhythms of daily life. Today, for the first time in a long time, Jewish identity can truly reflect both modalities of Jewish identity!
(Irwin Kula)
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