Destroying Idolatry

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1. The Biblical Roots of Midrashic 'Stories'

   Rabbi Moshe Shulman

   תאריך פרסום: תשע"ג | |

   We take a methodological look at “Midrashic stories” and how our Sages used these stories, often borrowed or reframed from completely different parts of Tanach, to interpret and highlight Biblical events of parallel or contrasting nature.

2. The Prohibition of Erasing the Name of God

   Parashat Re'eh

   Rabbi Yehuda Rock

   In Parashat Re'eh we are commanded to abolish idolatry from the Land of Israel, and on the flip side - to avoid destroying altars built for God. Practically, the Torah teaches us not to destroy holy artifacts used for worship in the Temple; but on a spiritual plane we learn a lesson of spreading the name of God throughout the world, and glorifying God's name.

3. Yehoshafat, King of Yehuda

   Rabbi Alex Israel

   The brief description of Yehoshafat in Kings I indicates  that his perios was one of enormous prosperity and extensive political hegemony over the region. In Divrei Hayamim, his reign is described in luxurious detail, spanning four extensive chapters. Yehoshafat is determined to actively pursue national unity with the Northern kingdom and the House of Ahav despite prophetic criticism. The results of this questionable policy included one failed military campaign and a broken fleet of ships. Yehoshafat began his monarchy with a passion for spreading Torah, and later , upon receiving the criticism of the prophet he decides to rehabilitate the legal system.

   As a king, Yehoshafat is superior even to Shlomo in his positive and responsive interactions with the prophet and in the fact that, despite his association with Ahav, he is insusceptible to idolatry.  In the landscape of Sefer Melakhim, Yehoshafat stands as one of the greatest and most impressive kings of Yehuda.

4. The Rise of King Hizkiyahu

   Rabbi Alex Israel

   King Hizkiyahu heralds an exciting period in the kingdom of Yehuda. He is devoted to God and responsive to His prophet. During his reign, Hizkiyahu leads Israel in a religious renaissance and seeks to heal the rift between the kingdom of Israel in the north and the kingdom of Yehuda in the south in the observation of a national Pessah. He repudiates idolatry and dishonors his father Ahaz at his burial to send a strong message to the nation. He dedicates and purifies the Beit Hamikdash and makes learning Torah a national priority.

5. Yoshiyahu and the Return to God

   Rabbi Alex Israel

   Despite who is father and grandfather were, Yoshiyahu is unsurpassed as a champion of God worship, cleansing the kingdom of its idolatry and returning the nation to God. A process that begins in his youth, it further intensifies with the shocking discovery of the Sefer Torah. The precise identification of this Sefer Torah and its ramifications are debated amongst commentaries. However, the aftermath of this discovery is a purging of idolatry on an unprecedented scope including in the territories of the non-existent Northern kingdom that culminated in a mass celebration of Pessah in Jerusalem.  

6. The Tragedy of Yoshiyahu

   Rabbi Alex Israel

   Yoshiyahu's dramatic religious revolution led him to two erroneous conclusions, giving him the confidence to confront Pharaoh Nekho who lead his army through Israel in order to confront the emerging Babylonian empire. Firstly, he believed that the religious level that was achieved was one that would make God support him against an idolatrous king. Secondly, he believed that the revolution was sincere and accepted among the people, when in fact in the short amount of time since the major change it was imposiible to uproot norms and beliefs that had set in over such a long period. This folly decision led to his death by the archers' arrows ending abruptly the reign of a righteous king. The lack of real change among the people means that wheels of Hurban that were set in motion by Menashe were not stopped - though they might have had the chage been sincere.

   Modern Biblical scholars claim that Devarim was the Sefer Torah that Yoshiyahu discovered and it was written in his time and not by Moshe. The claim of the 7th century authorship is refuted by a series of simple proofs.

7. 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.

8. Avraham: Repaying Debts and Inspiring Monotheism

   Rabbi David Silverberg

9. The Setting Sun in the Covenant Between the Pieces

   Rabbi David Silverberg

10. Why Would Yaakov's Family Members Own Items of Pagan Worship?

    Rabbi David Silverberg

11. The Journeys of Avraham and Yaakov and the Purpose of Conquering the Land

    Dr. Yael Ziegler | 30 minutes

    In many ways, Yaakov's journey in Canaan is very similar to Avraham's journey. But Yaakov seems to stay in Shechem for too long. Why does Yaakov stay in Shechem? By comparing the stories of Yaakov's and Avraham's journeys, and noting echoes in the Book of Yehoshua, we gain insight into the purpose of inheriting the Land of Israel: it is not only to develop a national homeland, but to disseminate a national idea-- the Divine mission of the People of Israel.