The Jewish Revolution Is Much Deeper Than It Seems

Judaism is far more revolutionary than many people think. Beginning with Abraham our father, it represents positions that are the opposite of the “accepted” in several areas. Faith in God is an absolute disbelief in any other “independence.” Its meaning also involves a very specific kind of conduct toward every other person and toward oneself. Insights and deeds are intertwined, and their significance is great in both the national and earthly spheres. Study is a leading and relevant value for every person in Israel. A person, whoever he is, was created in the image of God. A few of the things mentioned here are enough to internalize the overall meaning of the fact that a person is a continuer of Abraham our father and receives the Torah of Moses our teacher. The “revolutionary” feeling is not a one-time matter. It is essential as a constant religious guide and as assistance to the effort required for the fulfillment of the Torah and mitzvot.

For example, in my view, it is not coincidental that in the parashah “Va’etchanan,” the cities of refuge across the Jordan are mentioned in connection with an action that is among the most foundational: “Then Moses will separate” — the central act of separation in creation. So too is the distinction between Israel and the nations of the world, and between Shabbat and a weekday. Separation requires a great deal of human wisdom, and the fact is that much of scientific progress is based on different forms of separation in quantities and components. A person who has no capacity for separation is unable to conduct a rational life and is also unable to deal with fairly basic actions.

Indeed, Moses our teacher separates these cities even though at that time they are not yet put into effect—until it is declared in practice on the western side of the land that the cities of refuge will be in effect. However, he performs the act of separation, and thereby, with a whispering but thunderous declaration, he announces the continuation of the Hebrew revolution. Here there is judgment, and here there is a judge. There is one who kills intentionally and there is one who kills unintentionally. There is one who is worthy of fleeing to a city of refuge, and there is one who is not worthy. Accordingly, until a person is convicted and his sentence is death, there is an extremely meticulous process. Moses “separates” once and for all, “then.” This is similar to the wondrous statement in the Song at the Sea: “Then Moses sang.”

Moses’ address throughout the book of Deuteronomy is a fixed establishment of the Hebrew revolution, which of course includes “Hear, O Israel,” the Ten Commandments, and many additional verses. This is not a one-time revolution, nor a revolution saturated with noise. Of course, it cannot be measured in similar terms to the French Revolution, in which the gallows were the main executor. The Hebrew revolution is sown within living verses that, at any time, receive new force and eternal relevance. The revolution belongs to the generation that leaves Egypt and to the generation that is about to enter the land, as with all generations of Israel.

For seven weeks, it is now accompanied by the haftarot from the chapters of consolation of the prophet Isaiah, who also strengthens the power of this quiet and whispering revolution: when he consoles with what exists in a crisis so that the people will recover, when he brings into the world expressions like “a covenant with” and “a light to the nations.” All of these are matters of the revolution in which we are supposed to and can participate in our lives, precisely in these days. The ongoing call in the reading of Deuteronomy and the following of the haftarot of consolation of the prophet Isaiah are a standing demand of us, especially in the current complex social time, to continue the Jewish revolution with care and determination.

In these verses of Deuteronomy and Isaiah, there are wondrous seeds of a human and Jewish revolution that continue—in terms of human dignity, human obligations, the necessity of human humility, the leadership’s conception of responsibility, and more. We must avoid the distortion and error of thinking that Judaism is only on the side of the “conservative.” Jewish faith preserves for us the path for the continuation of the revolution of human progress out of responsibility and care. A grave mistake is to broadcast fear of this direction of the Jewish trend and to reduce the meaning of a person standing before his Creator.

The poet Miron H. Izakson is a professor of literature at Bar-Ilan University.