In this discussion of Deuteronomy 29:9-31:30, we will talk about restoring our relationships, ourselves, and the Torah through a queer lens. Content warnings: brief discussion of homophobia and transphobia.
Blessing for Torah Study
Baruch atah, Adonai Eloheinu, ruach ha-olam, asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav v’tzivanu la'asok b’divrei Torah. Blessed are You, Adonai our God, Sovereign of all, who hallows us with mitzvot, charging us to engage with words of Torah.
Beginning with Our Own Torah
Reflect on the title's question: does the Torah apologize? What does this question mean to you? Do you think it's possible? What would an apology imply about our tradition?
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Deuteronomy 29:9-14
Context: Moses is speaking to all of the Israelites in his last address. In the previous parshah, he told them about the blessings they could receive for following God's commandments. He also emphasized the many curses they would face if they did not adhere to God's word.
Usage today: The "traditional" Torah reading on Yom Kippur is Leviticus 18:1-30, which is used by Orthodox, some Conservative, and other congregations. Leviticus 18 outlines sexual "purity" laws. In the last several decades, the following text from Dt. has become a common replacement for Lev. 18 on Yom Kippur in Reform, Reconstructionist, and other congregations. Another common replacement is Lev. 19.
Questions to consider: Why are many types of people listed? What does this say about God's promise? Why do you think some congregations use this instead of Lv. 18?
(9) You stand this day, all of you, before your God ה' —your tribal heads, your elders, and your officials, every householder in Israel,
Continuing Our Own Torah
Have you ever wished that you would receive an apology, but never received it? You're invited to imagine a moment, think of a situation, or remember a time when this may have happened. You're also invited to notice the feelings that arise when considering the prompt. Hold this moment or feeling in your mind. How might this relate to our initial conversation: Does the Torah apologize?
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Deuteronomy 30:1-10
History of the text: According to many bible scholars, the following section was not written by the same author who wrote the surrounding chapters (Zvi Brettler, 2016). This section was inserted up to 400 years after the surrounding text was written.
Questions to consider: Why was this text inserted by a different author? How might multi-authorship affect conceptions of the Torah? How might it affect Jewish identity?
וְהָיָה֩ כִֽי־יָבֹ֨אוּ עָלֶ֜יךָ כׇּל־הַדְּבָרִ֣ים הָאֵ֗לֶּה הַבְּרָכָה֙ וְהַקְּלָלָ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֥ר נָתַ֖תִּי לְפָנֶ֑יךָ וַהֲשֵׁבֹתָ֙ אֶל־לְבָבֶ֔ךָ בְּכׇ֨ל־הַגּוֹיִ֔ם אֲשֶׁ֧ר הִדִּיחֲךָ֛ ה' אֱלֹקֶ֖יךָ שָֽׁמָּה׃
When all these things befall you—the blessing and the curse that I have set before you—and you take them to heart amidst the various nations to which your God YHVH has banished you,
and you return to your God YHVH, and you and your children heed God’s command with all your heart and soul, just as I enjoin upon you this day,
then your God YHVH will restore your fortunes and take you back in love. [God] will bring you together again from all the peoples where your God YHVH has scattered you.
Even if your outcasts are at the ends of the world, from there your God YHVH will gather you, from there your God YHVH will fetch you.
And your God YHVH will bring you to the land that your fathers possessed, and you shall possess it; and [God] will make you more prosperous and more numerous than your ancestors.
Then your God YHVH will open up your heart and the hearts of your offspring—to love your God YHVH with all your heart and soul, in order that you may live.
Your God YHVH will inflict all those curses upon the enemies and foes who persecuted you.
You, however, will again heed YHVH and obey all the divine commandments that I enjoin upon you this day.
And your God YHVH will grant you abounding prosperity in all your undertakings, in your issue from the womb, the offspring of your cattle, and your produce from the soil. For ה' will again delight in your well-being as in that of your ancestors,
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"On Yom Kippur, Even Torah Does Teshuvah" by Robin Banerji, Keshet
If God can do teshuvah, then so can the Torah, and the Talmud explains how. Megillah 25b discusses many of the most objectionable and horrifying passages of the Torah...the rabbis explain that while these texts are certainly contained in the Torah, it’s permitted—or even required—to remediate them. In some cases, the community reads them in Hebrew but refuses to translate them into the common language, Aramaic. Megillah 25b is a radical revolution; a queering of Judaism’s holiest texts....it’s okay to feel wronged by the Torah. And when you feel wronged, you are not only owed an apology, but true repentance....Finally, we can demand that the Torah change by flipping the script.
Returning to Our Own Torah
Think back to the your past or current wish to receive an apology. As we approach Yom Kippur, is it possible to find or rediscover apologies in unexpected ways?