Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Levites, Laity, and Parashat Beha'alotecha

Shalom!

Please see Num. 8:13-19, an excerpt from this week's Torah portion, Beha'alotecha. In this passage, the entire tribe of the Levites is designated in service to God in place of the first-born sons of every household. This appears to have represented a transformation in the notion of sacrifice and service within the religious community of ancient Israel.

From this transformation, I draw inferences about the "double-edged sword" of a professionalized clergy class within liberal streams of Judaism. In most Reform and Conservative Jewish communities, a professionalized rabbinate and cantorate has led to disproportionate expectations of religious service placed upon the clergy and removed from the personal responsibilities of lay members of the congregation.

What do you think? Please comment!

L'Shalom,

Rabbi Jonathan Blake

PLEASE NOTE: I am having trouble uploading the video I recorded this week. In the meantime I have posted it on YouTube, here. Thanks for your understanding!

- RJEB

2 comments:

  1. Num 8:13-19 highlights the selection of the Levites to serve Aaron and his sons in place of the Israelites' first issue of the womb. They serve as a wave offering to the Lord.

    You raise the question as to whether modern-day secular Jews--Reform and Conservative Jews--emulate this in some way through the selection of clergy and their roles in service of God in their Jewish communities.

    I see the parallel you are making; but, the comparison seems to be a loose one. In the Torah, God chooses the Levites to serve the priests. In modern times, individual Jews choose to pursue a Jewish clerical career. In practice, it often seems hereditary; but, it is not so by design. Perhaps they are called to do so by God. But, whereas the Levites served Aaron and his sons, in their service of God, modern secular Jewish clergy serve the religious and pastoral needs of their communities, not a centralized Temple cult (unless unbeknownst to me, there are centralized political ambitions of the secular Jewish movements).

    ...continued...

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  2. ...continued...

    As Jewish religious belief and practice seeks a comfortable balance with modernity--be this through Reform Judaism, Conservative Judaism, or even Modern Orthodoxy--I think that Jewish education and Jewish responsibility and accountability have suffered.

    Nowhere in Beha'alotecha does God say that it is the Levites who must stand in for all Israelites in the following of the Instruction, or in the fulfillment of God's commandments. God still expects each Israelite to comport him/herself in a manner consistent with the teachings in the Torah. I see God's expectations as unchanged in that regard. Even if one were to argue that modern day clergy fulfill distributed adaptations of the roles of ancient priests or Levites, nowhere does it imply that modern day Jews can expect their synagogue memberships to serve as a substitute for living a Jewish life and values. Perhaps there is a temptation for Jews who seek to live in the modern world to rely more heavily on clergy for things Jewish. Sadly, this has led to an overdependence of sorts. In the Reform world, this can turn a temple membership into "religious insurance", or something similar. In a Modern Orthodox environment, this could result in excessive reliance on one's rabbi or one's rabbi's rabbi for Jewish decision making and judgments.

    I agree with you that in my experience, members of Orthodox Jewish communities seem to have internalized the responsibilities of Judaism and have taken accountability for leading Jewish lives. Too often, Reform Jews see this through a distorted prism and focus only on lifestyle differences--typically manifesting themselves in the observance of mitzvot, or lack thereof. They totally miss the beauty of these communities which do not need to create "Caring Community" organizations. These Jewish values are part of every member in the community. When one person is in need, the community rallies naturally around that person. (By the way, Othodox communities see Reform congregations in a similarly distorted fashion.)

    The challenge, I think, is mostly within secular Jewish communities, where many people somehow feel that balancing a Jewish life with modernity means eating matzo balls on Pesach while shuttling between soccer matches on Saturdays. One doesn't need semicha, or rabbinical ordination, to lead a fulfilling Jewish life. By the way, I have nothing against matzo balls or soccer, or even Saturdays. I rather enjoy all of them. But, the challenge faced by Reform and Conservative Jewish clergy is to teach and empower their communities on how to live Jewish lives and values. Modern Orthodox communities probably wrestle with very different challenges. While Modern Orthodox Jews also need to focus on living Jewish lives and values, their challenges are probably how not to lose the forest for the trees. If Reform Jews can internalize Jewish teachings to a greater degree, aided perhaps by technology tools like this weblog, then they will find themselves in a very similar place as Modern Orthodox Jews--albeit through different day to day means.

    I recognize I am oversimplifying and writing as if the Modern Orthodox and Reform Jewish communities were each homogeneous. But, I believe my observations to be directionally true. What do you think?

    I am afraid I will be spending Shabbat out of town...picking up my daughter from college. If I do not respond, it is because I am likely to be unplugged.

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