 |
|
May 20, 2013
Melissa Healy: Genetic copies of living people from embryos no longer science fiction
Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom : Jews Inducted into Rock Hall of Fame; Anton Yelchin co-stars in New "Trek" film; Kutcher (but not Kunis) visits Israel; Jewish TV Star Praises Jewish Rap Star
The Kosher Gourmet by Cathy Pollak: WARNING: This WALNUT CAKE WITH PRALINE FROSTING, perfect for afternoon coffee, is addicting
May 13, 2013
Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo: Why the giving of the document that would permanently change the world could only be done in desolation
David G. Savage: Church-state, literally? Supreme Court weighing public school graduation in a church
May 10, 2013
Rabbi Berel Wein: Be all that you should be
May 8, 2013
Peter Ford: Why China is welcoming both Israel's Netanyahu and Palestinians' Abbas
Warren Richey: Obama administration quietly backs out of appeal over new contraceptive mandate
Fred Weir: At Kerry-Putin meeting, US-Russia relations thaw --- a tad
The Kosher Gourmet by Leela Cyd Ross : Almost too pretty to eat, this colorful salad with Sicilian inspiration will tickle the taste buds and delight your visual sensibility
May 6, 2013
May 3, 2013
Kids, kittens the Same? With employee perks at struggling Internet pioneer Yahoo! it's hard to tell
Sandy Kleffman: Artificial kidney offers hope to patients tethered to a dialysis machine
April 29, 2013
Roy Gutman: Poland's new Jewish museum celebrates life, doesn't revisit Holocaust
Mark Clayton: Terrorism in America: Is US missing a chance to learn from failed plots?
Kim Murphy: Boston Bomber's 'Svengali' Revealed
Pete Spotts: Tiny satellites + cellphones = cheaper 'eyes in the sky' for NASA
April 26, 2013
Clifford D. May: Defense in the Age of Jihadist Terrorism
Sharon Palmer, R.D.: How to feel your best -- with plenty of energy, a healthy weight and optimal mental and physical function -- without driving yourself batty
April 24, 2013
|
| |
Jewish World Review
Oct. 19, 2007
/ 7 Mar-Cheshvan 5768
Revolution through one word
By
Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo
| 
|
|
|
|
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
When studying the life of Abraham, we often wonder what made him into the first Jew in all of history. Without any doubt he must be seen as the progenitor of all that Judaism had to offer throughout the ages. As such he laid the foundations of nearly all religious thinking in the west. Not only did Judaism give birth to two other world religions — Christianity and Islam — but it also became the foundation of several legal systems, the concept of justice and western morality. What was Abraham's secret?
Conventional thinking argues that it is was Abraham who "discovered" G-d after mankind had fallen prey to idol worship and that this was his main contribution. This however cannot be the whole story. It is clear that other individuals also recognized G-d as their Lord. So we read that Avimelech, King of Gerar and Melchizedek king of Salem, believed in G-d seemingly even before they met Abraham. (Genesis 14)
On top of that, belief in G-d alone does not automatically lead to the need for morality and justice.
It was Rabbi Moshe Avigdor Amiel (1883-1946), former Chief Rabbi of Tel Aviv, who suggested that it was the replacement of only one word that made Abraham into the father of all western religions and justice. And it was this change which brought about a
radical departure from conventional thinking for all future times.
When Adam meets his wife Eve for the first time (after she has been formed from his rib), he identifies her with the words: "This now is the bone of my bones and the flesh of my flesh" (Genesis 2.23).
This is a most remarkable statement since we would have anticipated that he would refer to her in spiritual rather than in physical terms. Somehow Adam was not able to see himself or his wife in terms of soul. This is even more startling when we realize they had not yet participated from the tree of knowledge and as such lived highly spiritual lives in the Garden of Eden.
During the following centuries we see that human beings continue to see themselves in terms of flesh. Even the Torah (Bible) which originally had called man "nefesh chaya" a living being, (2:7) continues to describe man in terms of his flesh. This becomes very clear when we read the story about the flood of Noah.
"And G-d saw the earth and behold, it was corrupt for all flesh had corrupted their way upon the earth." (6.12)
Only when Abraham enters the Biblical narrative, is man never again described as flesh. From this moment onwards he is called soul (nefesh). (See, for example, Genesis 12:13)
This possibly means that Abraham's most important contribution was not so much the discovery of G-d but to teach mankind that the human being is not so much flesh as he/she is soul. And once the word flesh is replaced by the word nefesh, the foundations of morality become possible and the concept of religion is able to undergo a radical change. No longer is its function to make man just aware of G-d's existence, but the driving force behind moral values. From this moment it taught the human being that since he has a soul he is a moral being and henceforth responsible for his deeds.
Remarkable is the fact that Abraham's personality must have been so inspiring that once he met a stranger, the latter automatically changed his language from physical to spiritual. Even the King of Sodom, far from being righteous, could no longer employ his old sensual expressions. When speaking to Abraham after the latter had rescued Lot, he says: "Give me the souls and take the goods for yourself" (13:21)
One has only to recall the abominable practices associated with the old polytheistic cults and Plato's criticism of the Greek religion because of the great moral evils it bred, to realize that the relation of religion to morals is by no means obvious. It was only in Judaism that the idea of the inseparableness of religion and ethical living arose. And from there this concept was taken over by Christianity, Islam and different legal systems. It is only because man is seen in terms of soul that he is asked to be ethical.
Once that is established, values such as "kedusha" (holiness) and "tahara" (spiritual purity) become possible.
All this became part of western civilization once Abraham revolutionized the world by replacing the word flesh with soul.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes inspiring articles. Sign up for our daily update. It's free. Just click here.
JWR contributor Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo is a world-renowned lecturer and ambassador for Judaism, the Jewish people, the State of Israel and Sephardic Heritage. Comment by clicking here.
© 2007, Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo
|
