Yom Kippur

"And for the sin we committed against thee of tale bearing"

(From the prayer of confession on the Day of Atonement)

 

"Thou shall not go about as a talebearer"

"Do not stand idly over the blood of your neighbor. I am the Lord".

(Leviticus 19:17)

 

"Thou shall not go about as a talebearer"

It is my opinion that it is because all inciters of quarrel and those that relate evil talk "go" into the house of their friends to spy out what they can see as evil, in order to tell it in the marketplace, consequently, they are called "those who go about spying," . And proof for my words is the fact that we do not find tale bearing that is not written together with the term "going"; (e.g.), "Thou shall not go as a talebearer"; "going about as talebearers; they are brass and iron" (Jeremiah 6:28). But other evil talk, there is not written concerning it "going"; "who so slanders his neighbor in secret" (Psalms 101"5) "a deceitful tongue" (ibid 120:3); the tongue that speaketh proud things" (ibid 12:4).

(Rashi Leviticus 19:17)

 

"Thou shall not go up and down as a talebearer among thy people" - Some say that one shall not be a talebearer, but if one is privy to information that his colleague will be executed, wouldn't one inform him so that he may be saved? On the contrary, it is as if you yourself transgressed and killed him, as it is written "You shall not stand idly over your neighbor's blood". You should inform him immediately, and if not God will hold you accountable, as Solomon says in Ecclesiastes "So don't overdo goodness" (Ecc 7:16) for that is tale bearing.

"Thou shall not stand idly over your neighbor's blood" - Tale bearing should not lead to any killing, for if it does, one can no longer stand before God, even if he himself does not kill, it is as if he has killed. He can no longer be subject to the laws of man but will be judged by God alone. Furthermore, we learn from, "Thou shall not stand idly over your neighbor's blood", that if one knows someone is being tried for murder, every effort should be made to speak up in their favor and find some merit in them, as it is written "I have waited 'til they stopped speaking, 'til they ended and no longer replied." (Job 32:16) and as Nehemiah said, "As he opened it all the people stood," meaning in silence.

(Rabbi Mordehai HaCohen: Siftei Cohen, Leviticus)

 

 

 

Forgiveness as Poetry

Benjamin Segal

Over the centuries, the prayer book has "rediscovered" various psalms, including them in appropriate slots in the liturgy. So it is with Psalm 130, a psalm of forgiveness, first designated by(eighth century) tractate Sofrim for Yom Kippur, and then by Isaac Luria (the ARI) for all ten days of repentance (before the morning kaddish and barchu), a practice which continues to gain popularity.

The subject of Psalm 130 is sin-and-forgiveness. The noun "forgiveness" is a late biblical word, appearing only here in the singular and in Nehemiah and Daniel in the plural ("God of forgivenesses"). It is the first mention, then, of what would become the object of much theological musing across all the centuries. (As a verb, the root "forgive," s-l-ch, appears a number of times earlier. It is of some interest that within the Bible "forgiving" is always an act of God and never an act the man.)

This is not, however, theology, a systematic attempt to describe or proscribe forgiveness. It is, rather, what we might call pre-theological musing, an attempt through poetry to reflect on forgiveness as we confront it in our lives: its import, its difficulties, its uncertainties. (Religious search and angst are best reflected in poetry. Theology is articulated in prose.)

To appreciate this psalm, we must first note a number of poetic techniques used by Psalms. These include the import of repetition in defining sections, a careful subtlety in use of words, and a clear preference for coexistent levels of interpretation (a reflection of the complexity of life). Form helps determine meaning.

 

Psalm 130

1. A Song of Ascents. From the depths I call You, O LORD,

2. O Lord, hear my voice; let Your ears be attentive to the voice of my pleas for mercy.

3. If You would keep account of sins, O LORD, Lord, who could endure?

4. For forgiveness is Yours, so that You may be held in awe.

5. I hope, LORD; my soul hopes; I await His word.

6. My soul - for the Lord, more than watchmen for the morning, watchmen for the morning.

7. O Israel, wait for the LORD, for with the LORD is loving kindness and with Him, great redemption,

8. And He will redeem Israel from all its sins.

 

Words and Phrases

Later interpreters, both Jewish and Christian, have discovered in Psalm 130 reflections of their belief and theological systems, often seeing it as a didactic psalm. None of these approaches, however, captures the essence of the psalm. To appreciate the psalm, one must note its various structures, but even before proceeding to them, I note a number of basic and revealing terms.

"Depths" - in the Bible, this term can be a reference to a psychological state, to the seas or to death. All three inform the present usage, where there is danger, helplessness and apprehension. In addition, there may be a degree of irony here, for the speaker does set these "depths" against the title of the psalm, "Song of the Ascents."

Verse 6 is magnificently multivalent. Here the metaphor "(more than) watchmen for the morning" could refer to a very wide (and mutually exclusive) range of nighttime situations: terror, quiet, peacefulness, anxiety, cold, fear, weariness, and/or impatience. Similarly, it is unclear whether "morning" simply implies an end to whatever it is that "night" implies or is another specific reference (assured change, light as happiness, relief at the end of a work shift, the ability to rest, etc.). In any case the focus of the verse is on the nighttime, which seems to weigh very heavily on the guards.

"Great redemption," marks (like the use of "forgiveness" as a noun) a new stage in Jewish thought. This is the first and only time in the Bible that "redemption" is the extraction from sin. (It is usually extraction from a much more concrete difficulty such as debt, slavery, childlessness, etc.) By implication, then, "sin" is seen as an entrapment, and this usage reinforces other biblical uses of the "sin" which imply "guilt" and befits such verses as "indeed, I was born with iniquity," (Psalm 51:7), implying a condition more than an act. The speaker is caught.

 

The Primary Structure

Psalm 130 presents itself in two sections. Verses 1 and 2 repeat "voice," a reflection of the text's desperation. The second section, verses 3 and on, is enclosed by "sins," and presents a fascinating reflection on man facing God from within sin, while seeking forgiveness. In both sections, particularly in verses 2 and 5, there is no small degree of irony, for the emphasis seems to be on uncertainty, and the degree of desperation. (On the effect of the last two verses, see below.) As to the division into these two parts, one could see the second section as the very content of the plea for mercy mentioned at the beginning. (This is slightly difficult, however, in that the second section really includes no request!) Concerning the second section, literarily it is fascinating in that both "forgiveness" and "hope" seem trapped within the opening and closing mentions of "sins," adding to the sense of desperation.

When the speaker addresses the people in the last two verses, the import is less than clear. As he asks them to wait and reassures them, one wonders whether he seeks to teach them or to reassure himself. Further, did he share with his audience the uncertainty inherent in verses 5 and 6? If so, why would he assume that they would accept his reassurance, and if not, why did he hide his internal rumblings?

 

Concomitant Structures

At the same time, there are other structures built into Psalm 130 which allow for parallel readings and insights, these no less valid than those noted above. Literarily, these are based on repetitions in verses 1-2, 5-6, and 7-8, allowing one to read the psalm as four sets of two verses. In that regard, there are no less than four possible readings.

a.              On one hand, these could be alternating pairs, as the speaker concentrates on himself (verses 1, 2, 5, 6) and on God (verses 3, 4, 7, 8). This is a most effective reflection of desired dialogue, set against the ominous background that here only man speaks to God, not the opposite.

b.              The poem can be read, however, as two equal halves, desperation followed by expectation. (This requires, however, a very positive understanding of the verbs and implications of verses 5 and 6.) Such a positive reading is almost a counter assertion to the entrapped feeling noted earlier.

c.              Those divisions lead, in turn, the two different overviews, both of which are found among commentators. Some see this poem as progressing toward ever greater levels of assurance, culminating in the last line, similar to the effect of the previous paragraph.

d.              There is, however, an exactly opposite suggestion, based on the interplay among characters. The psalm begins as a dialogue between the speaker and God, but subsequent references to God appear in the third person, not the second person, and after that, the speaker as "I" disappears. The final verses are a reflection from afar, on a national rather than a personal level. This would suggest a poem which progresses from intimacy to distance.

All of these, of course, stand as opposed to the primary division, which is static, a desperate call for forgiveness from within the inner, trapped world of sin.

 

Sin and Forgiveness, Poetry and Theology

The most egregious mistake made by commentators of Psalms is the comparison of interpretations, and the insistence that the poet implies only one level of meaning (which, of course, the commentator understands!). The opposite is the case. The poetry of Psalms allows and demands concomitant readings, words expressing much more than they could ever do as prose. Feeling trapped by sin and feeling sure we can be forgiven are not contradictions, but two accurate reflections of how we feel.

It is most appropriate, then, that Psalm 130 has been inserted in the High Holiday liturgy. The Psalm addresses the heart, not the mind. We as human beings, facing guilt and seeking forgiveness, are confused, doubtful, hopeful, certain and uncertain all at the same time, or at least in alternating moments. Later theologies would provide instruction and reassurance. The beginning of the process, however, is to confront one's point of departure, as reflected in this psalm. One needs no redemption if one is not caught in the depths of sin.

Rabbi Benjamin Segal is the author of a new commentary on Psalms, A New Psalm: The Psalms as Literature, published this month by Gefen Publishing and the Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies. His The Song of Songs, A Woman in Love was published in 2009 (Gefen).

 

 

Our father, our king, be gracious to us and answer us, though we have no merits, deal charitably with us and kindly with us and save us.

Then the Lord said: "You cared about the plant, which you did not work for and which you did not grow, which appeared over night and perished overnight. And should I not care about Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and many beasts as well. (Yonah 4:10-11)

God has mercy on man and beast, that is to say, on man as on the beast, and this reminds us of the parallel verse, You save man and beast, Lord (Tehillim 36:7). That is to say, God's mercy and kindness are completely independent of man and his deeds, as the prophet said, for my plans are not your plans nor are My ways your ways... But as the heavens are high above the earth, so are My ways high above your ways (Isaiah 55:8-9). God's relationship to man and to the world are none other than what is termed "the Divine matter" which is above all human actions and behavior, even above man's acts of repentance.

(Y. Leibowitz, Sihot al Hagei Yisrael Ve'Moadav, pg. 193)

 

Conciliation Is A Complex Process and Does Not Take into Consideration "Who Is Right"

Yom Kippur does not atone for social transgression until one placates his fellow - this is how Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya expounded "Of all your sins before God shall you be cleansed" - Sins between man and God are atoned for by Yom Kippur; sins between man and his fellow, Yom Kippur does not affect atonement until he placates his fellow.

(Mishnah Yoma 8:9)

 

Rav once had an altercation with a slaughterer of livestock. The latter did not come before him [for reconciliation]. On Yom Kippur Eve, Rav said: "I will go to him myself to appease him."

[On the way] Rav Huna met him and asked: "Where is the master going?" He replied: "To reconcile with so and so". He said: "Abba is going to commit murder." He went anyway. The slaughterer was seated, hammering an ox head. He raised his eyes and saw him. He said to him: "Abba, you? Go away. I have nothing in common with you!" At that moment, a bone broke loose, lodged itself in his throat, and killed him.

(Yoma 87a)

 

"Rav once had an altercation with a slaughterer of livestock". The text does not tell us who was right or who was wrong. The commentators unanimously agree that Rav was in the right. But the butcher did not come on Yom Kippur eve to ask forgiveness of Rav. Rav therefore felt it was his duty to bring forth this demand for forgiveness, for the sake of the offender: he decided to appear before the person who insulted him. Here we have a reversal of obligation. It is the offended party who worries about the forgiveness that the offender does not concern himself with. Rav goes out of his way to provoke a crisis of conscience in the slaughterer of livestock. The task is not easy!

Rav's disciple, whom he meets on the way, is aware of this. This disciple, Rav Huna, asks: "Where is the master going?" "To reconcile with so and so." To which Rav Huna replies, without illusions: "Abba (familiar name of Rav) is going to commit a murder." Rav Huna is convinced that the slaughterer will not be moved by Rav's gesture; fault of the slaughterer will only be aggravated. Excessive moral sensitivity will become the cause of death. The game of offense and forgiveness is a dangerous one. But Rav ignores the advice of his pupil. He finds the slaughterer at his professional occupation. He is seated and hammering an ox head. He nevertheless raises his eyes to insult once again the person coming humbly toward him. "Go away, Abba. I have nothing in common with you."

The expression is marvelously precise and underlines one of the essential aspects of the situation. Mankind is spread out different levels. It is made up of multiple worlds that are closed to one another because of their unequal heights. Men do not yet form a single humanity. As the slaughterer keeps strictly to his level, he keeps on hammering the head; suddenly a bone breaks loose from it and kills him. It is certainly not of a miracle that the story wants to tell us, but of this death within the systems in which humanity closes itself off. It also wants to speak to us of the purity which can kill, in a mankind as yet unequally evolved, and of the enormity of the responsibility which Rav took upon himself in his premature confidence in the humanity of the Other.

(From E. Levinas: Nine Talmudic Readings, translated by Annette Aronowicz, pp. 22-23)

 

Between man and his fellow man

 On the eve of Yom Kippur, one should devote his attention towards placating all those against whom he has sinned, since Yom Kippur atones for sins between man and God, but Yom Kippur cannot atone for sins between man and his fellow, until he assuages him. Even if he merely teased him with words, he must appease him, going to him. If he is not appeased the first time, he must return again and a third time. Every time he should take three people with him to assuage him, in order that he forgive him, And if, after three attempts, he will not be appeased, there is no reason to continue cajoling him. These words are true of his fellow, but in the case of his rabbi, he must bring many friends (to intercede) until he is assuages. If he dies, he shall bring ten people and stand them by his grave and say, "I have sinned to the God of Israel and to so-and-so whom I have offended. This is done so that the heart of each person of Israel will be content with his fellow, so that there will be no room for Satan to speak against them.

(Tur Ohr Haim, 606)