Introduction
The world today is seemingly divided when it comes to understanding the Bible. Religious fundamentalists hold that every word re ects unerring historical truth, while skeptics see biblical stories as little more than fairy tales. This book rejects both approaches. Rather, we view the Genesis and Exodus narratives as valuable instruction. Their truth is neither literal nor historical, but moral and ethical. Finding “truth” in a biblical narrative is akin to finding truth in a poem.
What does that mean? Let us say I am walking through a beautiful garden with my beloved on a gorgeous, warm spring afternoon. Overwhelmed by her beauty, I gaze at her and sigh, “Your eyes are two beautiful pools…” This does not mean I propose to dive in and take a swim, nor am I lying. I am, in fact, expressing a truth that rises from the very depth of my soul. I am presenting an accurate description of how my beloved makes me feel (Leonard Gardener et al., Genesis: The Teacher’s Guide, New York: The United Synagogue Commission on Jewish Education, 1966, pp. 18-19). We turn to the Torah for enlightenment or personal guidance rather than lessons in science or history.
Torah is a Hebrew word that means “instruction” or “learning.” It is a word that we understand in two ways: In its narrow sense, the Torah is the rst ve books of the Hebrew Bible: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. In a broader sense, though, the word Torah represents all of Jewish learningall of the accumulated wisdom and teaching that through the ages, the Jewish people have contributed to bene t the entire world.
What’s in It for Me? xiii
What’s In It for Me? Finding Ourselves in Biblical Narratives Description:
In a world filled with fundamentalists on the one hand and naysayers of religion on the other, there is a vast middle ground of people who can find purpose and meaning in their lives through biblical stories. What’s In It for Me? is based on my 40 years experience as a pulpit rabbi followed by 18 months as President of the World Union for Progressive Judaism.
During my World Union tenure I shared my understanding of these stories in 65 visits to communities on five continents. My book explores how the biblical stories in Genesis and Exodus are really our stories. The dilemmas faced and the emotions felt by Adam, Eve, Cain, Abraham, Sarah, Rebecca, Esau, Jacob, Joseph, Tamar, Judah, Moses, Aaron and Miriam are our dilemmas and our emotions.
