Immortality and the bare bones of religion

A few months ago I had the privilege to join an archaeological tour in the centre of Jerusalem. Upon reaching the site of an ancient grave, the guide related how it had once been customary to bury an entire extended family within a single grave. He explained that, once the body had decomposed in its initial resting place, the bones were then collected and combined with the other bones of the deceased’s family – hence the biblical description of death as being “gathered unto one’s people”.This eplanation was still floating around my mind more recently when I read Rabbi S. R. Hirsch’s analysis of this phrase. As part of a broader discussion regarding the apparent lack of references to the World to Come in the Torah, Rav Hirsch argued that the description of being “gathered to one’s people” is a certain indication that biblical figures believed in the immortality of the soul. Taking his argument to the other extreme, Rav Hirsch maintained that immortality of the soul was such a given in the ancient world that the Torah did not need to stake out any fundamental claim or proof for it (any more than it feels the need to prove the existence of God). Rather it is taken for granted that, with the demise of the body, “the spirit returns to God who gave it” (Kohelet 12:7). It was only in later eras when “sects alien to the spirit of Judaism” began to deny immortality of the soul that it became necessary for this doctrine to be formalised into a fundamental principle of faith.

One passage in this week’s parashah appears to bolster Rav Hirsch’s argument quite strongly. Describing the death of Ya’akov, the Torah describes how “he passed away and was gathered unto his people” (49:33). Yet this could not possibly have been describing the combining of bones that my tour guide spoke of, or even Ya’akov being laid to rest in the tomb of his ancestors. Immediately following his “being gathered unto his people”, we read how Ya’akov is embalmed – a process which takes 40 days – before lying in state for a further 70 days of national mourning. Only after this is there a discussion concerning Ya’akov’s burial arrangements and an eventual burial procession (which includes a further seven days of mourning at Goren Ha’atad). It would seem therefore, that it is indeed Ya’akov’s actual death rather the burial of his physical body which is being referred to as him “being gathered to his people”. This therefore can constitute an important biblical reference to the soul’s immortality.

The scarcity of references to the World to Come in the Torah is seen by Rav Hirsch as an important indicator of Judaism’s priorities. Basing himself on the writings of Rav Hirsch, Rabbi Y. Y. Weinberg (*Seridei Aish* vol. 4) described how the Israelite religion is focused very much on the thriving of humanity within this world, on guiding both the individual and the community to a vibrant and meaningful existence. This, he claims, was the reality of ancient Israel, in the times of the Tannaim, Amoraim and Geonim, and partially also in the Golden Age experienced by the Jewish people in Spain. Judaism never idealised suffering for Israel, rather it looked to celebrate and refine human life in its state of joy and thriving success. No one dreamed of a possible separation between religion and life, as though they were distinct or opposing forces.

But the Jewish people, influenced by asceticism and philosophy while in exile among Christian countries, underwent a mighty change during the time of the terrible Crusades. The horrific persecutions which followed, the banishment from different areas of life, the deprivation of breathing space and limitation of movement also damaged and seriously weakened the religious strength of the Jew.

Together with the impoverishment of our life, the scope of our religion became increasingly narrow. Broad, important areas of life were cruelly wrested from our people and its religion. The Hebrew soul was torn to shreds. That joy which results from the total correspondence of spirit and life, ceased in Israel. Religion lost its focus on refining and sanctifying the joyful worldly life, and consequently, life ceased to be a matter of religion and became a secular affair.

The concept 'secular life', which is foreign to the spirit of Israel, came to dominate during those dark times. The religious sense no longer drew sustenance directly from life, and was sustained only by the fear of death, and terror of severe penalties of the World to Come. It is true, of course, that belief in divine reward and punishment is a basic Jewish principle, but extensive use of it, placing it at the centre of religious feeling, turning it into the solitary propelling force for fulfilling mitzvot, diminishes the vibrancy and beauty of the life which Judaism guides us to build. This 'separation from life' resulted in the adoption of a negative stance towards life's achievements. The spirit of Israel wore black, donning a cloak of asceticism foreign to the spirit of Judaism.

First posted on Facebook 12 December 2021, here.