Blemished sacrifices, blemished religion

The chapter of Judaism Reclaimed which relates to parashat Emor opens by focusing on the laws of blemishes which disqualify kohanim and korbanot from the Mikdash service, before expanding into a broad discussion of the appropriate roles and interplay between emotion and intellect in Judaism.

The laws of blemishes are most simply understood as serving to enhance the honour and glory of the Mikdash and korbanot, since people have a natural tendency to respect institutions which present an impressive and immaculate appearance. Rabbi S. R. Hirsch, however, interprets these commands in the context of his broader approach to the Mikdash and korbanot. In doing so offers some profound insights. The overarching idea represented through the offering of an unblemished animal as a korban, he explains, is that of absolute dedication of one’s entire self—personality, capabilities, and aspirations—to God and His Torah. A defective limb in an animal which is being so dedicated carries the message that an aspect of the person’s personality is being excluded from this total commitment to God, a part of his life over which he intends to retain autonomy and place beyond the reach of the Torah’s commandments. Despite the practical reality of human frailty and imperfection, it is axiomatic that man must accept that the basis of his relationship with God be all-encompassing.

In a further explanation of the invalidity of both Kohanim and animals with blemishes, R’ Hirsch draws upon his perspective of the Mikdash and the role that it is intended to fulfil within the Jewish nation. Examining the function commonly played by religion and places of worship among the other nations, he writes:

Their priests and sanctuaries await the misfortune and grief of their believers…Religion to them is a consolation for the suffering and disadvantaged…[but]…does not hold sway in life that is vibrant and effervescent.

In Judaism, by contrast, the Mikdash represents its religious ideal: total commitment to God, not out of grief or a feeling of deficiency, but rather from recognition of the inherent goodness and truth of God and His Torah. This ideal of serving God positively through strength, joy and clarity of mind is represented by the requirement that all aspects of the Mikdash service, including the Kohanim who perform it and the korbanot which are to be offered, display the impression of “tamim” completeness. Judaism Reclaimed shows how this principle is strongly reflected by other laws such as the emphasis on light (Menorahs) in the Mikdash, where korbanot were offered only in daylight hours and in a state of total sobriety. This in stark contrast to the atmosphere of darkness, mystery, and fear which would typically prevail in pagan temples. Most striking, however, is the extent to which the Mikdash service and its priests are kept completely apart from any contact or association with death by the laws of tumah. This point is explored by Rabbi Simi Lerner in the second half of his superb weekly Rav Hirsch podcast http://www.ravhirsch.org/p/top-10-1473077106/.

R' Hirsch’s understanding of the Mikdash’s laws and service being intended to signal the ideal of worshipping God through strength, joy and clarity is built upon in the second half of the chapter. We draw upon the early section of Halakhic Man, where the Rav launches a stinging attack on the vacuous spirituality that he believed has crept into Judaism as an escape from rational doubts and challenges. Thus

“religion should ally itself with the forces of clear, logical cognition, as uniquely exemplified by the scientific method, even though at times the two may clash with one another, rather than pledge its troth to beclouded, mysterious ideologies that grope in the dark corners of existence, unaided by the shining light of objective knowledge, and believe that they have penetrated to the secret core of the world”

This he contrasts with halachah, a central pillar of Judaism, which requires a Jew to grapple constantly with the intricate and diverse elements of the world, using clear intellect to encompass within his intellect the will and wisdom of God.

The chapter concludes with a lengthy analysis of R’ Hirsch’s rejection of what he felt were two erroneous approaches to religion. First is the ultra-emotional emphasis which places the subjective “feeling of utter dependence on God” at the pinnacle of religious meaning. This approach, which was popularised by certain Christian movements in Germany in his day, was strongly rejected by R’ Hirsch, who sought to demonstrate that Judaism requires emotion and feeling to be subservient to its laws. Many who place R’ Hirsch and Rambam together in the category of “Rationalist Sages” are shocked to discover, however, that Rambam’s “Arab-Greek” philosophical worldview – which elevates the comprehension of Divine truths to an ultimate goal – is the subject of an even stronger critique from R’ Hirsch.

The Hirschian understanding of Judaism concludes that, while the Torah appeals to both human feeling and intellect, it is neither the sublime emotional experience nor abstract philosophical speculation of the Divine that represents the Torah’s ultimate goal. When utilized to comprehend and attach a person to the Torah’s laws and teachings, both intellect and emotion are enriched and can claim legitimacy. Any attempt, however, to elevate emotional experience or intellectual speculation to represent the Torah’s ultimate purpose, and by extension to subordinate the Torah’s commandments to the facilitation of this greater goal, is viewed by R’ Hirsch as an illegitimate intrusion on the sovereign status of Torah law.

First posted on Facebook 7 May 2020, here.