Walk Through the Parsha by Rabbi David Walk

Acceptance
Shavuot 5768
June 3, 2008
Judaism is an unusual religion. We have very little dogma or theology. There is just not much stuff that we are required to believe to be Jewish, and we don’t claim to know very much about God. Therefore, we didn’t burn heretics at the stake (Phew!). Generally being a Jew is based upon behavior patterns not belief system. According to many authorities (Joseph Albo, 1380-1444, Book of Essentials, even explains that Maimonides’ 13 can be boiled down to these three) there are only three basic beliefs which a Jew must accept, and they are: 1) belief in an active God, 2) belief that God revealed things to the world (basically Torah, but there are minimalists and maximalists in this arena), and 3) belief that we are responsible for our actions. Okay, accepting this now brings us to the idea that each of our holidays pushes one of these agendas. Pesach is about God interfering in the internal policies of Egypt to free us. Shavuot is about the revelation at Sinai. Sukkot is about the harvest which we connect to the High Holidays, because we believe that what we get is based upon merits in some complex way. So, here we are anticipating Shavuot, and therefore I’d like to say something about God giving us the Torah.

Let’s begin this inquiry with the following question: What the heck happened at Sinai? From the description in Exodus chapters 19 and 20 it seems that the incident was more like Woodstock than like a lecture hall. There was lightening brighter than any projection equipment, noise no sound system could compete with, and people were seeing what they normally hear. Cool! But the Sages downplay the psychedelic aspects in their description of the event, and focus on two other points from pertinent verses. Here’s the famous passage from the Talmud (Shabbat 88a): “And they stood underneath (literally ‘at the foot of’) the mountain (Exodus 19:). Rav Avdimi bar Chama bar Chisdah said: This teaches that God held the mountain over their heads like a barrel and said to them: "If you accept the Torah, good. And if not, your burial place will be there." Where’s the fun and joy? But later authorities were even more concerned about another issue.

Many authorities are perplexed by this coerced acceptance of the Torah, because it states explicitly that the Jews proclaimed, “All the Lord has said we shall do and we shall obey (Exodus 24:8).” Nu, which was it? Did the Jews joyously embrace God’s laws, or were they intimidated into accepting the Torah? The answer to this question has far reaching implications. The former chief rabbi of Tel Aviv, Rabbi Chayim David Halevi referred to this Talmudic story when he said, "There is no room for talking of democracy in a Jewish state. In a state that governs itself according to the Torah everyone is obligated to observe the commandments of the Torah as they were given at Sinai. Whoever thinks differently does not comprehend the significance of accepting the Torah (Aseh lekha Rav, 8.89).”
There is a popular, but cowardly, way out of the problem by explaining that the experience at Sinai was so overwhelming that normal free will was temporarily suspended. The coercive nature of the event was, therefore, psychological rather than physical. However, many authorities hold that in reality the shotgun nature of this covenant was necessary. The Maharal M’Prague (Rabbi Yehuda Loew, 1525-1609) explains that it was so important for the future existence of the world that the acceptance of the Torah by the Jewish nation couldn’t be left to chance. 

Like in parenting, some matters aren’t open to discussion.
These anti-democratic authorities, I believe, are ignoring the message in the continuation of the Talmudic passage: Rav Acha bar Yakov said: From here is allowed a disclaimer of their responsibility and culpability for acceptance of the Torah. Rava said: Despite this, they again accepted it willingly in the days of Achashveirosh, as it is written (Esther 9) "The Jews validated and accepted..." In other words an acceptance of Torah at gun point is meaningless; there had to be a later voluntary acquiescence to make it binding. The force of the Torah upon us is based upon our initial acknowledgment of its authority over us. Without that, the Jewish legal system would be optional. If the nation hadn’t concurred we’d have the Ten Suggestions instead of the Ten Commandments.

The Netziv (Rabbi Naftali Zvi Yehuda Berlin, 1820-1893) describes this process in his commentary on the mitzvah to appoint a king (Deuteronomy 17:14). The king has almost absolute power over the nation, but that power is precipitated by the people demanding a king. Ultimately the authority of rule comes from the consent of the governed.

Okay, we can make the case that the binding nature of Torah law is based upon the voluntary acceptance of the system by the Jews. However, why should I find this so interesting? Once those ancient ancestors acquiesced, we are stuck forever. I mean the United States doesn’t have to re-ratify the Constitution every generation. Once it’s in force that’s it. Maybe that only holds for enforcing the laws. What if there’s more than legal obligations? Reb Aharon Lichtenstein makes the following point: In addition to the challenge of observance, the giving of the Torah presents us with another challenge - to incorporate the experience of matan Torah into our very essence. Shavuot is not just the time to commemorate our acceptance of the Torah, but also the time when we remember most intensely the experience of the receiving the Torah.

There’s so much more than just accepting God’s rules and regulations. We must want to incorporate Godliness into every aspect of our lives. We must desire to understand God’s message in the mitzvoth. This is why we emphasize the reenactment of the experience at Sinai every year. Shavuot is the renewal of our vow to follow not only the letter of the Law, but its spirit, too.

Chag Sameach!