{"id":38003,"date":"2018-08-15T23:14:47","date_gmt":"2018-08-15T20:14:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=38003"},"modified":"2022-03-09T22:28:08","modified_gmt":"2022-03-09T20:28:08","slug":"milimilim-the-hebrew-corner-gen-25","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/milimilim-the-hebrew-corner-gen-25\/","title":{"rendered":"MiliMiliM – The Hebrew Corner – Gen 25"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[281],"tags":[361,363],"acf":{"old_id":"38003","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":34011,"related_cahpter":"25","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_url":"","post_main_content":{"description":"\u05dc\u05d3\u05e8\u05d5\u05e9 - Lidrosh, Midrash - Inquire\r\n\r\n","content":"

25:22 – But the children struggled in her womb, and she said, \u201cIf so, why do I exist?\u201d She went <\/span>lidrosh<\/span><\/em>,<\/span><\/i> to inquire of the LORD,<\/span><\/p>\n

As Rabbi Shai Held points out in his excellent post for this chapter, the word <\/span>lidrosh<\/span><\/em> (\u201cto inquire;\u201d in Modern Hebrew, also \u201cto demand,\u201d) began its semantic journey already in the Tanakh. From going to inquire \u2018directly\u2019 of God (through prayer or possibly an oracle), the focus of inquiry gradually shifted to the word of God, the text. <\/span><\/p>\n

From the root of <\/span>lildrosh<\/span><\/em> we get the word <\/span>midrash<\/span><\/em>. Some are familiar with <\/span>midrash <\/span>(pl. <\/span>midrashim<\/span><\/em>) as stories told about Biblical characters that don’t appear in the Biblical text itself. Abraham destroying the idols, for instance, or the purportedly demonic character of Lilith in the Garden of Eden cycle, related in post-Biblical literature by the rabbis. <\/span><\/p>\n

But the act of midrash is much more than filling in details or backstories in the Tanakh. Midrash is both a genre of Jewish literature and also a process, a mode of interpretation \u2013 loosely, the ongoing creative and pluralistic interpretation and application of traditional texts in light of changing contemporary insight and needs. Which, come to think of it, isn’t a bad definition of Jewishness itself.<\/span><\/p>\n

For if we just had the text, broad and deep and glorious as it may be, we would be straitjacketed by fundamentalism. There would be no way to apply it, to update it, to make it relevant to new conditions, challenges and opportunities. In a world where Scriptures, faith, values, even religious legal systems abound, that creative, constructive form of reading known as <\/span>midrash<\/em> <\/span>is quite possibly the most original, and uniquely Jewish contribution to human civilization. <\/span><\/p>\n

Make no mistake: midrash is not an exclusively religious activity. On the contrary, non-observant or free-thinking or humanistic or rebellious Jewishness is some of the most authentic and powerful midrash there is. And without midrash, Jewish creativity, resourcefulness and inspiration are diminished. <\/span><\/p>\n

Almost any interpretation, commentary, or insight into the text can be spoken in the form of a <\/span>derashah<\/span><\/em> (\u201csermon\u201d), informally called a <\/span>drash<\/span><\/em>. In this radical act of reading, we strive to open up the text even as we open up ourselves to it; in the ensuing dialogue – between ourselves and the text – we place \u201cdemands\u201d (another meaning of <\/span>lidrosh<\/span><\/em>) on the text, but only if we allow the text to make demands on us. This is indeed something we learn from Rebecca\u2019 story: she went to inquire and demand an answer from God, to the demands and challenges that she was experiencing.<\/span><\/p>\n","image":{"ID":102810,"id":102810,"title":"-62290d8395c34--62290d8395c36gen25-milim darash.jpg","filename":"62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg.jpg","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2018\/08\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg.jpg","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/milimilim-the-hebrew-corner-gen-25\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash-jpg\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash-jpg","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":38003,"date":"2022-03-09 20:26:43","modified":"2022-03-09 20:26:58","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":537,"height":718,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2018\/08\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2018\/08\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg-224x300.jpg","medium-width":224,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2018\/08\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg.jpg","medium_large-width":537,"medium_large-height":718,"large":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2018\/08\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg.jpg","large-width":537,"large-height":718,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2018\/08\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg.jpg","1536x1536-width":537,"1536x1536-height":718,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2018\/08\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg.jpg","2048x2048-width":537,"2048x2048-height":718,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2018\/08\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg.jpg","post_full_size-width":537,"post_full_size-height":718,"home_baner":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2018\/08\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg-314x420.jpg","home_baner-width":314,"home_baner-height":420}},"embedded_video":"","video_duration":"","show_fb_comments":true,"credit_media":"

Artwork by: Ben Schachter<\/p>\n"},"tile":{"top_caption":"MiliMiliM - The Hebrew Corner","main_caption":"Chapter 25: \u05dc\u05d3\u05e8\u05d5\u05e9 - Lidrosh, Midrash - Inquire","main_caption_size":"1","sub_caption":"... a word from the daily chapter...","preview_embedded":"","preview_image":{"ID":102810,"id":102810,"title":"-62290d8395c34--62290d8395c36gen25-milim darash.jpg","filename":"62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg.jpg","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2018\/08\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg.jpg","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/milimilim-the-hebrew-corner-gen-25\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash-jpg\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash-jpg","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":38003,"date":"2022-03-09 20:26:43","modified":"2022-03-09 20:26:58","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":537,"height":718,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2018\/08\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2018\/08\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg-224x300.jpg","medium-width":224,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2018\/08\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg.jpg","medium_large-width":537,"medium_large-height":718,"large":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2018\/08\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg.jpg","large-width":537,"large-height":718,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2018\/08\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg.jpg","1536x1536-width":537,"1536x1536-height":718,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2018\/08\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg.jpg","2048x2048-width":537,"2048x2048-height":718,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2018\/08\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg.jpg","post_full_size-width":537,"post_full_size-height":718,"home_baner":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2018\/08\/62290d8395c34-62290d8395c36gen25-milim-darash.jpg-314x420.jpg","home_baner-width":314,"home_baner-height":420}},"preview_video":"","external_link":"","link_for_pay":false,"tile_gallery_items":false,"credits":"Robert Kneschke (shutterstock 161025986)"},"alternate_tile":{"top_caption":"","main_caption":"","main_caption_size":"1","sub_caption":"","hide_media":false},"tile_group":{"preview_image_url":false,"main_caption":"","sub_caption":"","":null,"popup_package_extra_content":"","read_time":""},"home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo":{"seo_title":"","seo_description":"","seo_default_title":"","seo_default_description":""},"old_create_date":"","links":false,"send_noty":false},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38003"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38003"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38003\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":102811,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38003\/revisions\/102811"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38003"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38003"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38003"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}