{"id":55234,"date":"2019-05-10T08:26:02","date_gmt":"2019-05-10T05:26:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=55234"},"modified":"2022-12-04T15:49:34","modified_gmt":"2022-12-04T13:49:34","slug":"siseras-mother-and-the-suffering-of-the-enemy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/siseras-mother-and-the-suffering-of-the-enemy\/","title":{"rendered":"Sisera\u2019s Mother And The Suffering Of The Enemy"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"entry-content\"><\/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":[476,604,448,761],"acf":{"old_id":"55234","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":37561,"related_cahpter":"216","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content":{"description":"","content":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This chapter, known as the Song of Deborah, records a military triumph after Yael killed the general Sisera. Yet in the midst of this victory song comes a brief but bizarre narrative. Verse 28 narrates a poignant vignette of the enemy general Sisera\u2019s mother, waiting at the window for his return and wondering why he is delayed. The insertion of this verse is strange: why the disconnect between a triumphant song of victory and the tragedy of the suffering of Sisera\u2019s mother?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In some ways the insertion of the sadness of the vignette is deeply Jewish: in our greatest celebrations, we remember the suffering of our enemies. At Jewish weddings, we break a glass; at the Passover Seder, we spill drops of wine in remembrance of Egyptian suffering from the plagues. The Sages of the Talmud claim a deep meaning from the cries of Sisera\u2019s unnamed mother. They derive the shofar blasts we hear on Rosh Hashanah- <em>teruah, shevarim<\/em>, etc- from this verse, connecting the different verbs describing the the moaning and wailing of Sisera\u2019s bereaved mother with each of the shofar blasts.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Why cite the sorrow of this unnamed woman at the death of her son as the source of Jewish law for one of the holiest days of the year? If anything, the shofar, which is also used in battle, should remind us of God\u2019s steadfast protection of our armies as they go into battle.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But we are reminded of this tradition of remembering the pain of others even in our greatest moments of joy and connection to God. And perhaps this is precisely why the Rabbis wanted us to remember Sisera\u2019s mother as we hear the shofar: what we might interpret as a call to be attuned to God is really a call to listen carefully to those around us. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We cannot ask for God\u2019s care and compassion if we are not able to offer care and compassion to everyone we meet. In the cries of the shofar, we hear the cries of the bereaved who we have failed to comfort, the moans of suffering even of our sworn enemies. In the cries of the shofar, we are reminded: all of us are human, all of us suffer loss, and all of us pray that this will be a year in which it does not happen to us. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The only question is: are we ready to listen?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Image: Albert Joseph Moore (1841-1893), The Mother of Sisera Looked out a Window \/ wikipedia<\/span><\/p>\n","image":{"ID":55235,"id":55235,"title":"jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window","filename":"jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window.jpg","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window.jpg","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/siseras-mother-and-the-suffering-of-the-enemy\/jud5-the_mother_of_sisera_looked_out_a_window\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"jud5-the_mother_of_sisera_looked_out_a_window","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":55234,"date":"2019-05-10 05:25:29","modified":"2019-05-10 05:25:40","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":603,"height":797,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window-227x300.jpg","medium-width":227,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window.jpg","medium_large-width":603,"medium_large-height":797,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window.jpg","large-width":603,"large-height":797,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window.jpg","1536x1536-width":603,"1536x1536-height":797,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window.jpg","2048x2048-width":603,"2048x2048-height":797,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window.jpg","post_full_size-width":603,"post_full_size-height":797,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window-318x420.jpg","home_baner-width":318,"home_baner-height":420}},"embedded_video":"","video_duration":"","show_fb_comments":true,"credit_media":""},"tile":{"top_caption":"","main_caption":"Sisera\u2019s Mother And The Suffering Of The Enemy","main_caption_size":"1","sub_caption":"An unexpected inspiration for a very Jewish practice","preview_embedded":"","preview_image":{"ID":55235,"id":55235,"title":"jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window","filename":"jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window.jpg","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window.jpg","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/siseras-mother-and-the-suffering-of-the-enemy\/jud5-the_mother_of_sisera_looked_out_a_window\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"jud5-the_mother_of_sisera_looked_out_a_window","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":55234,"date":"2019-05-10 05:25:29","modified":"2019-05-10 05:25:40","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":603,"height":797,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window-227x300.jpg","medium-width":227,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window.jpg","medium_large-width":603,"medium_large-height":797,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window.jpg","large-width":603,"large-height":797,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window.jpg","1536x1536-width":603,"1536x1536-height":797,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window.jpg","2048x2048-width":603,"2048x2048-height":797,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window.jpg","post_full_size-width":603,"post_full_size-height":797,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jud5-The_Mother_of_Sisera_Looked_out_a_Window-318x420.jpg","home_baner-width":318,"home_baner-height":420}},"preview_video":"","external_link":"","link_for_pay":false,"tile_gallery_items":false,"credits":""},"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":""},"links":false},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55234"}],"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=55234"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55234\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":109631,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55234\/revisions\/109631"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=55234"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=55234"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=55234"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}