{"id":73841,"date":"2020-04-27T18:34:59","date_gmt":"2020-04-27T15:34:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=73841"},"modified":"2020-04-27T18:46:43","modified_gmt":"2020-04-27T15:46:43","slug":"a-cosmic-betrothal-model","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/a-cosmic-betrothal-model\/","title":{"rendered":"A Cosmic Betrothal Model"},"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":[],"acf":{"old_id":"73841","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":38322,"related_cahpter":"468","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content":{"description":"God spreads God\u2019s robe over a consecrated Israel","content":"

Ezekiel 16 depicts the nascent relationship between God and Israel in graphically erotic terms. God, the male protector, follows the feminine Israel from her birth \u201cwallowing in blood\u201d to her maturity into womanhood with \u201cfirm breasts and sprouted hair\u201d.\u00a0 Though fully formed physically she remains naked, prompting God to \u201cspread His robe\u201d over her, not simply to cover her nakedness, but to embrace her in marriage. God replaces the \u201claw of Moses and Israel\u201d which seals the earthly betrothal formula whereby the Jewish groom \u201cconsecrates\u201d the bride (<\/span>harei at mekudedshet li<\/span><\/em>), with a covenantal oath that publicly broadcasts an exclusive commitment to His national bride- <\/span>You became Mine<\/span><\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Rabbinic traditions often view divine behaviour as a model for human beings. They understand the injunction to \u201cwalk in His ways\u201d (Deut.28:9) as a cardinal mitzvah demanding \u201cas He is so shall you be,\u201d philosophically recognizable as <\/span>imitatio dei<\/span><\/em>, and listed in the top ten of Maimonides\u2019 enumeration of positive commandments. There are thus two dimensions of God\u2019s betrothal of Israel which pose a model that \u201cwalking in His ways\u201d would oblige every mundane betrothal to include.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The first is its national feature. When the pronouncement is made that regular marriage is sanctified in conformity with Mosaic law, there is the danger that the law\u2019s instrumental role also forging a national ethos might be lost in the technical complexities of what we term <\/span>halakha<\/span><\/em>. God\u2019s address to Jerusalem, the Jewish nation\u2019s capital, at the beginning of the chapter as His potential bride, introduces the national characteristic that hovers over every marriage, reminding the couple that its partnership contributes to Israel\u2019s nation building, the ‘<\/em><\/span>am<\/span><\/em>, <\/span><\/i>as well as perpetuating its religion, the <\/span>dat<\/span><\/em>.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

The second is the spiritual feature of God\u2019s \u201cspreading His robe\u201d over Israel, thus drawing her into His realm. The regular \u2018betrothal\u2019 (<\/span>erusin<\/span><\/em>) blessing depicts the ceremony as a halakhic sanction of an exclusive nature, using the language of legality in consecrating by way of \u201cforbidding and permitting.\u201d God\u2019s nuptials however prevent the primary act of consecration \u201cin accordance with Mosaic law\u201d which immediately follows from connoting solely that legalistic sense. Mosaic law of course does not regulate God\u2019s conduct for He is the transcendent Source of it. While the earthly Jewish marriage grounds a husband and wife and enfolds them into Judaism\u2019s laws and traditions governing their relationship and the house they will eventually build, God\u2019s pristine ceremony does not ground but elevates. Strikingly, it is precisely a \u201ctime of lovemaking\u201d (‘<\/em><\/span>et dodim<\/span><\/em>) that invites divine matrimony (v. 8). Yet, all the actions that follow in that verse combine to transform lovemaking from what might become self-serving to a sublime relationship: protection provided by <\/span>spreading a robe<\/span><\/em>; compassion of <\/span>covering nakedness<\/span><\/em>; the inviolable commitment of an <\/span>oath; <\/span><\/i>the reciprocity of <\/span>entering a covenant<\/span><\/em>; <\/span><\/i>and the inimitable uniqueness of <\/span>you became Mine<\/span><\/em>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Ezekiel\u2019s cosmic marriage then foregrounds all others by consecrating rather than merely formalizing marriage, jolting the couple into the meta-halakhic ineffable space it must also inhabit to truly flourish.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","image":{"ID":73842,"id":73842,"title":"ez16-just married","filename":"ez16-just-married.png","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez16-just-married.png","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/a-cosmic-betrothal-model\/ez16-just-married\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"ez16-just-married","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":73841,"date":"2020-04-27 15:33:21","modified":"2020-04-27 15:33:33","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/png","type":"image","subtype":"png","icon":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1920,"height":1920,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez16-just-married-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez16-just-married-300x300.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez16-just-married-768x768.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":768,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez16-just-married-1024x1024.png","large-width":1024,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez16-just-married.png","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1536,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez16-just-married.png","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1920,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez16-just-married-1200x1200.png","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez16-just-married-420x420.png","home_baner-width":420,"home_baner-height":420}},"embedded_video":"","video_duration":"","show_fb_comments":true,"credit_media":""},"tile":{"top_caption":"","main_caption":"A Cosmic Betrothal Model","main_caption_size":"1","sub_caption":"God spreads God\u2019s robe over a consecrated Israel","preview_embedded":"","preview_image":{"ID":73842,"id":73842,"title":"ez16-just married","filename":"ez16-just-married.png","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez16-just-married.png","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/a-cosmic-betrothal-model\/ez16-just-married\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"ez16-just-married","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":73841,"date":"2020-04-27 15:33:21","modified":"2020-04-27 15:33:33","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/png","type":"image","subtype":"png","icon":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1920,"height":1920,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez16-just-married-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez16-just-married-300x300.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez16-just-married-768x768.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":768,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez16-just-married-1024x1024.png","large-width":1024,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez16-just-married.png","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1536,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez16-just-married.png","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1920,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez16-just-married-1200x1200.png","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez16-just-married-420x420.png","home_baner-width":420,"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\/73841"}],"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=73841"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73841\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":73843,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73841\/revisions\/73843"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=73841"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=73841"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=73841"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}