Moses came, together with Hosea son of Nun, and recited all the words of this poem in the hearing of the people. D’varim/Deuteronomy 32:44
A poem should be palpable and mute… Dumb… Silent…
A poem should be wordless…
A poem should be motionless in time…
A poem should be equal to:
Not true…
A poem should not mean
But be.(1)
I believe the poet Archibald MacLeish, while not in any way reflecting upon our Torah portion, has captured an essential truth regarding the Shira, the poem which Moshe bequeaths to the Children of Israel. The Shira, gains an aspect of eternality through its transmission from generation. It continues as a palpable reality carried by the Jewish people.
Hearing the Shira chanted in the synagogue, we are carried along by the rise and fall of the melody, we feel the rise and fall of the fortunes of the Israelites in its varying tonalities, we are transported to the Steppes of Moab and stand with our ancestors hearing Moshe’s words.
We will parse the ancient words, exploring the metaphors of the Divine-Israelite encounter, the dynamics of the relationship, and the profound sense of disillusion. The Shira will travel the gamut of emotions, from joy to despair, elation to anger, and love to hate. Much like the Torah scroll in which it is written, it is a physical presence in our midst, a reminder of our covenantal relationship with the Holy One that goes beyond the words expressed.
For MacLeish, this wordless weight is sufficient but not so for our venerable teacher Moshe. Torah cannot simply be a physical reminder of our engagement with God, taken out of the Ark and paraded through the congregation as we reach out to kiss it with our tzitzit or siddur before returning it to its sacred space. For Moshe, the reality of the Shira, its echo in our midst, is only the launch pad for exploration. And so, Moshe continues after the Shira concludes:
Take to heart all the words with which I have attested to you this day. Enjoin them upon your children, that they may observe faithfully all the terms of this Teaching. For this is not a trifling thing for you: it is your very life…(2)
For Moshe, feeling the palpability of Torah is insufficient. The words of Torah needed to be pored over, explored, examined, and ultimately internalized so that they can be reflected in our lives, lives that truly reflect our being in a relationship with the Divine.
Shabbat Shalom –
Rabbi David M. Eligberg
1 Excerpts from “Ars Poetica” by Archibald MacLeish
2 D’varim/Deuteronomy 32:46-47a
Musical Moment for Yom Kippur
Dan Nichols and Eighteen – Kehilah Kedoshah
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAfm59sm71E
This piece captures the hope that we can sing together before GOD, seeing the sacred community that we become when we are able to see the sacred in those around us.
Aviva Chernick – Chadesh Yamenu
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fp6G34jwdPc
I first heard Aviva Chernick at the Ashkenaz Festival in Toronto in 2010 where she and her group Jaffa Road captivated the audience with the most spiritually moving Selichot “service” I have ever attended. The song’s is an invitation to a renewal of ourselves and our relationship with the Holy One.
Copyright © 2024 Rodef Sholom Temple. All rights reserved. Website designed by Addicott Web.
