Synagogue Sermon
From Deflection to Defection (1967)
With startling simplicity and disarming nonchalance, the Torah records an event in this morning’s Sidra which is astonishing almost to the point of being shocking. The elders, together with Moses and Aaron, ascend Mt. Sinai to seal the covenant of Torah. At that time, we read, ya-yeḥezu et ha-Elohim, they saw the glory of God, va-yokhlu va-yishtu, and they ate and they drank.The juxtaposition of these two activities, so disjointed, so antithetical, so inappropriate to each other, presents us with what is probably the most painful paradox in all the Torah. Hence, it is not surprising to find two interpretations of this passage by our Sages which are diametrically opposed to each other: one commends the elders, and the other condemns them; one congratulates and one criticizes.The Midrash, quoted by Rashi, is quite harsh on the elders. It points to the first part of our verse, in which we read that “and to the nobles of Israel he did not stretch forth his hand,” i.e., God did not harm the elders. From this we learn, the Midrash deduces, that in reality the elders deserved to be punished. Why? Because hayu mistaklin bo be’lev gas, mi-tokh akhilah u-shetiah, they had the effrontery to gaze directly at the glory of God with a heart that was crass, crude, and vulgar, experiencing this supernatural phenomenon while they were stuffing themselves with food and drink.Onkelos, the Aramaic translator, however, gives us a reverse judgment. When the elders experienced this vision, he declares, they offered sacrifices, and were so thrilled and overjoyed that their offerings were accepted that they felt as if they themselves had eaten and drunk. They cherished their unusual vision, they “ate it up” and “drank it in.”Now it is presumptuous of me to decide between two giants of Israel who disagree as to an interpretation. But, as Maimonides taught us 800 years ago, “the gates of interpretation are not closed.” I therefore commend to you an explanation, based upon a certain psychologi…
