Torah Wrestling: Embracing the Marginalized in Jewish Sacred Scripture and Discovering Moral Wisdom for Today (Rabbi Roy Furman) - Review .
As a Christian, I understand the
Torah and the other books that comprise the Jewish Bible (Tanakh) to be part of
Christian scripture, what Christians call the Old Testament. These books provide
the foundation for the Christian faith as taught and embodied by Jesus, Paul,
and the other early Christian writers. As might be expected of me as a
Christian, I read these texts through a lens that features Jesus and his
teachings. While Christians make use of a Christological lens to read these
texts, Jews view these same texts, which they consider to be sacred scripture,
through a very different lens or set of lenses. While it is not inappropriate
to read the Jewish scriptures through the lens Jesus provides Christians, we
who are Christians would be wise to listen to what Jewish interpreters have to
say about their own scriptures. After all, Christians have appropriated these texts
without the permission of the Jewish community.
Because Christians have, across
time, not only appropriated Jewish scriptures but also persecuted and even
murdered Jews, many Jews are not keen on engaging Christians in the study of
these texts. However, there are some, including Amy Jill Levine, who have
chosen to do so. Rabbi Roy Furman is another Jewish interpreter of scripture
who invites Christians and Muslims to participate in the conversation about
shared texts. We see this invitation present in Furman’s book Torah
Wrestling. Rabbi Furman's reading of Jewish scripture has been influenced
by his education at Hebrew Union College—Jewish Institute of Religion, as well
as his work with havurot (Jewish fellowship groups), minyanim (prayer
groups, as well as Jewish congregations in Los Angeles, Portland, Chicago, and
Evanston Illinois, along with his work with Hillel at the University of
Southern California and DePaul University.
An important feature of Furman’s Torah Wrestling is the inclusion of a Christian and a Muslim in the conversation.
Jeffrey Munroe, editor-in-chief of reformedjournal.com, provides the foreword.
Writing as a Christian, Munroe writes approvingly that “Rabbi Furman raises
questions that flip common understandings of these texts on their heads. . . . Furman
brings compassion and wisdom to these well-known stories, even as he pushes us
to raise uncomfortable questions about them” (p. XXI). Saeed Kahn, who happens
to be a friend of many years and who serves as the associate professor of Near
East and Asian Studies and Global Studies at Wayne State University, offers a
Muslim perspective on Furman’s reflections on Torah. He writes that “A constant
thread through Rabbi Furman’s wonderful interpretations of scripture is his
centering of the ‘other.’ Rabbi Furman restores and rehabilitates the key
figures of the Torah, and even highlights those that may commonly be, at best,
supporting actors in the dramas at hand” (p. 125). Kahn is especially taken by
Furman’s engagement with the story of Hagar, who is revered in Islam as the “paragon
matriarch.”
Like Jeffrey Munroe and Saeed Kahn,
I found much to appreciate and learn from as I read Furman’s reflections on the
Torah readings featured in Jewish worship in his book Torah Wrestling: Embracing the Marginalized in Jewish Sacred Scripture and Discovering Moral Wisdom for Today. In Torah Wrestling, Furman addresses the Jewish
community by unpacking the Torah portions he has engaged with over the years as
a rabbi. As he does so, he keeps in mind his Christian and Muslim readers. Therefore, Christians and Muslims are invited
to listen in as a rabbi unpacks stories that we all hold in common, even if we
might interpret them or use them differently.
As Furman engages with these
stories, he starts with a reflection titled "Eve's Courageous Bite"
and ends with a chapter titled "Will You Forgive Me?" This final
reflection is based on a sermon preached on Yom Kippur (Day of
Atonement). What Furman does in these twenty chapters is engage with these
stories critically. In other words, he is willing to argue with the traditional
interpretations and usage of stories that he finds problematic. It’s something
that Christian interpreters should do as well. He also lifts up figures that
often get set aside, including Hagar and Dinah (Jacob's only daughter). He even
has a chapter that asks an unexpected question: "Was That Golden Calf So
Bad?" In asking that question, he notes that the texts that describe this
event at times contradict each other or at least provide the possibility of an
alternative interpretation. So, was Moses wrong in attacking the people for
creating the Golden Calf? Furman holds out the possibility.
In his introduction, Furman
provides a clue to the way he offers these reflections on the Torah portions.
He writes that "As a rabbi, a Jew, and a student of Torah, I find myself
drawn to those biblical men, women, and even children who we tend to
marginalize as we reflect on Torah portions throughout the year" (p.
xxiv). For example, Furman offers the reader a reflection that focuses on Hagar
rather than Sarah, which might be rather unexpected since Sarah is the Jewish
matriarch, not Hagar. I also especially appreciated his commentary about the
role the Amalekites played in the scriptural accounts, such that at different
points they appear to be wiped out (at God’s command), but keep appearing in
other stories, only to be wiped out again. While Furman doesn't mention this,
it is appropriate to note that at one point, in rallying Israeli’s in his war in
Gaza, Benjamin Netanyahu spoke of the Gazans as Amalekites. The intimation was
that they were fighting a group that warranted extermination. As we read
through the reflections on Torah, it is clear that Furman is uncomfortable with
the violent portions, especially those in which God appears to authorize
genocide. These stories, in his view, should not be considered authoritative.
With this, I would agree. As the subtitle reveals, Furman focuses on the role
that the marginalized play in Torah, such that we might find moral wisdom for
our own times.
As I read Furman’s Torah Wrestling,
I concluded that this is the kind of book Christian preachers will want to
consult as they engage with sacred texts that Christians share in common with
Jews. He invites us to walk along with him as he engages with these texts, even
as he engages in conversation with rabbis who went before him. Except for the
final chapter, which is a Yom Kippur sermon, these are not sermons. He doesn't
directly apply these stories to the present day, leaving the application part up
to the reader. With this in mind, he takes a rather difficult path by engaging
with some of the more difficult biblical stories, stories we might wish to
avoid (the kind of stories the Revised Common Lectionary often avoids). He writes this concerning the choice of Torah
readings, noting that he "will be drawing our attention toward texts that
many people find troubling and those that might provide a moral counterbalance"
(p. xxvi).
As I ponder the messages that Rabbi
Furman offers us in his book Torah Wrestling as he explores difficult sacred
texts, I appreciate this word from Saeed Kahn, who writes from a Muslim
perspective. "Religion was never intended to be an abstract concept, and
scripture was never meant to be a collection of esoteric principles, out of
reach or applicability by its intended audience. Rabbi Furman shows us that
both religion and scripture are addressing those who may be striving for
perfection, knowing full well that such a pursuit is presumed
unattainable" (p. 126). With that assessment, I am in complete agreement,
such that I believe Rabbi Roy Furman has offered us all a gift to take to
heart, especially in these most divisive times.
Roy Furman's Torah Wrestling can be purchased from your favorite bookseller, including my Amazon affiliate and Bookshop.com affiliate.
Comments