On Shekalim · Sabato Morais Digital Repository · Legacy Projects from Judaica DH at Penn Libraries

Title

On Shekalim

Author

Morais, Sabato

Location(s)

United States -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia

United States -- Pennsylvania

Format

12 pages on 5 sheets

Rights

http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?

Language(s)

English

Source

Katz Center for Advanced Judaic Studies

Sabato Morais Collection, Box 13, Folder 9

Has Format

https://colenda.library.upenn.edu/items/ark:/81431/p3xd0rh67/manifest.json

Link to Colenda

https://colenda.library.upenn.edu/catalog/81431-p3xd0rh67

Provenance

Transfer of Custody from the Hebrew Education Society, 10 March 1913.

Is Format Of

https://raw.githubusercontent.com/judaicadh/morais/main/TEI/SMBx13FF9.xml

content

21

On Shekalim

Brethren. Like the political sky, so is the religious atmosphere over laden with threatening clouds. The storm of conflicting opinions has already burst upon us. A warfare is being carried on in the Church and the press between unsparing critics, who treat the Bible precisely as they would use any secular book, and conscientious people, who are greatly scandalized at such proceedings. In that strife we ought not to side with either party. To be sure: as Israelites we cannot possibly agree with men who deny Moses the inspired authorship of the five books, that have been our polar star--even the sole anchor of our salva--tion. We cannot agree, because our belief in Mo--saism is founded on more solid ground than mere hereditary sediments. Internal evidences numerous and infallible support our creed. The intimate acquaintance which the author of the Pentiteuch shows with the language, manners and practices of Egypt, should suffice, if other proofs were want--ing, to convince the unprejudiced that we have been handed down and have jealously kept authentic records, the history and legislation of the Hebrews, as they emanated

from the heaven-illumined mind of one born and bred in the land of the Pharaohs. But not because we dare not do violence to our convictions and rob Moses of his right to our credence and gratitude, do we set our faces against all Biblical criticism, as an act of impiety. Th Our position is clear. The planks of our platform are reason and a practical good understanding. No Jew has ever been demanded to subscribe to the dogma that the Scriptures are from beginning to end a verbal communication of the Supreme, miraculously guarded against any mistake by amanuenses or copyists. An absurdity of so stupendous a nature belongs to other religions. It was never an article of faith in ours. We venerate the Mikra, or "the reading," as our Bible is termed by way of pre-eminence. We cherish for it the deepest regard because its study softens the heart, exalts the mind, spiritualizes the soul; because it leads us on to goodness; it beckons us back when we have swerved from righteousness. We feel the divine breathing in psalms, which bring us penitent

to the footstool of Grace; in prophecies which picture the tender mercies of the Creator and the beauties of godliness. We see the Divinity in sublime morals and in touching poems, even in the lives of men and women that figure con--spicuously in the pages of Holy Writ. But we know that Isaiah spoke in a style all aglow with a poetry of unsurpassed excellency; that Jeremiah is tame in comparison with Ezekiel in his bold metaphors. We do believe that to speak as they fearlessly spoke, those teachers of Israel and their coworkers at different times must have been, beyond doubt, unkindled with a fire from above which irresistibly burst forth in words of reproof, of admonition, or consolation. But we recognize in them originality. The language was theirs, not God's. The influence which prompted the impassioned oration was Divine; the oration itself was human. Holding this sensible, and theologically sound idea, we are not shocked when critics point to pos--sible errors in narratives, in chronology, in the names of persons, or in their age.

Thus by way of illustration: It matters little to us, if the copyist misplaced the story of the first meeting of Saul and David and gave us is confusedly a puzzle in that passage, where presented so that after the vic--torious fight with Goliath, David who had who is supposed to have often before played the harp to divert the gloomy thoughts of Saul, appears to be a complete stranger to the latter. Enough that the event which knit together two kindred souls--the generous Jona-than and the brave David--is recorded for our edification. So in like manner; it is of no actual importance to history, whether Jeojachin reigned only three months as stated in one place, or three months and eleven ten days, as asserted in another. What concerns us is the sad account of the forfeiting of his crown through an unwise conduct, attended as it was by national ca--lamities. So also no one needs consider it a defect in Jewish history that Uzziah should differently be called Azariah. Our interest is en-listed in the military genius of that king of Judah, and in his successes, which finally engendered pride and culminated into an act of impiety.

It is in a spirit of enquiry to learn to do right, and eschew evil; it is in such a spirit of meek--ness that we must read our Bible, admitting always without equivocation that discrepancies have crept in, despite the exceeding care exercised by the Scribes, and never attempting to distort the sense, or explain away evident mistakes. Nor should we allow our zeal anxiety for the intact pre--servation of the good book, to overpower truthfulness and lead us to deny that, with much which is noble in the lives of men of the Bible, there is mixed, at times, an alloy of ignobleness and hu--man weaknesses. We should use the purest candor, and thus disarm unsparing criticism, and, what is most essential, we would present Holy Writ before our intelligent sons and daughters in its pro--per light, extenuating no fault, and setting in bold relief what is matchlessly grand.
To day our Haftarah invites us to contemplate characters, admirable in many respects, yet by no means all perfect, if weighed on the scales of impartiality. Indeed, we may consider it fortunate

that in the loss sustained of Scriptural books which we know only by name, was not also in--volved that of the books of Kings and Chronicles, for they supplement each other, and enable us to form a just criterion of our ancestors and their times. The scene which the prophetic lesson of this Sabbath opens to our views, lies in the temple. We behold a lad crowned with a diadem; a priest of commanding appearance stands by, and multitudes shout "long live the king." You recognize in the first Joash, or Jehoash as he is variously called. That scion of the stock of Judah was a brand plucked out of a burning fire. His unnatural grand mother Athaliah had probably left him for dead among all of her own son's children whom she cruelly murdered. She would reign an absolute queen and avenge the blood of the godless prophets, when Elijah had slain at the brook of Kishon. Athalia had not forgotten the lessons of her mo--ther Jezebel--the idolatrous Sedonian who polluted the land with her people's worship. She vowed

to reinstate the brutal Molock and demoralize Israel with her abominations. But to defeat her wicked purposes, Providence had raised ano--ther woman. We do not see her in the group, which the picture discloses to our vision. For like a veritable Jewess she labored unseen, yet most effectually. Jehosheba was a sister to the late king, but not born of Athalia. In her veins flowed the blood of a mother purely Jewish. On the fatal day of the massacre of the innocent, Jehosheba snatched the infant Joash from the jaws of death. With a throbbing heart she had hasten--ed out of the chamber of horrors. Carrying her burden in her arm, she looked for a place of safety. She found it in the Temple, and there Joash was hidden from all human eyes. Our Haftarah makes Jehosheba's concealment of her infant nephew six years; an ancient Greek translation of the Bible makes it longer, which, for obvious reasons, might seem more probable. But to us that point is of minor importance. We are deeply interested not in the lapse of time, that the

compassionate Jehosheba kept watch over her charge that he might not be discovered, but in the principles which the guardian angel of that child instilled. She taught him the religion of Moses, and the necessity of vindicating the outraged Law, working upon his tender mind to prepare it for the wholesome reform, which that same child was destined to enforce. But Jehosheba was not alone in the holy task. Her husband aided in it with singleness of purpose. We have seen him, the priest of commanding ap--pearance, standing by the young diademed king. Johojada was a worthy colaborer of his wif wise-hearted wife. His abilities, his zeal and his sacerdotal influence were brought to bear on the co--education of Joash. He shaped his feelings aright, that he might prove himself a Jew in very deed. He watched for the time when he might strike a blow for God and His Torah, and when ready to act, he admitted into his secret some trusty officers of the government, who held Athaliah's iniquities in abhorrence, and laid out a plan for

dethroning the usurper and placing the crown on the head of the legitimate descendant of David. The Haftarah for this Sabbath begins with a verse on which the entire section hinges. I need not say that the Sages, who arranged the prophetic lessons to correspond, as far as possible, to the Pen--teteuchal lessons, chose this because it has refer--ence to the offering of silver shekels for the Temple ser--vice, or as the book of Chronicles calls it "the con--tribution fixed by Moses the servant of the Lord". I could but repeat myself by speaking of that institution; its origin and object, but I can never be guilty of self-plagiarism by an allu--sion to the nature of the agreement into which the newly proclaimed king sovereign and his subjects entered. Let me read it: "Johojada made a covenant between the Lord and the king and the people that they would be the Lord's people." Understand it. They all should be on a par in the discharge of sacred obligations. He that were the insignia of royalty and the humblest inhabitant of Judea should equally bow to a superior power.

Mosaism was the constitution to which every Jew should swear allegiance, and every Jew both the highest and the lowliest should constitute himself a sentinel sounding the alarm and repelling the intruder who dares to attack that bulwark of our defence. Joash seated on a throne could claim regard only so long as he, like the least in his kingdom, obeyed the ordinances of the Law. What a lesson to our crownless kings and queens, who no sooner ascend a step higher in the social ladder than they turn around to look down with contempt upon the adherents of the precepts! What a rebuke to those whom the will of the faithful has uplifted to a congregational height, but who from thence beckon the people up to the road of infidelity! If thou who are elevated by reason of their commercial standing or their learning, would enter into a covenant with God to be His people, we might boast of a Philadelphia community of Hebrews, eminently consistent, and uni--versally respected, because self-respecting. To the women of Israel especially does the history of Joash commends itself. It unfolds for their contemplation

the labors of years spent by one of their sex to train a Jew Jewishly,--to shape mould his mind so that he might find it in his power to restore a polluted faith religion to its pristine purity. Jeho--sheba's example tells her sisters in faith, more forcibly than I could, that a woman has the heart of the child in her hand, and, under the guidance of Providence, it rests with her to make that child a champion of godliness or a leader of infidelity disbelief.

Identifier

p3xd0rh67

identifier

SMBx13FF9