During this past week’s Torah discussion at our Shabbat morning services, we discussed the week’s parashah (portion), which, as we approach the Yamim Nora’im, the Days of Awe — Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur — is part of the fifth of the five books of Torah, D’varim, Deuteronomy. Both the Hebrew and English names of the fifth book allude to the fact that the book is largely comprised of Moses’ concluding address to the People of Israel. They have journeyed through the wilderness for forty years together and are on the precipice of the Promised Land.
Moses knows, however, that it is the next generation that will be proceeding into the land; he has reached the end of his journey. So he offers words of wisdom, including a rearticulation of the laws they have received over the course of their wilderness wanderings, for them to carry with them as they move forward without him. (Who among us can’t feel each of our own life cycles present in this paradigmatic story of our people?)
One of the laws that Moses rearticulates in this week’s portion is as follows: When you eat meat, “make sure that you do not partake of the blood; for the blood is the life, and you must not consume the life with the flesh” (Deuteronomy 12:23).
Jewish tradition has long had an ambivalent relationship to eating meat. In the mythical time period between the creation of the universe and the flood that came in the age of Noah, only a vegetarian diet is contemplated. (“God said, ‘See, I give you every seed-bearing plant that is upon all the earth, and every tree that has seed-bearing fruit; they shall be yours for food’” (Genesis 1:29).) After the flood, meat is permitted to all of humanity. Then, in the Book of Vayikra, Leviticus, as the Israelites are encamped at Mount Sinai, they receive further instructions about which animals are permitted to them for consumption (land animals with split hooves and which chew their cud, sea creatures with fins and scales, select birds) and which are not (all the rest).
In total, we experience a picture in which engaging with life, even as basic a function as eating, calls for significant intentionality. Neither are Jews called upon to be severely ascetic, refraining from as much of the world’s material plenty as possible, nor hedonistic, eating whatever we want, whenever we want. It’s as though there is a recognition of the world’s — of life’s — preciousness. Yes, we are to savor it, to cultivate joy and satisfaction; but we are also here to protect it, to be in awe of it, to have reverence for the sanctity of life.
In not “partaking of the blood,” an act achieved either through soaking and salting the meat or through broiling it, in seeing the blood as “the life” and not consuming “the life with the flesh” we hold our way of being in the world as one which is very much in and of the world, rather than apart from it, while still having a sense for the sanctity of life that we find ourselves in the midst of. Judaism has long had an approach of seeking to foster a sense of life’s holiness while we navigate our way through — rather than refrain from — the world. May we manage to do so as best as we are able.
You can read all about the High Holiday season at Society Hill Synagogue — a season of sweetness and soulfulness; introspection and a commitment to action; community and connections; t’shuvah (repentance and renewal), t’filah (prayer and reflection), and tz’dakah (acts of giving and of justice) — at this link.
I also want to highlight a few features:
Synagogue Membership: The primary way to support the High Holiday experience at Society Hill Synagogue, secure High Holiday tickets, enjoy all the benefits of membership, and invest in the renewal of Jewish life here in each generation, is to become a member of this community. If you have any questions about membership, please don’t hesitate to email me, our Executive Director, Sahar Oz, or Alexis Rosen, our Manager of Community Engagement and Communications.
Open House Shabbat: We invite the entire community — members, their relatives, guests, everyone — to attend our Open House Shabbat on Friday, August 28, and Saturday, August 29. This is a return to our weekly musical Friday night TGIShabbat services and our Saturday morning services featuring an intergenerational Torah discussion, both always followed by communal meals. It’s a chance for members to reconnect, and for guests and prospective members to be welcomed and introduced to the warmth and depth of our community
High Holiday Guest Tickets: We have a limited number of High Holiday guest tickets available, for friends and family of members, and for the general public. If you purchase guest tickets here and decide to join the synagogue, what you pay for your tickets will be applied toward your membership dues.
Family Services and Teen Programming: We offer Family High Holiday Services on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, with two age-based services for each holiday, led by the dynamic team of Micah Hart, the musical leader of our Young Families Shabbat services, and Karen Hafter, our Director of Youth and Family Education. For each holiday, one service is designed for families with children ages 6 and younger, and the other is for families with children ages 7 to 12.
We also hold a program exclusively for teens (without their parents) on both holidays. Due to the consistent growth of all of these services, space is limited, so registration for Family Services and the Teen Programs is required for both members and for the general public.
Childcare: Childcare is available at no cost during our Rosh Hashanah (Days 1 and 2) morning services, Kol Nidrei evening service, and Yom Kippur morning service. Register here for childcare.
Share Our High Holiday Services on Facebook: RSVP on Facebook if you’ll be joining us for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, and share the events in your feed to help invite more people to be part of this nourishing, supportive Jewish community.
Jewish tradition has long had an ambivalent relationship to eating meat. In the mythical time period between the creation of the universe and the flood that came in the age of Noah, only a vegetarian diet is contemplated. (“God said, ‘See, I give you every seed-bearing plant that is upon all the earth, and every tree that has seed-bearing fruit; they shall be yours for food’” (Genesis 1:29).) After the flood, meat is permitted to all of humanity. Then, in the Book of Vayikra, Leviticus, as the Israelites are encamped at Mount Sinai, they receive further instructions about which animals are permitted to them for consumption (land animals with split hooves and which chew their cud, sea creatures with fins and scales, select birds) and which are not (all the rest).