ALEPH Ordination Programs Smicha Week Intensive 2015 Angels in the Field: Sacred Text and Spiritual Practice R. Shohama Harris Wiener & R. David Evan Markus COURSE PACK PRE-READINGS FOR INTRODUCTORY ASSIGNMENT 1. Elior, R., "Mysticism, Magic & Angelology: The Perception of Angels in Hekhalot Literature," Jewish Stud. Q. 1 (1993), 8-9 . . . . . . 4 2. Wolpe, D., "Angels in Jewish Tradition," Big Book of Angels, 23-29 . . 6 3. Frankiel, T., "Angels in the Jewish Mystical Tradition," Id, 30-40 . . . 4. Annotated List of Tanakh References to Angels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 13 DAY ONE TOWARD A THEOLOGY OF ANGELS 5. Maimonides, Mishneh Torah, Yesodei HaTorah, ch. 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 6. Markus, D., "Halachah of Learning and Teaching Mysticism" . . . . . 30 7. 'Angel' and 'Amen' as Unification: Degel Machaneh Ephraim, P. Mishpatim; Tikkunei Zohar 34b; Zohar 1:262b . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 8. Maimonides, Guide for the Perplexed, Book 2, ch. 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 9. The Angelic Ish: Gen. 37:12-18 & Rashi; Gen. Rabbah 84:14 . . . . . . . . 40 10. Wiener, S., "Angels and Jigsaw Puzzles" (1989) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 11. Rabbinic Imagination and the Throne of Glory: B.T. Chagigah 12b-13a, Ps. 68:1-5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 12. Isaiah 6:1-9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 13. Nusach HaTefilah: Shacharit l'Chol, Yotzer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 14. Ezekiel 1:5-28 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 15. Nusach HaTefilah: Shacharit l'Shabbat v'Yom Tov, El Adon . . . . . . . 49 -1- DAY TWO ANGELIC FUNCTIONS: SPIRITS IN THE FIELD 16. Grow, Grow: Gen. Rabbah 10:6 & Job 38:33 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 17. McLean, D., "Devas, Fairies & Nature Spirits," BBA (excerpt) . . . . . . 51 18. Markus, D., "Kruvim in the Canon: Angelic Paradigm Shift" . . . . . . . 54 DAY THREE ARCHANGELS & METATRON 19. Archangels by Name: J.T. Rosh Hashanah 1:2, Gen. Rabbah 48:9, Dan. 9:20-23, 10:13-21 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 20. Archangel Functions: Selected Midrashim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 21. Angels at the Sea: Ex. 14:19-20, Midrash Avkir Ex. 14:20 (Sefer Ha'Aggadah 73:86); B.T. Sanhedrin 39b; Ex. Rabbah 23:7. . . . . . . . . 74 22. Liberation from Bondage: Haggadah, Ex. 12:12, Rashi Ex. 12:12, Ramban Ex. 12:12; 2 Sam. 24:14-16; 2 Kings 1:1 & 19:31-16 . . . . . . . 76 23. Elior, R., "Mysticism, Magic & Angelology: The Perception of Angels in Hekhalot Literature," Jewish Stud. Q. 1 (1993), 37-39 . . . 79 24. Wiener, S., "Guidance from Other Dimensions of the God-Field: Ancestors, Angels and Guides,” in Milgram & Wiener (eds.), Seeking and Soaring: Jewish Approaches to Spiritual Guidance and Development, 2nd ed, Reclaiming Judaism Press (2014), 226-7. . . . . 82 25. Nusach HaTefilah: Excerpts from Bedtime Shema & HaMapil . . . . . 84 DAY FOUR ANGELIC SHADOW AND PERSONAL ANGELOLOGY 26. Angelic Opposition and Prosecution: B.T. Shabbat 119b; Num. 22:22-33; Rashi & Ibn Ezra Num. 22:22; Kitzur Ba'al HaTurim, Num. 22:32; Job 1:6, Rashi Job 1:6; Avot 4:11, Bartenura Avot 4:11; Ex. 12:29, Ex. Rabbah 18:5; Gen. 3:1, Sforno Gen. 3:1; Midrash Tanchuma Noach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86 27. Nusach HaTefilah: Ma'ariv l'Chol, Hashkiveinu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 28. Angels of Death & Destruction: Ex. 12:12-13, 23; 2 Sam. 24:14-16; 2 Kings 19:31-16; Prov. 16:13-14; Compendium of Midrash . . . . . . . 92 -2- 29. Pinchas of Koretz on the Angel of Friendship . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 30. Compendium of Personal Narratives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 NB: Day 5 materials will follow shortly. DAY FIVE HISTORICAL AND DEEP ECUMENICAL PERSPECTIVES 31. Kamenetz, R., The Jew in the Lotus, 65-90 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . X. Islamic Sources on Angelology: Encyclopedia Judaica . . . . . . . . . . . X. Helminski, S., "Angels in Islam," Big Book of Angels, 87-95 . . . . . . . . X. Christian Someting Hebrews 9:5 (cherubim) Text -3- 101 DOCUMENT 1 Elior, R., "Mysticism, Magic & Angelology: The Perception of Angels in Hekhalot Literature," Jewish Studies Quarterly 1 (1993), pp. 8-9 -4- -5- DOCUMENT 2 Wolpe, D., "Angels in Jewish Tradition," Big Book of Angels, 23-29 Ed. – Rabbi Wolpe is a prominent and prolific writer and commentator. He serves Temple Sinai, a large Conservative congregation in Los Angeles. DOCUMENT 3 Frankiel, T., "Angels in the Jewish Mystical Tradition," BBA, 30-40 Ed. – Dr. Frankiel is a noted scholar who currently serves as President of The Academy of Jewish Religion – California. DOCUMENT 4 Annotated List of Tanakh References to Angels Explicit Gen. 3:24 Gen. 16:7-13 Gen. 19:1 Gen. 21:17 Gen. 22:11-18 Gen. 28:12 Gen. 32:2-4 Gen. 48:14-16 Ex. 3:2 Ex. 14:19 Ex. 23:20-23 Ex. 25:18-22 Ex. 32:34 Ex. 33:2 Num. 20:16 Num. 22:22-31 Josh. 5:13-15 Judg. 2:1 Judg. 6:11-22 Judg. 13 2 Sam. 24:16-17 1 Kings 6:23-35 Is. 6:1-8 Is. 37:36 Ezek. 9:3 Ezek. 10 Hos. 12:5-6 Zech. 12:8 2 Chron. 22:7-11 Ps. 91:11-12 Job 1:6-12 Dan. 6:23 Dan. 8:15-26 Dan. 9:21-27 Dan. 10:13-21 Dan. 12:1 Kruvim guard path back to Gan Eden Malach Adonai appears to Hagar fleeing Sarah Lot sees two malachim Malach Adonai appears to Hagar Malach Adonai restrains Abraham's hand at the Akedah Jacob dreams of ladder with malachei Elohim Malachei Elohim meet Jacob; Jacob sends malachim Jacob invokes haMalach HaGo'el to bless his grandchildren Malach Adonai appears to Moses in flaming thorn bush Malach ha'Elohim protects fleeing slaves at the Sea's edge Malach guards and guides the people in the desert Kruvim atop the Ark of the Covenant Malachi leads the people after the Golden Calf Malach precedes the people in the desert Malach in Exodus story as told to king of Edom Bilam's donkey and Bilam both see malach Adonai Ish and Sar-tzva-Adonai appears to Joshua Malach Adonai comes up from Gilgal to Bochim Mal'ach Adonai with Gideon before the Midianites Malach Adonai / Malach ha'Elohim predicts birth of Samson Malach haMashchit / Malach Adonai plagues Jerusalem Kruvim at Solomon's Temple Seraphim in Isaiah's mystical vision Malach Adonai smites camp of Sennacherib God's glory rises up from a k'ruv Kruvim and the Merkavah Re-telling Jacob's wrestle with malach Comparing House of David to malach Adonai God rides on a k'ruv God sends a divine malach as protector B'nei haElohim and Satan Malach shuts lion's mouth Gavriel interprets Daniel's vision Gavriel flies and helps Daniel understand Michael as God's "prince" Michael as Sar haGadol Implied, or the subject of angelic midrash Gen. 1:26 Gen. 3:22 Gen. 18:2 Gen. 32:22-31 Ex. 12:23 Deut. 10:17 Jer. 9:20 Ezek. 1 Prov. 16:14 God speaks about creating humanity in "our" image God speaks about humanity becoming immortal like "us" Three "men" visit Abraham Jacob wrestles a "man" Ha'mashchit (the destroyer) God as Elohei haElohim Mavet (death) comes in Ezekiel's vision of the Merkavah King's wrath is as mal'achei mavet - 24 - DOCUMENT 5 Maimonides, Mishneh Torah Yesodei HaTorah, ch. 2 Maimonides' Mishneh Torah (Egypt 1170s), which purports to digest the entire Oral Law, begins with a philosophical treatise on the ontological foundations of the universe. For a self-described rationalist of Maimonides' stature, it is especially noteworthy that this early part of Mishneh Torah focuses so intensely on angels – and then appears to back away from the subject as a matter that should not be discussed widely. • הלכה אHalachah 1 האל הנכבד והנורא הזה מצוה לאהבו אלהיךwוליראה אותו שנאמר ואהבת את ה / אלהיך תיראwונאמר את ה It is a mitzvah to love and fear God who is glorious and awesome, as it is said (Deut. 6:5): "Love YHVH, your God," and as it is said (Deut. 6:13): "Have awe for YHVH, your God." • הלכה בHalachah 2 בשעה- והיאך היא הדרך לאהבתו ויראתו שיתבונן האדם במעשיו וברואיו הנפלאים הגדולים ויראה מהן חכמתו שאין לה ערך ולא קץ מיד הוא אוהב ומשבח ומפאר ומתאוה תאוה גדולה לידע השם הגדול כמו /שאמר דוד צמאה נפשי לאלהים לאל חי וכשמחשב בדברים האלו עצמן מיד הוא נרתע לאחוריו ויפחד ויודע שהוא בריה קטנה שפלה אפלה עומדת בדעת קלה מעוטה לפני תמים דעות כמו שאמר דוד כי אראה שמיך /מעשה אצבעותיך מה אנוש כי תזכרנו ולפי הדברים האלו אני מבאר כללים גדולים ממעשה רבון העולמים כדי שיהיו פתח למבין לאהוב את השם כמו שאמרו חכמים בענין אהבה שמתוך כך אתה מכיר את מי /שאמר והיה העולם What is the path of loving and having awe of God? When one contemplates God's wondrous and great deeds and creations, and appreciates God's infinite wisdom having no measure or end, one immediately will love, praise and glorify God, and yearn with great desire to know the Great Name, as David said (Ps. 42:3): "My soul thirsts for YHVH, the living God." And when one reflects on these very matters, one immediately will recoil in awe and fear, knowing oneself [comparatively] as a tiny, lowly and dark creature, standing with flimsy and limited knowing before [the One of] Perfect Knowledge, as David said (Ps. 8:4-5): "When I see Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, [I wonder] what is humanity that You recall us?" Based on these matters, I will explain important matters regarding deeds of the Master of the worlds, so that they who are wise can open to loving God, as the sages said of love (Sifre, P. Ekev 13): "In this way, you will recognize the One who spoke and the world came into being." - 25 - • הלכה גHalachah 3 כל מה שברא הקב"ה בעולמו נחלק לשלשהAll that the Holy Blessed One created in : חלקים מהןGod's world is divided into three parts: (a) Creations combining matter and )א( ברואים שהן מחוברים מגולם וצורה והםform that constantly come into existence הווים ונפסדים תמיד כמו גופות האדםand cease to exist, such as the bodies of //// והבהמה והצמחים והמתכותman and beasts, plants and metals.... )ב( ברואים שהן מחוברים מגולם וצורה אבל אינן משתנין מגוף לגוף ומצורה לצורה כמו אלא צורתן קבועה לעולם/הראשונים בגולמם ואינן משתנין כמו אלו והם הגלגלים והכוכבים שבהן ואין גולמם כשאר גולמים ////ולא צורתם כשאר צורות (b) Creations combining matter and form that do not change from body to body and form to form as those in the first category. Rather, their form is fixed permanently in their matter, and they do not change as the others do, such as the spheres and the stars within them. Their matter is unlike [earthly] matter and their form is unlike [earthly] form. )ג( ברואים צורה בלא גולם כלל והם ( המלאכים שהמלאכים אינם גוף וגויה אלאc) Creations having form but no matter, / צורות נפרדות זו מזוwhich are the angels, for the angels lack bodies or corporeal being, but rather are forms separate from each other. • הלכה דHalachah 4 ומהו זה שהנביאים אומרים שראו המלאך הכל במראה הנבואה ודרך- אש ובעל כנפים חידה לומר שאינו גוף ואינו כבד כגופות אלהיך אש אוכלהwהכבדים כמו שנאמר כי ה הוא ואינו אש אלא משל וכמו שנאמר עושה /מלאכיו רוחות What did the prophets mean that they saw the angel burning or in flight? All are prophetic visions and parables that [angels] lack body or bodily mass. As it is said (Deut. 4:24): "YHVH, your God, is consuming fire" – but God is not fire [so this description] is a metaphor. Also as it is said (Ps. 104:4): "God makes [the] angels like winds." • הלכה הHalachah 5 ובמה יפרדו הצורות זו מזו והרי אינן גופין לפי שאינן שוין במציאותן אלא כל אחד מהן למטה ממעלתו של חבירו והוא מצוי מכחו זה למעלה מזה והכל נמצאים מכחו של הקדוש ברוך הוא וטובו וזהו שרמז שלמה /בחכמתו ואמר כי גבוה מעל גבוה שומר Since they lack bodies, what separates [angelic] forms from each other? Their existence is not alike. Rather each exists below the other's level and by virtue of its influence [in a progression of levels], one above the other. All exist by the power of the Holy Blessed One and God's goodness. Solomon alluded to this [concept] in his wisdom, and said (Eccl. 5:7): "For above the one who is high there is an [even higher] watcher." - 26 - • הלכה וHalachah 6 זה שאמרנו למטה ממעלתו של חבירו אינה מעלת מקום כמו אדם שיושב למעלה מחבירו אלא כמו שאומרין בשני חכמים שאחד גדול מחבירו בחכמה שהוא למעלה ממעלתו של זה וכמו שאומרין בעילה שהיא /למעלה מן העלול The above phrase "below the other's level" refers [to spiritual height] not to height in a spatial sense – as in, "He sits higher than his colleague." Rather, as speaking of two sages, one greater than the other, we say, "One is above the level of the other." Similarly, a cause is referred to as "above" its effect. • הלכה זHalachah 7 שינוי שמות המלאכים על שם מעלתם הוא ולפיכך נקראים חיות הקדש והם למעלה מן הכל ואופנים ואראלים וחשמלים ושרפים ומלאכים ואלהים ובני אלהים וכרובים כל אלו עשרה השמות שנקראו בהן/ואישים המלאכים על שם עשר מעלות שלהן הן ומעלה שאין למעלה ממנה אלא מעלת האל ברוך הוא היא מעלת הצורה שנקראת חיות לפיכך נאמר בנבואה שהן תחת כסא הכבוד ומעלה עשירית היא מעלת הצורה שנקראת אישים והם המלאכים המדברים עם הנביאים ונראים להם במראה הנבואה לפיכך נקראו אישים שמעלתם קרובה למעלת דעת בני אדם Angels' different names correspond to their [spiritual] heights. They are called Chayot HaKodesh (holy life forces), above all; Ofanim (turnings); Erelim (helpers); Chashmalim (electrics); Seraphim (flames); Malachim (messengers); Elohim (powers); B'nei Elohim (lesser powers); K'ruvim (blesseds); Ishim (persons). All ten names by which angels are called reflect their heights. The level above which there is no higher except that of God, Blessed Be, is the form called Chayot, so the prophets say that [Chayot] are just below God's throne of glory. The tenth level is the form called Ishim. They are the angels who speak with the prophets and are seen by them in prophetic visions. Thus they are called Ishim as their level approximates human knowledge. • הלכה חHalachah 8 וכל הצורות האלו חיים ומכירין את הבורא ויודעים אותו דעה גדולה עד למאד כל צורה וצורה לפי מעלתה לא לפי גודלה אפילו מעלה הראשונה אינה יכולה להשיג אמתת הבורא כמו שהוא אלא דעתה קצרה להשיג ולידע אבל משגת ויודעת יותר ממה שמשגת ויודעת צורה שלמטה ממנה וכן כל מעלה ומעלה עד מעלה עשירית גם היא יודעת הבורא דעה שאין כח בני האדם המחוברים מגולם וצורה יכול להשיג ולידע כמותה והכל /אינן יודעין הבורא כמו שהוא יודע עצמו All these forms live. They recognize and know the Creator with a great knowing, each form according to its level and not its greatness. Even the highest level is unable to conceive the Creator's truth as God [truly] is, for its capacity is limited to know or to grasp [God]. But it does comprehend and know more than the form below it. This is true regarding every level, including the tenth. This [tenth level] also knows the Creator in a way surpassing the potential of humans with body and soul to comprehend and know [God]. No [angelic level] knows the Creator as God knows Godself. - 27 - • הלכה טHalachah 9 כל הנמצאים חוץ מן הבורא מצורה הראשונה עד יתוש קטן שיהיה בטבור הארץ הכל מכח אמתתו נמצאו ולפי שהוא יודע עצמו ומכיר גדולתו ותפארתו ואמתתו הוא יודע הכל ואין /דבר נעלם ממנו All existence aside from the Creator, from the [highest angelic] form to a small mosquito in the navel of the earth, exists from the power of God's truth. As God knows Godself and recognizes God's greatness, beauty and truth, [so] God knows all and nothing is hidden. • הלכה יHalachah 10 הקב"ה מכיר אמתו ויודע אותה כמו שהיא ואינו יודע בדעה שהיא חוץ ממנו כמו שאנו יודעין שאין אנו ודעתנו אחד אבל הבורא יתברך הוא ודעתו וחייו אחד מכל צד ומכל שאלמלי היה חי בחיים/פינה ובכל דרך ייחוד ויודע בדעה חוץ ממנו היו שם אלוהות הרבה הוא וחייו ודעתו ואין הדבר כן אלא אחד מכל צד ומכל פינה ובכל דרך ייחוד נמצאת אתה אומר הוא היודע והוא הידוע והוא הדעה דבר זה אין כח בפה/עצמה הכל אחד לאומרו ולא באוזן לשמעו ולא בלב האדם וחי ֵ להכירו על בוריו ולפיכך אומר ֵחי פרעה שאיןw אלא ַחי הwנפשך ואין אומר ֵחי ה הבורא וחייו שנים כמו חיי הגופים החיים או כחיי המלאכים לפיכך אינו מכיר הברואים ויודעם מחמת הברואים כמו שאנו יודעין אותם אלא מחמת עצמו ידעם לפיכך מפני שהוא יודע עצמו יודע הכל שהכל נסמך לו /בהוייתו The Holy Blessed One recognizes divine truth and knows it as it is. God does not know with external knowledge in the way of our knowledge, for we and our knowledge are not one. The Creator, God's knowledge and life are one from all sides and corners, in all manners of unity. Were God to live [an earthly] life or know with external knowledge, there would be many gods. Rather, God is One from all sides and corners, in all manners of unity. Thus God is knower, subject of knowledge, and knowledge itself: all is One. This matter is beyond a mouth's power to relate or ears to hear, nor can the human heart grasp it fully [as in] (Gen. 42:15): "Chei (by the life) of Pharaoh" and (1 Sam. 25:26): "Chei (by the life) of your soul," but (1 Sam. 25:26) does not continue "Chei (by the life) of God" but rather "Chai Adonai (as God lives)." As the Creator and God's life are not two, as are earthly or angelic lives, so God does not know and recognize the creations in terms as we know them. Rather, God knows them in terms of Godself. As God knows Godself, so God knows everything, for the existence of everything else depends on God. • הלכה יאHalachah 11 כמו טיפה מן/// דברים אלו שאמרנו בענין זה הים הם ממה שצריך לבאר בענין זה וביאור כל העיקרים ]ה[אלו הוא הנקרא מעשה /מרכבה Our discussion of [this] matter ... is like a drop from the sea relative to what is necessary to explain it. Explanation of [these] key matters ... is called Ma'aseh Merkavah (the work of [God’s] chariot). - 28 - • הלכה יבHalachah 12 צוו חכמים הראשונים שלא לדרוש בדברים אלו אלא לאיש אחד בלבד והוא שיהיה חכם ומבין מדעתו ואחר כך מוסרין לו ראשי הפרקים ומודיעין אותו שמץ מן הדבר והוא מבין מדעתו וידע סוף הדבר ועומקו ודברים אלו דברים עמוקים הם עד למאד ואין כל דעת ודעת ראויה לסובלן ועליהם אמר שלמה בחכמתו דרך משל כבשים ללבושך כך אמרו חכמים בפירוש משל זה דברים שהן כבשונו של עולם יהיו ללבושך כלומר לך לבדך ואל תדרוש אותם ברבים ועליהם אמר יהיו לך לבדך ואין לזרים אתך ועליהם אמר דבש וחלב תחת לשונך כך פירשו חכמים הראשונים דברים שהן כדבש וחלב יהיו תחת /לשונך The early-generation sages commanded that we don't explain [Merkavah] matters except to a single person [at a time] who is wise, understanding with one's [own] knowledge (M. Chagigah 2:1). In such an instance, one is given basic points, and an outline of concepts is made known. One [then learns alone] to achieve understanding with one's own knowledge, grasping the ultimate meaning and depth of the concept. These concepts are extremely deep, and not everyone has the ability necessary to appreciate them. In his wisdom, Solomon described them with the metaphor (Prov. 27:26), "Lambs for your clothing." [Ed. – The root "( כבשlamb") also means "to hide."] Our sages read this metaphor [to mean]: Matters that are the secrets of the world will be your clothing - i.e. they will be for you alone, and you should not discuss them in public. Concerning them, it is said (Prov. 5:17), "They will be for you but not for others with you," and (Song of Songs 4:11), "Honey and milk will be under your tongue." Early-generation sages read this [latter text as metaphor]: subjects that are like honey and milk should be [kept] under your tongue. - 29 - DOCUMENT 6 Markus, D. "Halachah of Learning and Teaching Mysticism" (rev. 2015) The mystical Sefer Yetzirah (Book of Formation) describes the energetic flow among 10 "vehicles" of creation – the same number of angelic levels that Maimonides recognized in Mishneh Torah's treatment of the Foundations of the Universe (above). The Sefer Yetzirah description of creation adopts the language of Ezekiel's vision of angelic Chayot ("life forces," the highest angelic realm of Maimonides' explanation) that, in Ezekiel's words, carried the Throne of Glory in the Merkavah (chariot) as they "ran to and fro" (Ezek. 1:14). This vision is the source text of Merkavah mysticism, and returns throughout the Jewish canon as a metaphor for angelic qualities. But, say the rabbis, don't get too close. For 2,000 years, rabbinic texts have cautioned against making mysticism a focus of Jewish education. Their potential reasons are diverse – perhaps rabbinic rationalist skepticism, or an overt power grab against mystics who might challenge rabbinic authority. Perhaps the rabbis wisely were admonishing us to stay spiritually grounded, as in the aggadic tale of the four who entered Pardes but only R. Akiva returned whole (B.T. Chagigah 14b). Maybe the rabbis were concerned that excess focus on the mystical might fuel a spirituality so individualized as to undermine communal aspects of Jewish identity and practice. While we can debate their reasoning, it is clear that from the earliest days of rabbinic life, Mishnah has warned against teaching mystical matters too publicly or deeply, opting to leave them to students who understand them on their own: M. Chagigah 2:1 במעשה בראשית בשניים ולא/// אין דורשיןOne may not expound ... the account of במרכבה ביחיד אלא אם כן היה חכם ומביןcreation before two, nor the Merkavah [even] one unless one is wise and / מדעתוbefore understands from one's own knowledge. - 30 - This restriction against overt public teaching of mysticism probably is what motivated Maimonides to couch his own writing about the angelic realms in similar metaphorical terms, and then to disclaim his own metaphor and echo the Mishnah's discouragement of mystical instruction except by rough outline and subject heading (Mishneh Torah, Yesodei HaTorah 2:11-12). We can only say "probably" concerning Maimonides' intentions because Mishneh Torah made no attempt to provide citations for its halachic propositions. (Such was Maimonides stated purpose in crafting his Mishneh Torah: to create a text that offered answers rather than exhaustive process, debate and textual citations. By the same token, for a Jewish tradition so rooted in text, debate and uplifting minority opinion, this strategy was perhaps the greatest controversy of the Mishneh Torah. By offering a treatise without citations to any rabbinic authority other than his own distillation of the canon, Maimonides tacitly suggested that his compilation of Jewish law was akin to a second giving of the Law, hence his title Mishneh Torah – a "Second Torah.") As careful as Maimonides claimed himself to be in describing angelic realms, Talmud's rabbis were even more careful to caution against public dissemination of mysticism. In Gemara's explication of the Mishnah on this subject, even the mere reading of chapter headings of so-called Merkavah literature should be undertaken cautiously (see B.T. Chagigah 13a). To R. Zera, even the chapter headings should banned except to the Av Beit Din (head of the rabbinical court), and then only for one especially well-grounded and cautious in temperament (id.). Talmud articulates a fear that one who learns mysticism "too young" – whether chronologically or spiritually – is likely to burn up. The Gemara continues: "A boy who learned the meaning of [Ezekiel's use of the word] chashmal" ("electricity," Ezek. 1:4) to describe the prophet's angelic vision – and perhaps not coincidentally, the same word Maimonides used to describe the fourth highest angelic level – "immediately was - 31 - consumed by fire" (B.T. Chagigah 13b). It is as if this trope of aggadic literature is cautioning readers not to get too close, lest they burn up in a fiery spark of electric current emanating from the angelic realm of chashmal. Like the maxim that one should not study Zohar until one reaches age 40 (an age traditionally associated with stability and maturity), we might understand these Talmudic comments as helpful admonitions to stay grounded when we enter the esoteric realms of angelology. Obviously the ideal context for esoteric learning is not while multi-tasking, or as an escape, or if feeling unstable. Jewish spiritual practice aspires to healthy and balanced lives in the grounded world of practicality: spiritual tools and practices – including and especially ones we might call "mystical" – should support rather than detract from the fullness of lived experience. Understood in this way, esoteric study and mystical experience of the angelic realms can be healthy, empowering and profoundly transformational. We also can understand this trope in sociopolitical terms of rabbinic elitism. This field of study, suggests the rabbis, is not for anyone whom they regard as young, spiritually immature or intellectually dependent on others. Rather, Mishnah purports to ban rabbinic discussion of this subject אלא אם כן היה חכם ומבין מדעתו/ "except to those already wise and understanding from their own knowledge" (M. Chagigah 2:1). Maimonides wrote that "these concepts are extremely deep, and not everyone has the ability necessary to appreciate them" (Mishneh Torah, Yesodei HaTorah 2:12). While we moderns might bristle at this display of intellectual and spiritual elitism, it is important to appreciate in affirmative spiritual terms rather than negative reactionism why our rabbinic forebears adopted these orientations. A third way to understand this recurring trope of caution invites a spiritual inversion of intellectual elitism. While the rabbis purported to restrict the public from angelic and mystical education, the rabbis certainly did not ban their own - 32 - learning in this realm – though R. Zera's admonition to ban even mystical chapter headings from all but the head of the rabbinical court is a notable exception. Maybe to R. Zera's dismay, the rabbinic canon is full of angels because Tanakh itself is full of angels, so the rabbis could not ignore much less fully suppress (for themselves or for others) a spiritual theme so alluring and prominent as to appear throughout Jewish sacred literature. So while the rabbis described the angelic realm in terms that evoked caution and sometimes also danger, the rabbis also knew that this realm can be sweet on the lips. As Maimonides wrote quoting Song of Songs 4:11, what we might call "angel talk" should be Q ֵנI ַבשׁ ְו ָחלָ ב ַתּ ַחת לְ שׁSְ ַכּלָּ ה/"for the [mystical] bride, like honey and milk under your tongue" (Mishneh Torah, Yesodei HaTorah 2:11). To the rabbis, mystical understanding of angels should be a sweet secret, like honey under the tongue – literally kept under the tongue, secret except to they who already know. With these principles in mind, we can approach angelic literature less as precise language or doctrine than as clusters of imagery and metaphor – more like out-of-focus impressionist paintings than crystal-clear photographs. At the emotional level (yetzirah), we can approach with a mix of sweet curiosity and heartwise caution, with the intention to deepen rather than detach. At the intellectual level (briyah), we can recall that all mystical language is an imperfect attempt to portray a transcendence that inherently defies language, and therefore we mustn't confuse metaphor for message. Rooted in these ways, at the spiritual level (atzilut) we can allow ourselves to soar, intending that we – like R. Akiva – always must be ready to return whole. In the words of Sefer Yetzirah 1:8, "If your heart runs, return to your place – as it is written, בIא ָושׁIת ָרצIH ְו ַה ַח/ 'The chayot [Maimonides' highest angelic level] ratzo va'shov / running and returning' (Ezek. 1:14)." - 33 - DOCUMENT 7 'Angel' and 'Amen' as Unifications Moshe Chayim Ephraim of Sudilkov (1748-1800), grandson of the Ba'al Shem Tov, was born in Medzhybizh, studied under the Maggid of Mezrich and succeeded his grandfather as rebbe of Medzhybizh. His seminal work, "Degel Machaneh Ephraim," excerpted here, is one of the primary contemporaneous sources of the Ba'al Shem Tov's teachings. In this selection, the Degel makes a profound observation: in gematria, the Hebrew for "angel," "amen" and the sum of YHVH (הww )יהוand ADNY (יww ')אדנhave the same equivalent value of 91. What might the liturgical and spiritual implications be? Degel Machaneh Ephraim, P. Mishpatim ואלה המשפטים אשר תשים לפניהם )שמות אתw (ט: כי הנה בנח נאמר )בראשית ו- (א:כא '' היינו בשוה עמו כביכולwהאלקים התהלך נח 'wהתהלך לפניw (א:ובאברהם נאמר )שם יז תwwשהוא מדרגה יותר גדולה שילך לפני השי (ג:ה נאמר )שמות כגwwה' ולמשה רבנו עwwב ' שזהו מדרגהwהנה אנכי שלח מלאך לפניךw א' והיינו יחודwwיותר גדולה' כי מלאך מספר צ קודשא בריך הוא ושכינתיה כביכול הם לפניו ////תמיד "These are the judgments (i.e. halachic statutes) you will place before them" (Ex. 21:1) – Of Noah it is said (Gen. 6:1), "Noah walked with God" as if equals, as it were; and of Abraham it is said (Gen. 17:1), "Walk before Me," which is a much higher level in walking before the Holy One. And of Moshe it is said (Ex. 23:3), "Behold, I send an angel before you," which is an even higher level, for angel in gematria has a value of 91, which is the unification of the Holy Blessed One and Shechinah [though], as it were, they always are before him.... Tikkunei Zohar 34b י איהא קודשא בריך הואwwה אדנwwתא חזי יהו יwwה לימינא אדנwwושכינתיה בתרין שוקין יהו /לשמאלא Come and see: YHVH and ADNY are the Holy Blessed One and Shechinah, the two together – YHVH on the right, ADNY on the left. Zohar 1:262b //// יwwן יאהדונהww דא הוא רזא אמThis is the secret of "Amen" – [that it has the same value] as YHVH+ADNY.... - 34 - DOCUMENT 8 Maimonides, Guide for the Perplexed Book 2, Chapter 6 As for the existence of angels, there is no necessity to cite any proof from Scripture, where the fact is frequently mentioned. The term Elohim means "judges," as in (Ex. 22:8), "[In case of a dispute,] the cause of both parties shall come before the judges (ha-Elohim)." The term has been figuratively applied to angels, and to the Creator as judge over the angels. When God says, "I am YHVH your God," the pronoun "your" refers to all humanity, but in the phrase Elohei ha-Elohim, God is described as God of the angels; and in Adonei ha-Adonim, as God of the spheres and stars, which are masters of the rest of the corporeal creation. The nouns Elohim and Adonim in these phrases do not refer to human judges or masters, because these are in rank inferior to the heavenly bodies: much less do they refer to humankind in general, including masters and servants, or to objects of stone and wood worshipped by some as gods; for it is no honor or greatness to God to be superior to stone, wood or a piece of metal. The phrases therefore admit of no other meaning than this: God is the judge over the judges, that is, over the angels, and over the heavenly spheres. We have already stated above that the angels are incorporeal. This agrees with the opinion of Aristotle: there is only this difference in the names employed -he uses the term "Intelligences," and we say instead "angels." His theory is that the Intelligences are intermediate beings between the Prime Cause and existing things, and that they [comprise the natural forces that] effect the motion of the spheres, on which motion the existence of all things depends. This is also the view we meet with in all parts of Scripture: every act of God is described as being performed by angels. But "angel" [also] means "messenger": hence every one that is intrusted with a certain mission is an angel. Even the movements of the brute creation are sometimes - 35 - due to the action of an angel, when such movements serve the purpose of the Creator, who endowed it with the power of performing that movement, as in (Dan. 6:22), "God sent [God's] angel and shut the lions' mouths that they have not hurt me." Another instance may be seen in the movements of Balaam's donkey, described as caused by an angel. The elements are also called angels, as in (Ps. 104:4), "Who makes God's angels as winds, flaming fire God's ministers." There is no doubt that the word "angel" is used [to describe] a messenger sent by a human, as in (Gen. 32:4), "And Jacob sent angels"; [or] for the sake of deliverance, as in (Judg. 2:1), "An angel of God came up from Gilgal to Bochim"; or (Num. 20:16), "[God] sent an angel, and brought us forth from Egypt." [The word "angel"] is also used of ideals, perceived by prophets in prophetic visions, and of humanity's animal powers, as will be explained in another place. When we assert that Scripture teaches that God governs this world through angels, we mean such angels as are identical with the Intelligences. In some passages the plural is used of God, as in (Gen. 1:26), "Let us make humanity in our image"; or (Gen. 11:7), "Let us go down and there confound their language." Our sages explain this in the following manner: God, as it were, does nothing [below] without contemplating the host above. I wonder at the expression "contemplating," which is the very expression used by Plato. God, as it were, "contemplates the world of ideals, and thus produces the existing beings." In other passages our Sages expressed it more decidedly: "God does nothing without consulting the Heavenly Host." Concerning the words (Eccl. 2:12), "What they have already made," the following remark is made in Bereishit Rabbah and Midrash Kohelet: [Solomon] "did not say 'What God has made,' but 'What they have made'; hence we infer that God, as it were, with God's court, agreed on the form of each of the limbs of humanity before placing it in its position, as it is said (Deut. 32:6), "Did God not make and establish - 36 - you?'" In Bereishit Rabbah ch. 51, it is also stated that wherever the term "and YHVH" occurs in Scripture, God with the Heavenly Court is to be understood. These passages do not convey the idea that God spoke to or reflected, consulted or employed the opinion of other beings, as ignorant persons believe. How could the Creator be assisted by those whom God created! [These passages] only show that all parts of the Universe, even the limbs of animals in their actual form, are produced through angels: natural forces and angels are identical. How bad and injurious is the blindness of ignorance! Say to one believed to belong to the wise of Israel that the Almighty sends God's angel to enter the womb of a woman and to form there a fetus, and this person will be satisfied with the account. The wise will believe it, and even find in it a description of the greatness of God's might and wisdom; although he believes that the angel consists of burning fire, and is as big as a third part of the Universe, yet he considers it possible as a divine miracle. But tell [the supposedly wise] that God gave the seed a formative power to produce and shape the limbs, and that this power is called an "angel," or that all forms are the result of the influence of the Active Intellect and that the latter is the angel... and [even they] will turn away, unable to comprehend the true greatness and power of creating forces that act in a body without being perceived by our senses. Our Sages have already stated – for one who has understanding – that all forces residing in a body are angels, much more the forces that are active in the Universe. The theory that each force acts only in one particular way, is expressed in Bereishit Rabbah ch. 1, as follows: "One angel does not perform two things, and two angels do not perform one thing": this is exactly the property of all forces [of nature]. We may find a confirmation of the opinion that the natural and psychical forces of an individual are called angels in a frequently quoted statement of our Sages and which occurs originally in Bereishit Rabbah ch. 78: "Every day God creates a legion of - 37 - angels; they sing before God, and disappear." When, in opposition to this statement, other statements were quoted to the effect that angels are eternal – and, in fact, it has repeatedly been shown that they live permanently – the reply has been given that some angels live permanently and others perish; and that this is really the case, for individual forces are transient while genera are permanent and imperishable. Again, we read [Bereishit Rabbah, ch. 85], in reference to the relation between Judah and Tamar: "R. Yochanan said that Judah was about to pass by [without noticing Tamar], but God caused the angel of lust – that is, the libidinous disposition – to present itself to him." Man's [sexual] disposition is here called an angel. Likewise we frequently meet with the phrase, "The angel set over" a certain thing. In Kohelet Rabbah 10:20 [concerning Eccl. 10:7], the following passage occurs: "When one sleeps, [the body tells the soul what it did during the day]. The soul speaks to the angel, the angel to the k'ruv [and the k'ruv to the seraph], who then brings it before God." The intelligent reader will find here a clear statement that the human imaginative faculty is also called "angel," and that k'ruv is used for the intellectual faculty. How beautiful must this appear to one who understands it, how absurd to the ignorant! We have already stated that the forms in which angels appear form part of the prophetic vision. Some prophets see angels in the form of man, as in (Gen. 18:2), "And behold three men stood by him" [concerning the visitation of Abraham after his circumcision]. Others perceive an angel as a fearful and terrible being, as in (Judg. 13:6), "And his countenance was as the countenance of an angel of God, very terrible." Others see them as fire, as in (Ex. 3:2), "And the angel of YHVH appeared to [Moses] in a flame of fire" [at the Burning Bush]. In Bereishit Rabbah ch. 1, the following remark occurs: "To Abraham, whose prophetic power was great, the angels appeared in the form of men; to Lot, whose power was weak, they appeared - 38 - as angels." ... Another passage in Bereishit Rabbah runs thus: "Before the angels have accomplished their task they are called men, when they have accomplished it they are angels." Consider how clearly they say that the term "angel" signifies nothing but a certain action, and that every appearance of an angel is part of a prophetic vision, depending on the capacity of the person perceiving it. There is nothing in the opinion of Aristotle on this subject contrary to the teaching of Scripture. The whole difference between him and ourselves [the Jews] is this: he believes all these beings to be eternal, co-existing with the First Cause as its necessary effect. We, however, believe that they have had a beginning, that God created the Intelligences as angels, and gave the spheres the capacity of seeking to become like them; and that in creating the Intelligences and spheres, God endowed them with their governing powers. Only in this point do we differ from Aristotle. - 39 - DOCUMENT 9 The Angelic "Ish" Gen. 37:12-18 : ְשׁ ֶכםCִ יהם ֶ ת ֶאת־צֹאן ֲא ִבI ֶא ָחיו לִ ְרעUֵ לְ כH יב ַו12. [Joseph's] brothers went to feed their father’s flock in Shechem. ר ִֹעיםWא ַא ֶחיIסף ֲהלIל־י אמר יִ ְשׂ ָר ֵאל ֶא ֵ ֶ ֹH יג ַו13. Israel said to Joseph: Aren't your : ִהנֵּ נִ יIאמר ל ֶ ֹHיהם ַו ֶ ֵ ֲאלW ְשׁ ֶכם לְ ָכה ְו ֶא ְשׁלָ ֲחCִ brothers feeding the flock in Shechem? Go: I will send you to them. [Joseph] said to [Israel]: Here am I. Wם ַא ֶחיIת־שׁל ְ ־נָ א ְר ֵאה ֶאQ ֶ לIאמר ל ֶ ֹHיד ַו Uִ ְשׁלָ ֵחהH ָבר ַוSָ ם ַהצֹּאן ַו ֲה ִשׁ ֵבנִ יIת־שׁל ְ ְו ֶא14. [Israel] said to [Joseph]: Please go see how your brothers and flocks are faring, :ָ בֹא ְשׁ ֶכ ָמהHן ַוI ֵמ ֵע ֶמק ֶח ְברand bring me word. So he sent him out from the valley of Hebron, and he came Uִ ְשׁ ָאלֵ הH ָשּׂ ֶדה ַוCַ ִאישׁ ְו ִהנֵּ ה ת ֶֹעהUִ ְמ ָצ ֵאהH טו ַוto Shechem. :ה־תּ ַב ֵרּשׁ ְ ָה ִאישׁ לֵ אמֹר ַמ15. A man found [Joseph], and [t]here he was wandering in the field; and the man ָידה־נָּ א לִ יDִ ת־א ַחי ָאנ ִֹכי ְמ ַב ֵרּשׁ ַה ַ אמר ֶא ֶ ֹH טז ַוasked him: What do you seek? : ֵאיפֹה ֵהם ר ִֹעים16. [Joseph] said: I seek my brothers. Please tell me where they are pasturing. ֶ ה ִכּי ָשׁ ַמ ְע ִתּי א ְֹמ ִריםZ ִמUאמר ָה ִאישׁ נָ ְסע ֶ ֹH יז ַו17. The man said: They traveled from ִ ְמ ָצ ֵאםHסף ַא ַחר ֶא ָחיו ַוIי ֵ Q ֵֶ לH ָֹתיְ נָ ה ַוS נֵ לְ ָכהhere; for I heard them say, Let us go to :ד ָֹתןCְ Dothan. Joseph went after his brothers, and found them in Dothan. יהם ֶ ֵב ֶט ֶרם יִ ְק ַרב ֲאלUְ ֵמ ָרחֹקI אֹתUִ ְראH יח ַו18. When they saw [Joseph] from afar, :I לַ ֲה ִמיתI אֹתUִ ְתנַ ְכּלH ַוeven before he came near them, they conspired to slay him. Rashi Gen. 37:15 (כא: טw זה גבריאל שנאמר )דנ/ וימצאהו אישA man found [Joseph] – This is Gavriel, : והאיש גבריאלas it is said (Dan. 9:21), "And the man, Gavriel." Gen. Rabbah 84:14 אמר רבי- וימצאהו איש והנה תועה בשדה שלושה מלאכים נזדווגו לו' וימצאהו:ינאי איש וישאלהו האיש ויאמר האיש נסעו מזה /ממדותיו של מקום A man found [Joseph], and [t]here he was wandering in the field – R. Yannai said: Three angels potentiated him: "A man found" (Gen. 37:15); "The man asked him" (Gen. 37:15); "The man said: They traveled from here" (Gen. 37:17) – [these three] being God's measures. - 40 - DOCUMENT 10 Wiener, S., "Angels and Jigsaw Puzzles" (1989) written for the National Havurah Conference Newsletter Until I was in my mid-thirties, Talmud was for me a foreign word, conjuring up images of old men with beards arguing over how many angels could fit on the head of a pin. This was especially puzzling to me since I knew from my studies of medieval and Renaissance art that all angels had long white gowns and broad white wings. Not even one of them was small enough to fit on the head of a pin. I've since learned that the Jewish concept of angels is quite different. In Hebrew the word for angel is mal'ach (messenger). A messenger can be any size or shape. In [Parshat] Vayetze, Jacob dreams of a ladder reaching from earth to heaven. "And behold the angels of God are ascending and descending on it" (Gen. 28:12). The text is not concerned with what the angels look like; it notes instead that there are many of them, enough to fill both sides of a ladder going from heaven to earth. Rashi, a medieval commentator, explains that one group consists of the angels that had accompanied Jacob in the Holy Land. The other group were angels coming down to escort Jacob on his perilous journey outside the Holy Land. So why did he need so many angels? Apparently that is not the way of Jewish angels. Midrash, a collection of rabbinic interpretations, says, "One angel never performs two missions" (Gen. Rabbah 50:2). What a fantastic thought! If one angel is only good for one mission, then there must be an infinite number of angels. Jacob, whose name is changed to Israel, is the paradigm for the Jewish person. What was true for Jacob should be true for us. We too must have countless numbers of angels. So what do they look like? And how can we recognize them? To Rabbi Lawrence Kushner, an angel can be anybody at all. And anybody at - 41 - all can be an angel. Here is how he explains it (Honey from the Rock. p. 68-69): Each lifetime is the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle For some there are more pieces. For others the puzzle is more difficult to assemble. Some seem to be born with a nearly completed puzzle. And so it goes. Souls going this way and that Trying to assemble all the myriad parts. But know this. No one has within themselves All the pieces to their puzzle. Like before the days when they used to seal Jigsaw puzzles in cellophane. Insuring that All the pieces were there. Everyone carries with them at least one and probably Many pieces to someone else's puzzle. Sometimes they know it. Sometimes they don't. And when you present your piece Which is worthless to you, To another, whether you know it or not, Whether they know it or not, You are a messenger from the Most High. A few weeks ago, I was meeting with incoming rabbinic students at The Academy for Jewish Religion,1 and I read them this poem and asked them how it was that they came to our school. The school [was] not well known. One woman related the following: "I was waiting in line at the drugstore when the woman behind me said, 'Would you possibly let me go ahead of you because I'm late for class?' I saw that she was much older than the typical student, so I asked what class she was taking? She told me she was in rabbinic school, and I was shocked. There is no rabbinic school in the neighborhood. When she told me that the school met in a building on the upper West Side of Manhattan that I passed every day, I was floored. I asked her for the address, and here I am. Imagine if I had just turned away and said, 'Sorry.'" 1. Ed. – The author was first Dean and then President of the trans-denominational Academy for Jewish Religion in New York City, after which time she was recruited to serve as Rosh Hashpa'ah (Head of Spiritual Direction) for the ALEPH Ordination Programs. - 42 - Jewish mysticism teaches us that every moment reflects God's intention and input. Whether or not we believe this is true, living as if it were can make life more exciting and meaningful. I no longer get fidgety on lines. The person behind me is now someone I'd like to meet. Maybe he has a piece of my puzzle. Maybe I have a piece of his. It's a nice thought. - 43 - DOCUMENT 11 Rabbinic Imagination and the Throne of Glory As Talmud's rabbis try to discern the composition of heaven, note their the mystical reference to the Throne of Glory as a vehicle (Merkavah) with a rider, and another "heaven" above the angels, both of them references Ezekiel 1. Note too the reference to just three levels of angelic presence inhabiting the realm below the Throne of Glory – not the 10 levels of Maimonides' rendition – and that these angelic levels are the same ones that the piyyut "El Adon" describes as carrying the Throne of Glory. Finally, note the rabbinic sense that there is an even higher heaven but that we mortals are not permitted to speak of it. Babylonian Talmud, Chagigah 12b-13a שם אופנים ושרפים וחיות הקדש ומלאכי מלך אל חי רם/השרת וכסא הכבוד wונשא שוכן עליהם בערבות' שנאמר )תה /ה( סלו לרכב בערבות ביה שמו:ס"ח ואמר רב אחא בר יעקב עוד רקיע אחד יש למעלה מראשי החיות דכתיב כב( ודמות על ראשי החיה:)יחזקאל א יש לך/// /רקיע כעין הקרח הנורא עד כאן רשות לדבר מכאן ואילך אין לך רשות לדבר שכן כתוב בספר בן סירא במופלא ממך אל תדרוש ובמכוסה ממך אל תחקור במה שהורשית התבונן אין לך /עסק בנסתרות There [in heaven] are the Ophanim and Seraphim and Chayot haKodesh, and the ministering angels and the Throne of Glory. The Sovereign – the living God, high and exalted, dwells among them [there] in heaven – as it is said (Ps. 68:5), "Extol the rider on the heavens by [the] name Yah." R. Acha bar Jacob said, "There is one more heaven above the Chayot," as it is written (Ezek. 1:22), "And the likeness of the firmament was on the heads of the Chayot, like the color of awesome ice stretched above their heads." ... Until this point, you have permission to speak [about], but further you do not have permission to speak, as it is written in the Book of Ben Sira, "Do not request what is too wondrous for you: you have no business investigating the [innermost] secrets [of the heavens]." Psalm 68:1-5 :ר ִשׁירI א לַ ְמנַ ֵצּ ַח לְ ָד ִוד ִמזְ מ1. To David's chief Musician, a psalm song: 2. May God arise, let God's enemies be UסUיְ ָביו ְויָ נI אUצUהים יָ פO ִ ם ֱאU ב יָ קscattered; let those who hate God flee : ְמ ַשׂנְ ָאיו ִמ ָפּנָ יוbefore [God's presence]. י־אשׁ ֵ ֵנַ ג ִמ ְפּנIS ֹף ְכּ ִה ֵמּסS ְֹף ָע ָשׁן ִתּנS ְ ג ְכּ ִהנ3. As smoke is driven away, so drive them away; as wax melts before fire, so let the :היםO ִ ְר ָשׁ ִעים ִמ ְפּנֵ י ֱאUאבד ְ ֹ יwicked perish at God's presence. היםO ִ Sִ ד ְו ַצ4. But let the righteous be glad; let them ִ לִ ְפנֵ י ֱאU יַ ַעלְ צUיקים יִ ְשׂ ְמח : ְב ִשׂ ְמ ָחהU ְויָ ִשׂישׂrejoice before God and joyfully exult. 5. Sing to God, sing [God's] name; extol the לָ ר ֵֹכבU סֹלּI ְשׁמUהים זַ ְמּרOא ִ ֵ לU ה ִשׁירOne who rides on the heavens by [the] : לְ ָפנָ יוU ְו ִעלְ זI ְשׁמV ָיCְ תI ֲע ָרבCָ name Yah: rejoice before [God]. - 44 - DOCUMENT 12 Isaiah, Chapter 6:1-9 ָו ֶא ְר ֶאה ֶאת־Uָ הH ִZ ֻעQ ֶת ַה ֶמּלI ְשׁנַ ת־מCִ א1. In the year king Uzziah died, I saw God לָ יוUל־כּ ֵסּא ָרם ְונִ ָשּׂא ְושׁ ִ ישׁב ַע ֵ ֲאדֹנָ יsitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and :יכל ָ ת־ה ֵה ַ ְמלֵ ִאים ֶאGod's train filled the Temple. ֵשׁשׁ ְכּנָ ַפיִ םI ב ְשׂ ָר ִפים ע ְֹמ ִדים ִמ ַמּ ַעל ל2. Above it stood Seraphim: each had six ְשׁ ַתּיִ ם יְ ַכ ֶסּה ָפנָ יוCִ ֵשׁשׁ ְכּנָ ַפיִ ם לְ ֶא ָחדwings – with two covering the face, with two :פףIע ֵ ְב ְשׁ ַתּיִ ם יUִ ב ְשׁ ַתּיִ ם יְ ַכ ֶסּה ַר ְגלָ יוUִ covering the feet, and with two flying. שׁIשׁ ָקדI ג ְו ָק ָרא זֶ ה ֶאל־זֶ ה ְו ָא ַמר ָקד3. And one cried to another saying, "Holy, ל־ה ָא ֶרץ ָ א ָכOת ְמIשׁ יְ ה ָֹוה ְצ ָבאI ָקדholy, holy, is YHVH Tz'vaot; the whole earth :IדI ְכּבfills with God's glory." ראIרּ ֵ ל ַהIת ַה ִסּ ִפּים ִמרּI ַאמּUָ ֻנעH ד ַו4. And the doorposts moved at the voice of :יִ ת יִ ָמּלֵ א ָע ָשׁןCַ ְו ַהthe One calling, and the house was filled with smoke. יתי ִכּי ִאישׁ ְט ֵמא־ ִ י־לִ י ִכי־נִ ְד ֵמIה ָוא ַֹמר א ם־ט ֵמא ְשׂ ָפ ַתיִ ם ְ ַעQIבתUְ ְשׂ ָפ ַתיִ ם ָאנ ִֹכי תI יְ ה ָֹוה ְצ ָבאQ ֶת־ה ֶמּל ַ ָאנ ִֹכי יֹ ֵשׁב ִכּי ֶא : ֵעינָ יUָרא 5. Then I said, "Woe is me, for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the Sovereign, YHVH Tz'vaot." Iביָ דUְ ן־ה ְשּׂ ָר ִפים ַ ָ ָעף ֵאלַ י ֶא ָחד ִמH ו ַו6. One of the Seraphim flew to me with a live : ַחCֵ ְ ֶמלְ ָק ַחיִ ם לָ ַקח ֵמ ַעל ַה ִמּזCְ ִר ְצ ָפּהcoal in its hand, which it had taken with the tongs from off the Altar. אמר ִהנֵּ ה נָ ַגע זֶ ה ַעל־ ֶ ֹHל־פּי ַו ִ ע ַעDַ ַH ז ַו7. And it laid [the coal] on my mouth saying, : ְתּ ֻכ ָפּרWאת ְ Yָ ְו ַחW ֶנI ְו ָסר ֲעW" ְשׂ ָפ ֶתיBehold, this has touched your lips; and your iniquity is taken away, and your sin purged." ת־מי ִ ל ֲאדֹנָ י א ֵֹמר ֶאI ח ָו ֶא ְשׁ ַמע ֶאת־ק8. I heard the voice of God, saying, "Whom : ָוא ַֹמר ִהנְ נִ י ְשׁלָ ֵחנִ יU־לָ נQ ֶמי יֵ לU ִ ֶא ְשׁלַ חshall I send, and who will go for Us?" Then said I, "Here I am: send me." Uֶ ה ִשׁ ְמעZ ְו ָא ַמ ְר ָתּ לָ ָעם ַהQ ֵאמר ל ֶ ֹH ט ַו9. And [God] said, "Go and tell this people, :Uל־תּ ָדע ֵ ְו ַאI ָראUראUְ Uל־תּ ִבינ ָ ע ְו ַאIמ ַ ָשׁYou surely hear but do not understand. You surely see but do not perceive." - 45 - DOCUMENT 13 Nusach HaTefilah, Shacharit l'Chol, Yotzer May You be blessed, our Rock, Sovereign and Redeemer, Creator of holiness. May Your Name be praised forever, our Sovereign, fashioner of ministering angels. In [God's] service they all stand in supernal heights and proclaim with awe, together aloud, words of the living God ריםIC ִ Dִ רים ֻכּלָּ םUר ִ Cְ בים ֻכּלָּ םUה ִ ֻכּלָּ ם ֲאand Sovereign of the universe – ראIC ֵ U ְוג ֲֹאלֵ נU ַמלְ ֵכּנUרנUצ ֵ Q ַרCָ ִתּ ְת צרIי ֵ Uח ִשׁ ְמך לָ ַעד ַמלְ ֵכּנCַ יִ ְשׁ ַתּ,שׁיםIד ִ ְק מ ִדיםIע ְ ְמ ָשׁ ְר ִתים ַו ֲא ֶשׁר ְמ ָשׁ ְר ָתיו ֻכּלָּ ם לIקCְ יִ ְר ָאה יַ ַחדCְ מ ְשׁ ִמ ִיעיםU ַ לָ םIם עUרCְ .לָ םI עQ ֶמלU ֶ ִ יםHהים ַחO ִ ְב ֵרי ֱאSִ .נָ םIן קIביִ ְר ָאה ְרצUְ ימה ָ ֵאCְ ְו ֻכלָּ ם ע ִֹשׂיםAll beloved, all clear, all strong, and all doing with dread and reverence the will of their Maker. ב ָט ֲֳה ָרהUְ ְק ֻד ָשּׁהCִ יהם ֶ ת ִחים ֶאת ִפּIפּ ְ ְו ֻכלָּ ם ִחיםCְ מ ַשׁU ְ ְמ ָב ְר ִכיםUְ בזִ ְמ ָרהUְ ִשׁ ָירהCְ יכים ִ ִמ ְמלU ַ ישׁים ִ Sִ מ ְקU ַ יצים ִ מ ֲע ִרU ַ מ ָפ ֲא ִריםU ְ And they all open their mouths in holiness and purity, in song and hymn, and they bless, praise, glorify, revere, sanctify and enthrone – ראIנּ ָ ר ְו ַהICDִ ל ַהIדDָ ַהQ ֶֶאת ֵשׁם ָה ֵאל ַה ֶמּל יהם עֹל ֶ ֵלִ ים ֲעלCְ ְו ֻכלָּ ם ְמ ַק:אUשׁ הIָקד ת זֶ הUתנִ ים ְרשׁIנ ְ ֶ ה ְוZת ָשׁ ַמיִ ם זֶ ה ִמUַמלְ כ ָשׂ ָפהCְ חUר ַ נַ ַחתCְ צ ָרםIי ְ ְישׁ לSִ לָ זֶ ה לְ ַה ְק נִ יםIימה ְק ֻד ָשּׁה ֻכּלָ ם ְכּ ֶא ָחד ע ָ ב ִנְעUִ רהUר ָ ְב :יִ ְר ָאהCְ מ ִריםIא ְ ְו the Name of God, the great, mighty and awesome Sovereign, Blessed Be. And they all take on themselves from one another the yoke of heaven, and give each other permission to sanctify the One who formed them with pleasure, in clear language and holy melody. All as one, they answer and say with awe: א ָכלOת ְמIשׁ ה' ְצ ָבאIשׁ ָקדIשׁ ָקדI" ָקדHoly, holy, holy is YHVH Tzeva'ot: the :IדI ָה ָא ֶרץ ְכּבwhole earth fills with [God's] glory." לIדDָ ַר ַעשׁCְ ת ַהרּ ֶֹדשׁIHפנִּ ים ְו ַחIא ַ ְו ָהAnd the ophanim and chayot ha'kodesh, with ִמ ְתנַ ְשּׂ ִאים לְ ֻע ַמּת ְשׂ ָר ִפים לְ ֻע ָמּ ָתםgreat noise, rise opposite (ed. – or toward) seraphim. Facing them, they praise saying – – מ ִריםIא ְ ִחים ְוCְ ְמ ַשׁ :IמIד ה' ִמ ְמּקI ְכּבQUרCָ "Blessed is the glory of YHVH from [God's] place." ָ םH ֵאל ַחי ְו ַקQ ֶ לְ ֶמלUת יִ ֵתּנI ִנְעימQUרCָ לְ ֵאל אU ִכּי ה.Uת יַ ְשׁ ִמיעIחCָ ְו ִת ְשׁUאמר ֵ ֹת יIזְ ִמר ַעלCַ תIת ע ֶֹשׂה ֲח ָדשׁIרUבDְ עלIפּ ֵ ISלְ ַב תIעUיח יְ שׁ ַ ת ַמ ְצ ִמIר ַע ְצ ָדקIז ֵ תIִמלְ ָחמ ןIת ֲאדIרא ְת ִהלּIנ ָ תIאUרא ְרפIC ֵ ם ָתּ ִמידI ָכל יCְ IבUטCְ שׁSֵ ַה ְמ ַח.תIַהנִ ְפלָ א ריםIא ִ ר לְ ע ֵֹשׂהU ָכּ ָאמ.אשׁית ִ ַמ ֲע ֵשׂה ְב ֵר :ISלָ ם ַח ְסIדֹלִ ים ִכּי לְ עDְ To the blessed God they give melodies, to the Sovereign, living and enduring God, they sing hymns and proclaim praises. For [God] alone effects mighty acts, makes new things, masters war, sows justice, causes the flourishing of salvation, creates healing, awesome in praise, master of wonders. In goodness God daily renews creation, as it is said: [Praise] the Maker of great lights whose kindness is eternal. - 46 - DOCUMENT 14 Ezekiel 1:5-28 יהן ֶ ת ְוזֶ ה ַמ ְר ֵאIHע ַחCַ ת ַא ְרUמSְ VכIתּ ָ מU ִ ה5. And out of its midst came the likeness of :ת ָא ָדם לָ ֵהנָּ הUמSְ four chayot. Their appearance was as a man. 6. Each had four faces and four wings. ע ְכּנָ ַפיִ םCַ ָעה ָפנִ ים לְ ֶא ָחת ְו ַא ְרCָ ו ְו ַא ְר : לְ ַא ַחת לָ ֶהם7. And their feet were straight; and the sole of their feet was like the sole of a calf’s foot sparkling like the color of burnished bronze. יהם ְכּ ַכף ֶ ֵיהם ֶר ֶגל יְ ָשׁ ָרה ְו ַכף ַר ְגל ֶ ֵז ְו ַר ְגל : ֶר ֶגל ֵע ֶגל ְונ ְֹצ ִצים ְכּ ֵעין נְ ח ֶֹשׁת ָקלָ ל8. And they had a man's hands under their wings on their four sides; and the four had ַעתCַ יהם ַעל ַא ְר ֶ ח ִו ֵידי ָא ָדם ִמ ַתּ ַחת ַכּנְ ֵפtheir faces and wings thus: : ְע ָתּםCַ יהם לְ ַא ְר ֶ יהם ְו ַכנְ ֵפ ֶ ֵפנU ְ יהם ֶ ִר ְב ֵע9. Their wings joined one to another, not turning when they went; each went ahead. יהם ֶ ַכּנְ ֵפVתIח ָ ל־א ֲ ט ח ְֹברֹת ִא ָשּׁה ֶא :Uל־ע ֶבר ָפּנָ יו יֵ לֵ כ ֵ ְבלֶ ְכ ָתּן ִאישׁ ֶאUCא־יִ ַסּO 10. As for their faces, the four had the face of a man and the face of a lion on the right and the face of an ox on the left side; פנֵ י ַא ְריֵ הU ְ יהם ְפּנֵ י ָא ָדם ֶ ֵת ְפּנUדמUְ יside; the four also had the face of an eagle. רIפנֵ י־שׁU ְ ְע ָתּםCַ ָ ִמין לְ ַא ְרHל־ה ַ ֶא : ְע ָתּןCַ פנֵ י־נֶ ֶשׁר לְ ַא ְרU ְ ְע ָתּןCַ ֵמ ַה ְשּׂמֹאול לְ ַא ְר11. So were their faces, their wings stretched upward; two wings of each joined one to ת ִמלְ ָמ ְעלָ הIיהם ְ ֻפּרד ֶ יהם ְו ַכנְ ֵפ ֶ ֵפנU ְ יאanother, and two covered their bodies. תIשׁ ַתּיִ ם ְמ ַכסּU ְ ת ִאישׁIברIח ְ לְ ִאישׁ ְשׁ ַתּיִ ם12. And they each went straight ahead; :יהנָ ה ֶ ֹ ֵתH ִוDְ ֵאתwhere the spirit would go, they went; and they turned not when they went. ֶאל ֲא ֶשׁר יִ ְהיֶ הUל־ע ֶבר ָפּנָ יו יֵ לֵ כ ֵ יב ְו ִאישׁ ֶא :לֶ ְכ ָתּןCְ UCא יִ ַסּO Uח לָ לֶ ֶכת יֵ לֵ כUר ַ ָשׁ ָמּה ָה13. And the likeness of the chayot was as burning coals of fire, like the appearance of י־אשׁ ֵ ֵיהם ְכּ ַג ֲחל ֶ ת ַמ ְר ֵאIHת ַה ַחUדמUְ יגtorches, flashing up and down among the chayot, and the fire was bright, and from the יןCֵ ת ְכּ ַמ ְר ֵאה ַהלַּ ִפּ ִדים ִהיא ִמ ְת ַהלֶּ ֶכתI ֲֹערC fire went forth lightning. :צא ָב ָרקIי ֵ ן־ה ֵאשׁ ָ מU ִ לָ ֵאשׁVת ְונ ַֹגIHַה ַח 14. And the chayot ran and returned like the :זָ קCָ ב ְכּ ַמ ְר ֵאה ַהIא ָושׁIת ָרצIH יד ְו ַה ַחappearance of a flash of lightning. ָא ֶרץCָ פן ֶא ָחדIא ַ ת ְו ִהנֵּ הIH טו ָו ֵא ֶרא ַה ַח15. As I saw the chayot, one wheel was on : ַעת ָפּנָ יוCַ ת לְ ַא ְרIH ֵא ֶצל ַה ַחthe earth by the chayot with its four faces. 16. The appearance of the wheels and their יהם ְכּ ֵעין ַתּ ְר ִשׁישׁ ֶ מ ֲע ֵשׂU ַ פנִּ יםIא ַ טז ַמ ְר ֵאה ָהworks was as the color of emerald, the four יהם ֶ מ ְר ֵאU ַ ְע ָתּןCַ ת ֶא ָחד לְ ַא ְרUדמUְ having one likeness; and their appearance :פןIא ָ ָהQIתCְ פןIא ַ יהם ַכּ ֲא ֶשׁר יִ ְהיֶ ה ָה ֶ מ ֲע ֵשׂU ַ was like a wheel in the middle of a wheel. אO Uלֶ ְכ ָתּם יֵ לֵ כCְ יהן ֶ ַעת ִר ְב ֵעCַ ל־א ְר ַ יז ַע17. From any of their four sides they moved; :לֶ ְכ ָתּןCְ UC יִ ַסּand they did not turn in their movement. - 47 - ָֹתםC לָ ֶהם ְויִ ְר ָאה לָ ֶהם ְו ַגVיהן ְוג ַֹב ֶ Cֵ יח ְו ַג18. Their rim heights were awesome; and : ְע ָתּןCַ ְמלֵ אֹת ֵעינַ יִ ם ָס ִביב לְ ַא ְרthe rims around the[m] were full of eyes. 19. In the moving of the chayot, the ophanim פנִּ ים ֶא ְצלָ םIא ַ ָהUת יֵ לְ כIHבלֶ ֶכת ַה ַחUְ יטwere with them; and in the chayot lifting off פנִּ יםIא ה Uא שׂ ַ ָ ְ ָת ֵמ ַעל ָה ָא ֶרץ יִ נּIHב ִהנָּ ֵשׂא ַה ַחUְ the earth, the ophanim were lifted. Uח לָ לֶ ֶכת יֵ לֵ כUר ַ ה־שּׁם ָה ָ ֶכ ַעל ֲא ֶשׁר יִ ְהי Uפנִּ ים יִ נָּ ְשׂאIא ַ ח לָ לֶ ֶכת ְו ָהUר ַ ָשׁ ָמּה ָה :פנִּ יםIא ַ Cָ ָ הHח ַה ַחUר ַ לְ ֻע ָמּ ָתם ִכּי 20. Wherever the spirit went, they moved for the spirit wanted to go there, and the wheels were lifted with them; for the spirit of the chayot was in the wheels. Uב ָע ְמ ָדם יַ ֲעמֹדUְ Uלֶ ְכ ָתּם יֵ לֵ כCְ כא פנִּ יםIא ַ ָהUב ִהנָּ ְשׂ ָאם ֵמ ַעל ָה ָא ֶרץ יִ נָּ ְשׂאUְ :פנִּ יםIא ַ Cָ ָ הHח ַה ַחUר ַ לְ ֻע ָמּ ָתם ִכּי 21. When they moved, these moved; and when they stood still, these stood still; and when they were lifted from the earth, the wheels were lifted with them; for the spirit of the chayot was in the wheels. ָ ה ָר ִק ַיע ְכּ ֵעיןHאשׁי ַה ַח ֵ ל־ר ָ ת ַעUדמUְ כב :יהם ִמלְ ָמ ְעלָ ה ֶ אשׁ ֵ ל־ר ָ י ַעUרא נָ טIנּ ָ ַה ֶרּ ַרח ַה22. And the likeness of the firmament was on the heads of the chayot, like the color of awesome ice stretched above their heads. ת ִא ָשּׁהIיהם יְ ָשׁר ֶ כג ְו ַת ַחת ָה ָר ִק ַיע ַכּנְ ֵפ ת לָ ֵהנָּ הI לְ ִאישׁ ְשׁ ַתּיִ ם ְמ ַכסּVתIח ָ ל־א ֲ ֶא23. And under the firmament their wings :יהם ֶ ֹ ֵתH ִוDְ ת לָ ֵהנָּ ה ֵאתIלְ ִאישׁ ְשׁ ַתּיִ ם ְמ ַכסּU were held straight, one toward another; each had two covering them [and] each had ל ַמיִ םIיהם ְכּק ֶ ל ַכּנְ ֵפI כד ָו ֶא ְשׁ ַמע ֶאת־קtwo covering the bodies. לIל ֲה ֻמלָּ ה ְכּקIלֶ ְכ ָתּם קCְ יSַ ל־שׁIק ים ְכּCִ ַר24. I heard the voice of their wings like the ַ :יהן ֶ ָע ְמ ָדם ְתּ ַר ֶפּינָ ה ַכנְ ֵפCְ ַמ ֲחנֶ הvoice of great waters when they moved, like the voice of the Almighty, the voice of a ֹאשׁם ָ ל ֵמ ַעל לָ ָר ִק ַיע ֲא ֶשׁר ַעל־רI כה ַויְ ִהי־קtumult, like the noise of an army camp; :יהן ֶ ָע ְמ ָדם ְתּ ַר ֶפּינָ ה ַכנְ ֵפCְ when they stood, they let down their wings. 25. There was a voice above the firmament ֹאשׁם ְכּ ַמ ְר ֵאה ָ מ ַמּ ַעל לָ ָר ִק ַיע ֲא ֶשׁר ַעל־רU ִ כוover their heads, when they stood still and ת ַה ִכּ ֵסּאUמSְ ת ִכּ ֵסּא ְו ַעלUמSְ ן־ס ִפּיר ַ ֶא ֶבlet down their wings. :ת ְכּ ַמ ְר ֵאה ָא ָדם ָעלָ יו ִמלְ ָמ ְעלָ הUמSְ 26. Above the firmament over their heads like the appearance of sapphire stone, V ָית־לCֵ ה־אשׁ ֵ כז ָו ֵא ֶרא ְכּ ֵעין ַח ְשׁ ַמל ְכּ ַמ ְר ֵאwas like a throne; and on [it] was a likeness as מ ַמּ ְר ֵאהU ִ לְ ָמ ְעלָ הU ָס ִביב ִמ ַמּ ְר ֵאה ָמ ְתנָ יוthe appearance of a man. I לVה־אשׁ ְונ ַֹג ֵ יתי ְכּ ַמ ְר ֵא ִ ה ָר ִאYָ לְ ַמU ָמ ְתנָ יו : ָס ִביב27. I saw the color of electricity, like fire around it, from what appeared to be loins and from [there] downward, I saw םIיCְ כח ְכּ ַמ ְר ֵאה ַה ֶרּ ֶשׁת ֲא ֶשׁר יִ ְהיֶ ה ֶב ָענָ ןupward; what appeared to be fire, bright all around. א ַמ ְר ֵאהU ָס ִביב הV ֶשׁם ֵכּן ַמ ְר ֵאה ַהנּ ַֹגDֶ ַה ל־פּנַ י ָ ָו ֶא ְר ֶאה ָו ֶאפֹּל ַעwד־הIת ְכּבUמSְ 28. Like the bow in the cloud on a rainy day, :רCֵ ל ְמ ַדI ָו ֶא ְשׁ ַמע קso did its brightness appear around it: this was the likeness of God's glory, and when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard a voice speaking. - 48 - DOCUMENT 15 Nusach HaTefilah, Shacharit l'Shabbat v'Yom Tov, El Adon "El Adon" is among the most famous and widely utilized piyyutim (liturgical poems) of the Jewish canon. Believed to date to post-exile Israel between 100-300 C.E., this acrostic piyyut depicts a divine ontology that includes angelic forms amidst God's works of Creation. Note which angelic forms the piyyut mentions, what functions the piyyut attributes to them, and in what order the piyyut lists them. 'ן ַעל ָכּל ַה ַמּ ֲע ִשׂיםIֵאל ָאד / ִפי ָכּל נְּ ָשׁ ָמהCְ Qמב ָֹרU ְ QUרCָ 'לָ םI ָמלֵ א עIבU ְוטI ְדלDָ :IתIנָ ה ס ְֹב ִבים אUתבU ְ ַעתSַ God, Master of all works Blessed, made blessed by every soul, God's greatness and goodness fills the world Wisdom and insight surrounding [God]. רּדשׁ ֶ ת ַהIH ֶאה ַעל ַחDָ ַה ִמּ ְת /ד ַעל ַה ֶמּ ְר ָכּ ָבהI ָכבCְ רSָ ְונֶ ְה 'Iר לִ ְפנֵ י ִכ ְסאIמישׁU ִ תUזְ כ :IדIֶח ֶסד ְו ַר ֲח ִמים לִ ְפנֵ י ְכב The One exalted over the Chayot HaKodesh Splendrous in glory on the Merkavah: Merit and fairness are before [God's] throne, Kindness and mercy before God's glory. UהינO ֵ ָרא ֱאCָ ת ֶשIרIבים ְמאIט ִ /ב ַה ְשׂ ֵכּלUְ ִבינָ הCְ ַד ַעתCְ יְ ָצ ָרם ' ֶהםCָ רה נָ ַתןUב ָ גUְ כּ ַֹח : ֶק ֶרב ֵתּ ֵבלCְ שׁלִ יםIמ ְ תIלִ ְהי 'Vיקים נ ַֹג ִ מ ִפU ְ ְמלֵ ִאים זִ יו /לָ םI ָכל ָהעCְ נָ ֶאה זִ ָיום 'אםIב ָ Cְ אתם ְו ָשׂ ִשׂים ָ ֵצCְ ְשׂ ֵמ ִחים :נָ םIן קIימה ְרצ ָ ֵאCְ ע ִֹשׂים 'Iתנִ ים לִ ְשׁמIנ ְ דIְפּ ֵאר ְו ָכב /IתUָצ ֳהלָ ה ְו ִרנָּ ה לְ זֵ ֶכר ַמלְ כ 'רIִ זְ ַרח אHָק ָרא לַ ֶשּׁ ֶמשׁ ַו :רת ַהלְּ ָבנָ הUצ ַ ָר ָאה ְו ִה ְת ִקין Iתנִ ים לIנ ְ ֶשׁ ַבח 'םIָכּל ְצ ָבא ָמר 'ִתּ ְפ ֶא ֶרת ְו ְג ֻדלָּ ה :ת ַהרּ ֶֹדשׁIHפנִּ ים ְו ַחIא ַ ְשׂ ָר ִפים ְו The lights that God made are good, Made with wisdom, insight and discernment. [God] gave them power and strength, To be dominant in the midst of the world. Filled with luster and radiating brightness, Their luster is beautiful worldwide Joyful in going out, exultant in coming in, They do with awe the will of their Creator. Splendor and glory that give [God's] Name, Jubilation and song on recalling God's reign. [God] called the sun and it shined with light, [God] saw and fixed the form of the moon. Give [God] praise, All the tz'va marom; Splendor and greatness, Seraphim, ofanim and chayot ha'kodesh. - 49 - DOCUMENT 16 "Grow, Grow" Bereshit Rabbah 10:6 ' אלוה העלה סמים מן הארץ: בר סירא אמרBar Sirah said, "God causes drugs to rise בהם הרופא מרפא את המכה' ובהם הרוקחfrom the ground; with them the doctor the wound and the apothecary אין לך: אמר רבי סימון/ מרקח את המרקחתheals compounds the preparation." R. Simon כל עשב ועשב' שאין לו מזל ברקיע' שמכהsaid, "There is not even a blade of grass אותו ואומר לו גדל' הדא הוא דכתיב )איובlacking a mazal in the heavens, which הידעת חקות שמים אם תשים משטרו:( לחhits it and says, "Grow," as it is written /w( בארץ וגוJob 38:33), "Can you know heaven's ordinances? Can you establish its dominion on the earth?" Job 38:25-33 :תIֽ לַ ֲֽחזִ יז קֹלQֽי־פלַּ ג לַ ֶשּׁ ֶטף ְתּ ָעלָ ה ְו ֶד ֶר ִ כה ִמ25. [Do you know] who divided a water course for the rain torrents, or a way for the lightning of thunder, ֽא־א ָדם ָ O רCָ ֽא־אישׁ ִמ ְד ִ O ל־א ֶרץ ֶ כו לְ ַה ְמ ִטיר ַע :IֽC 26. To cause rain on land where no man is, on wilderness where there is no man, :יח מ ָֹצא ֶד ֶֽשׁא ְ ַיע שׁ ָֹאהCִ כז לְ ַה ְשׂ27. To satisfy the desolate and waste ַ לְ ַה ְצ ִמU משׁ ָֹאהU :י־טֽל ָ ֵלִ יד ֶא ְגלI ִמי־הIכח ֲהיֵ שׁ־לַ ָמּ ָטר ָאב א ground; and cause the bud of tender herb to sprout? 28. Has the rain a father? Or who begot :Iֽכפֹר ָשׁ ַמיִ ם ִמי יְ לָ דU ְ ֶטן ִמי יָ ָצא ַה ָרּ ַרחCֶ כט ִמthe drops of dew? 29. Out of whose womb came the ice? :Uם יִ ְתלַ ָכּֽדIפנֵ י ְתהU ְ UאCָ ל ָכּ ֶא ֶבן ַמיִ ם יִ ְת ַחAnd heaven's hoary frost, who gave it birth? ת ְכּ ִסילI־מ ְֽשׁכIֽימה א ָ ת ִכּI לא ַה ְת ַק ֵשּׁר ַמ ֲֽע ַדנּ30. The waters are hidden as with a : ְתּ ַפ ֵתּ ַֽחstone, and the face of the deep is frozen. 31. Can you bind the chains of the :יה ַתנְ ֵחֽם ָ ֶנCל־ ָ ְו ַעיִ שׁ ַעI ִעתּCְ תIָ רZ לב ֲהת ִֹציא ַמPleiades, or loose the cords of Orion? 32. Can you bring forth the Mazzarot in Iם־תּ ִשׂים ִמ ְשׁ ָטר ָ ת ָשׁ ָמיִ ם ִאI לג ֲהיָ ַד ְע ָתּ ֻחרּtheir season? Can you guide the Bear : באֽרץwith his sons? ֶָ ָ 33. Do you know heaven's ordinances? Can you establish its dominion on the earth? - 50 - DOCUMENT 17 McLean, D., "Devas, Fairies and Nature Spirits," Big Book of Angels, (Rodale ed. 2002), pp. 109-113. In 1962, Dorothy McLean and friends founded a spiritual community called Findhorn in a desolate, cold and sandy area of Scotland, 600 miles south of the Arctic Circle. They grew 42 pound cabbages and other amazing plants without fertilizers or pesticides, a feat which they attributed to divine and angelic guidance. A close friend of R. Shohama who lived there has confirmed these reports. Angels who guide nature are sometimes referred to as devas (Sanskrit for “shining ones”), nature spirits or fairies. Dorothy McLean has since written a number of books, including To Hear the Angels Sing. Years ago while at Findhorn, I was very surprised and skeptical when I was told from my inner divinity that such things as planets, clouds and vegetables had an overlighting intelligence and that I was to attune to and harmonize with these intelligences. When I finally got around to such attunements, I began with the garden pea, my favorite among the vegetables that we were trying to grow. From its intelligence, I received a clear inner message, which I put into words as I had been doing for ten years with my inner attunements. That began my collaboration with the energies of various plants. These I encountered on the soul level: each group or species having a soul, which I called a deva, or angel, although to me they were formless energy fields. With answers to our questions and with our conscious cooperation, we [at Findhorn] grew remarkably healthy vegetables. The Findhorn garden became well known for our particular method of gardening. Almost immediately after my first plant contact, I became aware of a presence that seemed to be in charge of the area in which we were living. I called it the Landscape Angel, and it became my mentor regarding various approaches to gardening and how to cooperate with the devic realm, among other lessons. It, as well as the God within, often urged me to contact other members of these other dimensions, and I gradually attuned to angels of qualities, such as an Angel of Serenity and an Angel of Sound, as these came up in my life. Also, I learned that - 51 - when a group of people were separate enough to have their own unique identity, there was also an inner-level identity representing that particular group. My first experience of this aspect was with the angel of our own group: Angel of Findhorn. I had long disliked cities and wanted to live in the country in harmony with all life, which was the way that I considered that primal peoples lived. While in the United States in 1976, however, I had the opportunity to visit Native American sites and found that my notions were merely romantic dreams, for I learned that the Native Americans had consisted of warring tribes and also live in conditions that would be very uncomfortable compared to my [then] twentieth-century standards. The Soul of a City That discovery broke down my rigid antipathy to cities, and when I next came to a large city, I was open to any spiritual aspect of the city. I experienced a wonderful overlighting angel, from whom I received a message in which I was asked to send love to it. That amazed me, for I thought we receive love from the angels, not send it. On pondering this, I realized that the angels of our large cities must have about the most difficult job on the planet, for they were trying to bring joy and peace to our darkest spots: the crowded, rebellious, poor, drug-filled, criminal districts in our cities. How different form looking after a beautiful nature area! I also realized that I had made the job of the city angels more difficult, for I had used cities for shopping, movies, museums and so forth, without a word of thanks, quickly getting out of what I considered concrete jungles. This encounter completely changed my view of cities, and I settled in a large city – Toronto – in a downtown area, on an eighth floor, and had no more problems with living in a city. Of course, nothing was different except my attitude. We can all find something to love in a city, such as a tree in a park, which will get love flowing and enable us to make contact with the angel of the city. - 52 - Another area of the angelic world opened up to me at that same time. I had considered myself a planetary citizen and even created a planetary passport (though this passport was not recognized by any country). I thought I had outgrown nationalism in my concept of myself as a citizen of the world. In my Toronto neighborhood, I found a deep love and nostalgia for such things as the wonderful wildflowers growing in the Canadian woods before the leaves unfolded – flowers that seemed so much more exquisite than any garden blooms – and for the climate with its rich seasons. I had been bored with the continual rain of Britain or the continual sun of California. And the peaches of the Niagara Peninsula were the most luscious in the world! Communicating with the Angel of Canada As a seventh-generation Canadian, I knew the past of the area. Even the present was familiar, for there was a big new library in Toronto named the John Robarts Library, and I had attended the same university at the time he did. As all these familiarities appeared, I began to wonder if there was more relevance in our national and ethnic backgrounds than I had thought. So I wondered if there was an Angel of Canada whose advice I could seek. With love, I focused on such a presence and got in touch with a wonderful energy with quite a feel of nature. It communicated that it could not do its job properly, as it worked through people and we Canadians didn’t know our identity. That motivated me and others on a long search for our identity on the personality level. It also began my contact with angels of other countries that I visited. I learned that it can be helpful to contact such angels, see what they have to communicate, and ask questions or offer our love and assistance in whatever way we can. - 53 - DOCUMENT 18 Markus, D., "Kruvim in the Canon: Angelic Paradigm Shift" (2015) For all their prominence in the modern popular culture of angels, kruvim (cherubim) are relative bit players in the Jewish angelic pantheon, making just three kinds of appearances in Tanakh. In textual order, kruvim guard the path back to Gan Eden,1 adorn the Ark of the Covenant and ancient Temple,2 and accompany the celestial Merkavah.3 Kruvim, however, are absent from the high celestial angelology of Talmudic imagination, which lists only seraphim, ophanim and chayot ha'kodesh.4 Likewise, kruvim are not part of traditional liturgies crafted using these materials: Yotzer and El Adon omit kruvim from the angelic pantheon. On the other hand, Maimonides held kruvim as the ninth of the 10 angelic levels, just above ishim,5 and deemed kruvim essential to conveying prayers to God.6 Using both rational and mystical approaches, this article will examine "cherubic" functions in Jewish thought. This article asks how these various functions and approaches speak to each other spiritually and inter-textually, and uses this inter-textuality to shift tradition's understanding of kruvim as angel and spiritual energetic. Guarding the Path Back to Gan Eden Torah records the Creator to speak in the tantalizingly plural before creating humanity: UתנUמ ֵ ִכּ ְדU ַצלְ ֵמנCְ הים ֲנַע ֶשׂה ָא ָדםO ִ אמר ֱא ֶ ֹH ַו/ "Let Us make humanity in Our 1. See Gen. 3:24. 2. See Ex. 25:18-22, 37:7-9; 1 Kings 6:23-28; 2 Chron. 3:1-13. 3. See e.g. Ezek. 10:1-20; 2 Sam. 22:11; Ps. 18:10. 4. See B.T. Chagigah 12b-13a. 5. See Maimonides, Mishneh Torah, Yesodei HaTorah 2:7. 6. See Maimonides, Guide for the Perplexed, Book 2, ch. 6; Kohelet Rabbah 10:20. - 54 - image."7 While midrash understands this plural form to connote God consulting the angelic host,8 ostensively including kruvim, Rambam understands this consultation as only an allegorical reference to the forces of nature and not to any specific angels as such.9 Leaving implied allegory aside, Torah's first explicit mention of an angelic form concerns kruvim. After God speaks concern – again, in a tantalizingly plural form – that humans might eat from the Tree of Life and become immortal, God exiles them from the Garden and places kruvim to bar their return:10 Gen. 3:22-24 הים ֵהן ָה ָא ָדם ָהיָ ה ְכּ ַא ַחדO ִ ֱאwאמר ה ֶ ֹH כב ַו22. YHVH Elohim said, "Behold, the Iב ָו ָרע ְו ַע ָתּה ֶפּן־יִ ְשׁלַ ח יָ דI לָ ַד ַעת טU ִמ ֶמּנּman has become like one of us, knowing good and evil; and now what if he sends :ִ ים ְו ָא ַכל ָו ַחי לְ עֹלָ םHם ֵמ ֵעץ ַה ַחDַ ְולָ ַקחforth his hand and also takes from the Tree of Life, and eats, and lives forever?" ן־ע ֶדן לַ ֲעבֹד ֵ Dַ הים ִמO ִ ֱאw הUכג ַויְ ַשׁלְּ ֵחה :ת־ה ֲא ָד ָמה ֲא ֶשׁר ֻל ַרּח ִמ ָשּׁם ָ ֶא23. YHVH Elohim sent him out of Gan Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. ן־ע ֶדן ֵ ַ ְשׁ ֵכּן ִמ ֶרּ ֶדם לְ ַגHת־ה ָא ָדם ַו ָ כד ַויְ ָג ֶרשׁ ֶא ת־ה ְ ֻכּר ִבים ְו ֵאת לַ ַהט ַה ֶח ֶרב ַה ִמּ ְת ַה ֶפּ ֶכת ַ ֶא24. [God] drove out the man, and caused :ִ יםH ֵעץ ַה ַחQ ֶרSת־ ֶ לִ ְשׁמֹר ֶאthe kruvim to dwell east of Gan Eden, and the flaming sword turning around, to guard the path of the Tree of Life. This rendition seems to say little about kruvim. It does not suggest anyone ever seeing them. It does not indicate how many kruvim there were (except that they existed in the plural), what they looked like or when they were created. Midrash notes these "gaps" and, in classic fashion, fills in from other parts of the canon: 7. Gen. 1:26. 8. See e.g. Gen. Rabbah 51. 9. See Maimonides, Guide for the Perplexed 2:6. Indeed, Rambam understands all angels to be allegories to natural forces, having no independent existence separate from the Creator. See Id. On the other hand, even rationalist Rambam imagines that angels "know" God, with each angel's capacity for divine knowledge corresponding to the angel's spiritual height. See Maimonides, Mishneh Torah, Yesodei HaTorah 2:8. 10. Gen. 3:22-24. - 55 - Bereishit Rabbah 21 קדם לג"ע נבראו המלאכים' הדא- מקדםMi'kedem – Angels were created before כ( היא החיה אשר:( הוא דכתיב )יחזקאל יkodem) Gan Eden, as it is written (Ezek. "This is the living creature I saw ראיתי תחת אלהי ישראל בנהר כבר' ואדע כי10:20): under the God of Israel by the Chebar, / כרובים המהand I knew that they were kruvim." ד( ומשרתיו אש: ע"ש )תהלים קד- ואת להטAnd the flaming sword – [The angels are so called] in accord with (Ps. 104:4): /[" לוהטGod's] ministers are as flaming fire." שהם מתהפכים פעמים אנשים- המתהפכתTurning – [Kruvim] change: sometimes / פעמים נשים פעמים רוחות פעמים מלאכיםappearing as men, sometimes women, sometimes spirits, sometimes angels. Bereishit Rabbah suggests that God created kruvim before creating the Garden of Eden, as if to hint that God knew their sword-wielding purpose would become a necessary response to human disobedience in the Garden. (In so doing, this midrash raises juicy questions about the divine-human relationship and whether humanity defied God in the Garden, or rather fulfilled God's creative intention by eating of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.) As to the physical form of kruvim, midrash suggests that the descriptor ַה ִמּ ְת ַה ֶפּ ֶכת/ "[the] turning around" of Genesis 3:24 concerns not the flaming sword but kruvim themselves, which rabbis thus imagined to transmogrify between human and spirit, and between male and female.11 Much like Rashi's angelic sense of Joseph's "Ish" who was the angel Gabriel and not a mere mortal,12 this midrash about kruvim understands the angelic form to be malleable by its nature, and even to conflate the forms of angels and humans. If we understand kruvim as symbolic purveyors of ַה ִמּ ְת ַה ֶפּ ֶכת/ "[the] turning around," then kruvim might represent or facilitate translation between human and angelic realms, between the morality of human existence and the immortality imputed to the fruit of the Tree of Life, between this world and the world to come, 11. See Gen. Rabbah 21. 12. See Rashi Gen. 37:15. - 56 - and even between genders in this world. If so, then we might understand kruvim as portals between realms of existence – symbolized ontologically as the apparent binarisms of male-female, human-angel and mortal-immortal among which the rabbis imagined kruvim to oscillate in appearance. Against the backdrop of these apparent binarisms, kruvim simultaneously represent all of them together and each of them separately – the ultimate symbolic manifestation of "both/and" liquefying all distinctions and categories on the path back to mystical unity in Gan Eden. Adorning the Ark of the Covenant Kruvim next appear in Torah's recitation of how Moses and Betzalel crafted the Ark of the Covenant – two kruvim adorning the cover, wings outstretched, God speaking from between their outstretched wings.13 One might wonder how recently freed Egyptian slaves could know what kruvim were or how they should appear in their golden representations atop the Ark: nothing else in the canon told Moses and Betzalel how the kruvim should appear, other than to make outstretched wings. While the canon is notably silent on this matter, it is reasonable to assume that Torah's brief description of kruvim had to make sufficient sense to Moses and Betzalel in their day that they could fulfill these instructions without the painstaking detail accorded other aspects of building the Mishkan. It may be that the imagined form of kruvim was sufficiently well-known across the Lavant, or at least among the once-enslaved Israelities, that detailed instructions would have been redundant. Alternatively, it may be that these design details were left to oral or mystical transmission unpreserved in written form. Either way, the instructions transmitted to the Israelites, newly freed from Egypt, plainly directed the making of two kruvim to adorn the Ark of the Covenant: 13. See Ex. 25:18-22. - 57 - Ex. 25:18-22 ית ְשׁנַ יִ ם ְ ֻכּר ִבים זָ ָהב ִמ ְק ָשׁה ַתּ ֲע ֶשׂה ָ יח ְו ָע ִשׂ18. Make two kruvim of gold, hammered :ת ַה ַכּפּ ֶֹרתI א ָֹתם ִמ ְשּׁנֵ י ְקצworkmanship to make them, from the two ends of the cover [of the Ark]. ב־א ָחדUר כU ֶ ְ ֶ הZב ֶא ָחד ִמ ָרּ ָצה ִמU יט ַו ֲע ֵשׂה ְכּר19. Make one k'ruv at one end, and the ת־ה ְ ֻכּר ִבים ַ ֶ ה ִמZ ִמ ָרּ ָצה ִמother k'ruv at the other end: make the ַ ֶאUן־ה ַכּפּ ֶֹרת ַתּ ֲעשׂ :תיוIצ ָ ל־שׁנֵ י ְק ְ ַעkruvim of the two ends of the cover. ַה ְ ֻכּר ִבים פּ ְֹר ֵשׂי ְכנָ ַפיִ ם לְ ַמ ְעלָ ה ס ְֹכ ִכיםUכ ְו ָהי ל־א ִחיו ַ יהם ַע ָ יהם ִאישׁ ֶא ֶ ֵפנU ְ ל־ה ַכּפּ ֶֹרת ֶ ַכנְ ֵפCְ : ְפּנֵ י ַה ְ ֻכּר ִביםUל־ה ַכּפּ ֶֹרת יִ ְהי ַ ֶא 20. The kruvim will stretch their wings on high, covering the cover with their wings, and each faces the other: toward the cover will the faces of the kruvim be. ל־ה ָארֹן ִמלְ ָמ ְעלָ ה ַ כא ְונָ ַת ָתּ ֶא21. Put the cover atop the Ark, and put ָ ת־ה ַכּפּ ֶֹרת ַע :Wת־ה ֵע ֻדת ֲא ֶשׁר ֶא ֵתּן ֵאלֶ י ָ ל־ה ָארֹן ִתּ ֵתּן ֶא ָ ְו ֶאin [it] the testimony that I will give you. ֵמ ַעל ַה ַכּפּ ֶֹרתW ְר ִתּי ִא ְתּCַ ָשׁם ְו ִדW ְע ְד ִתּי לIנ ַ כב ְו ן ָה ֵע ֻדת ֵאתIל־אר ֲ ין ְשׁנֵ י ַה ְ ֻכּר ִבים ֲא ֶשׁר ַעCֵ ִמ :נֵ י יִ ְשׂ ָר ֵאלCל־ ְ ֶאWתIא ְ ֶהUל־א ֶשׁר ֲא ַצ ֲ ָכּ 22. There I will make Myself known to you, and I will talk with you from above the cover – between the two kruvim on the Ark of Testimony – of all that I will command you for B'nai Yisrael. Rashi understood the Ark's kruvim to have the childlike "cherubic" faces today prominent in the Christian angelology of cherubim. Rashi relied on Talmud's sense of כרבים/ kruvim as רביא- כ/ "like a young one," drawing from Ezekiel's Merkavah:14 Rashi Ex. 25:18 / דמות פרצוף תינוק להם- כרביםKruvim – Having a likeness of a child's face. B.T. Sukkah 5b כרוב א"ר אבהו כרביא שכן בבבל קורין לינוקא רביא א"ל אביי אלא מעתה דכתיב פני האחד פני הכרוב ופני השני פני אדם היינו כרוב היינו אדם אפי רברבי ואפי /זוטרא What is a k'ruv? R. Abbahu said, ‘Like a child’ for in Babylon they call[ed] a child ravia ()רביא. Abaye said to him: If so, how do you explain (Ezek. 1:14) "The first face was the face of the k'ruv and the second face the face of a man"? [He answered]: the face of a k'ruv is the same as that of a man – one has a large face and the other a small face. Not all agreed that kruvim had a child's visage. The Rashbam (R. Samuel ben Meir, c. 1085-1158), Rashi's grandson, construed kruvim "to be birdlike: we base this 14. See B.T. Sukkah 5b, quoting Ezek 1:14. - 58 - on [Ezek 28:14] את כרוב ממשח הסוכך/ as a kruv with protective outstretched wings. Thus we infer that a kruv is a large bird [able to fly] בהר קודש אלהיםq "on God's holy mountain."15 To be sure, Rashbam, ever loyal to his grandfather, also noted Rashi's view "that the word k'ruv means having the faces of young children: toddlers."16 In Israel, kruvim would adorn both the Ark of the Covenant and the Temple itself. As repository for the Holy of Holies, the Temple – taking an architectural design page from the Ark's rendition – now required two kruvim of its own. In the prophetic rendition of these Temple kruvim,17 they faced each other with wings outstretched, much as kruvim did atop the Ark. In the Chronicles rendition of the Temple's construction, however, the kruvim take another direction entirely:18 2 Chron 3:10-13 בים ְשׁנַ יִ םUר ִ ֵבית־ק ֶֹדשׁ ַה ֳרּ ָד ִשׁים ְכּCְ ַ ַעשׂH י ַו10. In the Holy of Holies, [Solomon] : א ָֹתם זָ ָהבU ַמ ֲע ֵשׁה ַצ ֲע ֻצ ִעים ַויְ ַצפּmade two kruvim of image work, and overlaid them with gold. ת ֶע ְשׂ ִרים ְכּנַ ףIבים ָא ְר ָכּם ַאמּUר ִ יא ְו ַכנְ ֵפי ַה ְכּ יִ ת ְו ַה ָכּנָ ףCַ ַעת לְ ִקיר ַהDַ ת ָח ֵמשׁ ַמIָה ֶא ָחד לְ ַאמּ :ב ָה ַא ֵחרUיע לִ ְכנַ ף ַה ְכּר ַ Dִ ת ָח ֵמשׁ ַמIָה ַא ֶח ֶרת ַאמּ 11. And the wings of the kruvim were 20 cubits long; one wing of the one k'ruv was five cubits, reaching to the Temple wall; and the other wing was five cubits, reaching to the other k'ruv's wing. יע לְ ִקיר ַ Dִ ת ָח ֵמשׁ ַמIב ָה ֶא ָחד ַאמּUכנַ ף ַה ְכּרU ְ יב12. And one wing of the other k'ruv was ֵב ָקה לִ ְכנַ ףSְ ת ָח ֵמשׁIיִ ת ְו ַה ָכּנָ ף ָה ַא ֶח ֶרת ַאמּCָ ַהfive cubits, reaching to the Temple wall; :ב ָה ַא ֵחרU ַה ְכּרand the other wing was five cubits also, joining to the wing of the other k'ruv. ת ֶע ְשׂ ִריםIבים ָה ֵאלֶּ ה פּ ְֹר ִשׂים ַאמּUר ִ יג ַכּנְ ֵפי ַה ְכּ13. These kruvim wings spread 20 cubits :יִ תCָ ַיהם ל ֶ ֵפנU ְ יהם ֶ ֵל־ר ְגל ַ ְו ֵהם ע ְֹמ ִדים ַעstanding on their feet facing the Temple. Talmud's rabbis noted this inconsistency between the accounts of kruvim atop the Ark and Solomon's account of kruvim at the Temple – the former facing each 15. Rashbam Ex. 25:18, quoting Ezek. 28:14. 16. Rashbam Ex. 25:18, quoting B.T. Sukkah 5b. 17. See 1 Kings 6:23-27. 18. See 2 Chron 3:10-13. - 59 - other and the latter facing the Temple.19 The rabbis reasoned that this distinction must be intentional: B.T. Bava Batra 99b אלעזר חד אמרw כיצד הן עומדין רבי יוחנן ורR. Yochanan and R. Elazar on the case of פניהם איש אל אחיו וחד אמר פניהם לביתhow [the kruvim] stand: One said (Ex. "They stand each facing the other" ולמ"ד פניהם איש אל אחיו הא כתיב ופניהם25:20) ... and the other said, [as] it is written (2 לבית לא קשיא כאן בזמן שישראל עושיןChron. 3:13) "They face the Temple." רצונו של מקום כאן בזמן שאין ישראל עושיןThere is no difficulty here: [one is] when / רצונו של מקוםIsrael does [God's] will, and [another is] when Israel does not do [God's] will. This narrative suggests that in rabbinic imagination, kruvim were spiritual compass needles, able to turn and by their turning indicate whether the people honored God's will. Also important for paradigm shifting our understanding of kruvim – and the particularistic tradition of Judaism itself – is the rabbinic sense that kruvim face the Temple when the people dishonor God. Perhaps shockingly – if also appropriately given the destruction of the Temple in whose figurative rubble the rabbis assembled to develop Talmud – the rabbis associated the Temple, earthly manifestation of the divine abode, with not doing God's will! Tradition offers at least three ways to understand kruvim through the lens of this teaching. The first harkens back to the Temple's destruction, which the rabbis of Talmud blamed on the people's "senseless hatred" for each other20 – the ultimate of dishonors because it led to the destruction of the Temple, God's figurative abode on Earth. As such, kruvim remind us to treat each other well as a means of honoring God: when we behave in a manner that points the kruvim toward each other, God then can be heard from between the wings of the kruvim. 19. See B.T. Bava Batra 99b. 20. B.T. Yoma 9b. - 60 - A second approach evokes a mystical inversion, refigureing kruvim not only as compass needles indicating the holiness of human activity but also as recipients of human holiness. So suggested Moshe Chayim Ephraim of Sudilkov, grandson of the Ba'al Shem Tov:21 כביכול ישראל במעשיהם הטובים נותנים כחAs it were, Israel – in its good deeds – / וקדשה בפמליא של מעלהgives strength and holiness to the heavenly retinue [above]. In this understanding, the kruvim, as spiritual members of the heavenly retinue, are powerful and holy to the extent that Israel (or, in a post-triumphal sense, humanity) transmits to them holiness by doing God's will. In turn, the direction of the kruvim turns in human fulfillment of divine intention. Each appearance of kruvim in the Jewish canon thus can remind us that the holiness of heaven's hosts depends vitally on human behavior: "as below, so above."22 A third approach to understanding kruvim concerns their number – in the plural rather than singular atop the Ark and at the Temple. To Maimonides, the fact that kruvim appeared in the plural was critical to the theology and role of angels: [Polytheists] built temples to stars and set up in those temples the image which they agreed to worship, because it was in some relation to a certain star or a portion of one of the spheres. Therefore we were commanded to build a Temple to the Name of God, and to place therein the Ark with two tables of stone, on which there were written the commandments "I am YHVH," etc., and "You will have no other God before me," etc. Naturally the fundamental belief in prophecy precedes belief in [Torah], for without belief in prophecy there can be no belief in [Torah] – but a prophet only receives divine inspiration through an angel's agency, as in, "God's angel called" (Gen. 22:15), "God's angel said to 21. Degel Machaneh Ephraim, P. Kedoshim ()עוד ירמז בזה יכול כמוני, at 385 & n.7, citing Lam. Rabbah 1:33 ("At the time that Israel does the will of the Holy Blessed One, heaven's power and strength increase"); Kedushat Levi, P. Vaera. 22. See Zohar 2:176b ("[t]he world above and the world below are perfectly balanced"); Gen. Rabbah 1:15 ("heaven and earth perfectly balance each other"). - 61 - her" (Gen. 16:11), and other innumerable instances. Even Moses received his first prophecy through an angel: "And an angel of God appeared to him in the flame of fire" (Ex. 3:2). It is thus clear that belief in the existence of angels precedes belief in prophecy, and the latter precedes belief in [Torah]. The Sabeans, in their ignorance of God, believed that the spheres with their stars were beings without beginning or end; that their images and certain trees, the Asherot, derived certain powers from the spheres; and that they inspired the prophets, spoke to them in visions and told them what was good and what bad.... But when the wise discovered and proved that there was a Being, neither itself corporeal nor residing as a force in a corporeal body – the true, one God – and that there existed other purely incorporeal beings that God endowed with God's goodness and light, namely, the angels, and that these beings are not included in the sphere and its stars, it became evident that it was these angels and not the images or Asherot that charged the prophets. From the preceding remarks it is clear that the belief in the existence of angels is connected with belief in the Existence of God; and belief in God and angels leads to belief in Prophecy and [Torah's] truth. To firmly establish this creed, God commanded [Israel] to make over the Ark the form of two angels. The belief in the existence of angels is thus inculcated into the people, and this belief is in importance next to the belief in God's existence; it leads us to believe in Prophecy and [Torah], and oppose idolatry. Had there been just one figure of a k'ruv, the people would have been misled and mistaken it for God's image that was to be worshipped, like the heathen; or they might have assumed that the angel was also a deity, thus adopting a dualism. By making two kruvim and distinctly declaring "YHVH is our God, YHVH is One," Moses clearly proclaimed the theory of the existence of a number of angels: he left no room for error in considering those figures as deities, since God is one in number and created the angels, who are more than one.23 For Rambam, kruvim atop the Ark and in front of the Temple were negative symbols – manifestations of precisely what they were not. They existed partly to convey prophesy and remind us of prophesy, but not to be prophesy; to remind of God and thus remind us that they are not God. Precisely in the physicality of their hewn gold, they were spiritual correctives for temptation to equate physicality with 23. Maimonides, Guide for the Perplexed 3:45. - 62 - essence. Sitting atop the Ark and in front of the Temple, Rambam's kruvim were dogmatic disclaimers, as if to say, "See all that is here, but not more. See that these glorious depictions do not depict divinity. Let their angelic forms remind you what they never can be, but rather what they suggest far exceeding any thought accessible to humanity." As for Maimonides, so for us. Kruvim remind us that physicality can never fully depict divine ontology. By their negative symbolism, kruvim remind us that they represent much less – and thus much more – than they might appear to be. Carrying the Divine Rider The canon's most esoteric treatment of kruvim arises with its perhaps most esoteric subject, the Merkavah (vehicle) that the canon describes angels to either carry, accompany or comprise. While Ezekiel's first vision of the Merkavah omits explicit reference to kruvim,24 Ezekiel's later mention of a k'ruv suggests that God's glory rose up from the Temple kruvim,25 which thus functioned as a metaphysical repository or focusing implement for divine energy: Ezek. 9:3 ב ֲא ֶשׁרUהי יִ ְשׂ ָר ֵאל ֲנַעלָ ה ֵמ ַעל ַה ְכּרO ֵ ד ֱאIכבU ְ The glory of the God of Israel was gone ל־ה ִאישׁ ָ ִ ְק ָרא ֶאHיִ ת ַוCָ ָהיָ ה ָעלָ יו ֶאל ִמ ְפ ַתּן ַהup from on the k'ruv, where it was on it, to the threshold of the Temple; and then : ָמ ְתנָ יוCְ ים ֲא ֶשׁר ֶק ֶסת ַהסּ ֵֹפרSִ Cַ [ ַהלָּ ֻבשׁ ַהGod] called to the man clothed in linen, with the writer's inkhorn on his side. (Ed. – This "man," likely an angel, was to use the ink to mark the foreheads of Jerusalemites who decried the city's sins, thus saving them from God's wrath.) Kruvim figure even more prominently in Ezekiel's later vision, in which they seem to hold or lead both the Merkavah – where kruvim went, the Merkavah's wheels 24. See generally Ezekiel 1. 25. See Ezekiel 9:3. - 63 - followed26 – and fire coals between their wings. Ezekiel compares the sound of their wings flapping to God's voice; indeed, their flapping wings might be God's voice: Ezek. 10:5 ד־ה ָח ֵצר ַה ִחיצֹנָ ה ֶ בים נִ ְשׁ ַמע ַעUר ִ ל ַכּנְ ֵפי ַה ְכּI ְוקThe sound of kruvim wings was heard to :IרCְ ַדCְ יSַ ל־שׁ ַ ל ֵאI ְכּקthe [Temple's] outermost court, as (Ed. – or "like") the voice of God speaking. To be sure, long in historical time27 before Ezekiel, David also sensed God as a rider of a mystical vehicle. For David, this vehicle was not separate from kruvim but rather were kruvim themselves, which God rode liked a winged horse28 – an apt military allegory for a king extolling a God of both physical and spiritual salvation: 2 Chron. 22:7-11 ִ ְשׁ ַמעHהי ֶא ְק ָרא ַוO ַ ל־א ֱ ְו ֶאw ַצּר־לִ י ֶא ְק ָרא הCַ ז7. In my distress I called YHVH, to my : ָאזְ נָ יוCְ לִ י ְו ַשׁ ְו ָע ִתיI קIיכל ָ ֵמ ֵהGod I called; and [God] heard my voice from [God's] temple, and my cry entered [God's] ears. ת ַה ָשּׁ ַמיִ םIסדIמ ְ ַעשׁ ַו ִתּ ְר ַעשׁ ָה ָא ֶרץDָ ִ ְתHח ַו The earth shook and trembled; the :Iי־ח ָרה ל ָ ִכּU ֲעשׁDָ ִ ְתH ַוUזDָ יִ ְר8. foundations of heaven moved and shook because of [God's] anger. ָחלִ יםDֶ ֹאכל ֵ ְו ֵאשׁ ִמ ִפּיו תּI ַאפּCְ ט ָעלָ ה ָע ָשׁן 9. Smoke went up from [God's] nostrils :U ִמ ֶמּנּU ֲערCָ and devouring fire from [God's] mouth: coals were kindled by it. :ֵ ַרד ַו ֲע ָר ֶפל ַתּ ַחת ַר ְגלָ יוHֵ ט ָשׁ ַמיִ ם ַוH י ַו10. [God] bowed the heavens and came :חUי־ר ל־כּנְ ֵפ ַ ַ ֵ ָרא ַעHָ עֹף ַוHב ַוUל־כּר ְ ִ ְר ַכּב ַעHיא ַו down; darkness was under [God's] feet. 11. [God] rode on a k'ruv and flew, and was seen on the wings of spirit. This role of k'ruv as God's vehicle is so vital that the Psalmist repeated it nearly verbatim, suggesting that this poetic vision or at least the allegory of k'ruv as 26. See Ezek. 10:16. 27. To be sure, it is well-settled that in spiritual rather than physical time, there is no necessary "before" or "after": אין מוקדם ומאוחר בתורהq "There is no before or after in Torah" (Kohelet Rabbah 1:12; Rashi Ex. 31:18; Ramban Num. 9:1). 28. See 2 Chron. 22:7-11. - 64 - divine carrier might have been deeply embedded in tradition at that time. Indeed, most Near Eastern civilizations, including Assyrians and Babylonians co-evolving with ancient pre-Israelites, imagined a heavens-riding deity named with the k-r-v Semitic root: kirubu for Assyrians, karubu for Babylonians. Elsewhere in the Jewish canon, the Psalmist understood God to be a rider on the heavens – "Sing to God, sing [God's] name; extol the One who rides on the heavens by [the] name Yah: rejoice before [God]"29 – but didn't indicate what vehicle God rode. Here, the Psalmist is explicit that God rode a k'ruv. While there are subtle textual differences between the Psalmist and Chronicler rendition of this poetic treatment – to the Psalmist, God heard a "cry" rather than a "call,"30 and "swooped" rather than "was seen" in flight31 – both are explicit that God rode a flying k'ruv: Ps. 18:7-11 ֵַע יִ ְשׁ ַמעUהי ֲא ַשׁO ַ ל־א ֱ ְו ֶאw ַצּר־לִ י ֶא ֲק ָרא הCַ ז7. In my distress I called YHVH, to my :א ְב ָאזְ נָ יוIלִ י ְו ַשׁ ְו ָע ִתי לְ ָפנָ יו ָתּבI קIיכל ָ ֵמ ֵהGod I cried; and [God] heard my voice from [God's] temple, and my cry came before [God] and entered [God's] ears. UזDָ ס ֵדי ָה ִרים יִ ְרIמU ח ַו ִתּ ְג ַעשׁ ַו ִתּ ְר ַעשׁ ָה ָא ֶרץ ְ I ִכּי ָח ָרה לU ֲעשׁDָ ִ ְתH ַו8. The earth shook and trembled; the foundations of the mountains moved and shook because of [God's] anger. ָחלִ יםDֶ ֹאכל ֵ ְו ֵאשׁ ִמ ִפּיו תּI ַאפּCְ ט ָעלָ ה ָע ָשׁן 9. Smoke went up from [God's] nostrils :U ִמ ֶמּנּU ֲערCָ and devouring fire from [God's] mouth: coals were kindled by it. :ֵ ַרד ַו ֲע ָר ֶפל ַתּ ַחת ַר ְגלָ יוHֵ ט ָשׁ ַמיִ ם ַוH י ַו10. [God] bowed the heavens and came :חUי־ר ל־כּנְ ֵפ ַ ַ ֵ ֶדא ַעHָ עֹף ַוHב ַוUל־כּר ְ ִ ְר ַכּב ַעHיא ַו down; darkness was under [God's] feet. 11. [God] rode on a k'ruv and flew, and swooped on the wings of spirit. Whether kruvim accompany, lead or lift the Merkavah (in Ezekiel's various visions), or themselves serve as divinity's vehicle (in the Chronicler and Psalmist's 29. Ps. 68:5. 30. Compare Ps. 18:7 with 2 Chron. 22:7. 31. Compare Ps. 18:11 with 2 Chron 22:11. - 65 - renditions), these narratives share a common sense that the k'ruv conveys divinity. Understood this way, kruvim can be understood as transporters for God, whether atop the Ark, in the Temple or on the celestial Merkavah. Toward a Modern Re-Understanding of Kruvim By placing these various understandings of kruvim – guarding Gan Eden's entrance, adorning the Ark and Temple, and carrying the divine rider – in spiritual and inter-textual dialogue with each other, we can harvest new gleanings of the roles of kruvim for a post-triumphal era. The first cherubic function, to safeguard Gan Eden from humanity seeking eternal life, arose only after primordial humanity ate of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, and precisely as a direct consequence of that ostensible "infraction." Indeed, Bereshit Rabbah's treatment of kruvim tacitly suggests that God created kruvim with the heavens on the second day to serve as Eden's protectors, knowing that humanity would disobey God's very first command against eating of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. How redemptive that kruvim, later adorning the Ark so God would speak from between their wings and impart spiritual knowledge, first emerged as divine response to primordial humanity obtaining knowledge ostensibly in opposition to God's command. The symbolism of cherubim atop the Ark – now placed without החרב המתהפכת/ the constantly turning sword – thus suggests that the way to Gan Eden may be closed to physical approach but is open by means of God's revelation emerging between the wings of the kruvim. The third function of kruvim – to accompany or convey the divine Presence – adds profound resonance to the first two. If kruvim convey divinity, then what other angelic typology could better serve as spiritual focus for God's revelation from between their wings? If Ezekiel was correct that the sound of the kruvim wings - 66 - flapping is (or is like) God's voice, then what other angels could better serve as the symbolic platform for God speaking? To this understanding, Rambam might add that the very plurality of kruvim guarding Gan Eden hints that God (a unity) does not block the way to paradise, as might be mis-understood if only one k'ruv guarded the path to Gan Eden. The very plurality of kruvim guarding Eden's path suggests that God placed a formidable angelic barrier in the way but not the fullness of Godself. If so, then maybe God did not entirely shut the door to our return to paradise after all? To this hint, one might add the gleaning of midrash that Eden's kruvim were constantly shifting – sometimes angelic, sometimes human – symbolizing the ceaseless evolution of spiritual barriers en route back to Gan Eden. By the time of Talmud and Rashi's explication of the kruvim atop the Ark, however, rabbis understood kruvim to take on the childlike appearance most familiar from Christian angelology. Today giving these post-exilic commentators their due, should we imagine that the kruvim concretized from their Edenic flexibility into angelic proto-children? Might we understand from their childlike visages that God's speech emerging from between the wings of the Ark's kruvim now asks of us the psycho-spirituality of a child's innocence and openness to receive that voice? Perhaps the inter-textual approach most important to a postmodern sense of kruvim arises from Talmud's treatment of how kruvim can turn – to face each other when we honor God's will, and face the Temple when we dishonor God's will. Placing this understanding in dialogue with kruvim as modulators that amplify God's voice between their wings, we arrive at a profound resonance: if kruvim face each other when we honor God's will, and if God speaks from between the kruvim wings outstretched toward each other, then God speaks from between the kruvim only when we honor God's will. The koan, of course, is that we mortals risk spiritual - 67 - arrogance (or worse) to assume that we ever fully know God's will, or that we can discern whether we do God's will based on whether we believe ourselves to hear God's voice. As a way to "understand" kruvim, this koan – like so many others – can leave us feeling precisely like do not and cannot possibly understand. More spiritually accessible to us mortals is the question of whether we place ourselves in the flow of divinity, with humility and by diligently discerning and dissolving barriers to the flow through us. Mashpi'im (spiritual directors) know this wisdom as a tautology. When we are in the divine flow, we can discern wisdom and holiness flowing through us; but when we are not in the divine flow, we may feel blocked or blind to the flow of wisdom and holiness through us. Perhaps the kruvim can remind us likewise: the flow of divinity is symbolized by the kruvim facing each other, not the kruvim facing away from each other, whether to face the Temple or any other particularistic religious or spiritual construct – including our very own. If so, then we can understand the flow of divinity as emanating symbolically and symbiotically from between the kruvim. Just as God spoke from between the wings of the kruvim atop the Ark in ancient days, so too can we imaginally invoke kruvim today, with the intention of placing ourselves in the divine flow so as to hear God's voice emanating from between their wings. Not from an egotistical stance but with humility and childlike simplicity, and not from a triumphalist perspective that turns the wings away but with a spacious openness represented by the space between the wings, we can use this understanding of kruvim to prime ourselves to receive whatever new Torah might be ready to emerge now. Perhaps this very approach to kruvim – as a portal for ongoing revelation – can offer us a way to journey back toward the Garden:32 32. This exegetical chiddush is original to the author and styled in the Degel's form. - 68 - To explain (Ex. 25:20-22) "The kruvim will stretch their wings on high ... each facing the other ... and there I will make Myself known to you, and I will talk with you from above the cover, between the two kruvim on the Ark of Testimony, of all that I will command you for B'nai הww סוד שני הכרבים היא שניהם דוקא כשהקבYisrael" -- wלפרש והיו הכרבים פרשי כנפים למעלה וכו ונועדתי לך שםwופניהם איש אל אחיו וכו ודברתי אתך מעל הכפרת מבין שני הכרבים אשר על ארון העדת את כל אשר אצוה אותך -- אל בני ישראל השתמש האמצעות שהיו בניכם לדבר עם בני ושניהםw מלאך הוא מלא כw בגמ/ישראל ' מספר שבועי הריון וימיwכפול הם מלא מ /הולדת נשמות חדשות ותורה חדשה כביכול ה שני כרבים יחדיוwwעל כן משתמש הקב /להולד תורה חדשה לבני ישראל וזהו פירושו The secret of the two kruvim is precisely their twoness, for God used their between-space from which to speak with B'nai Yisrael. In gematria angel is equivalent to "the value of 20," and two of them doubled are equivalent to "the value of 40" – the number of weeks of pregnancy and days to birth new souls and new Torah, as it were.33 And so God uses two kruvim together to birth new Torah for B'nai Yisrael, and this is the explanation. 33. In rabbinic thought, 40 was the number of days of giving Torah on Sinai, and also the number of days after which a new soul enters a fetus. See B.T. Yevamot 69a; Niddah 30b. - 69 - DOCUMENT 19 Archangels by Name Post-exilic tradition understood that Torah never called an angel by name, and that calling angels by name was not an authentic Israelite or Jewish practice until after the first exile. Jerusalem Talmud, Rosh Hashanah 1:2 (Trans., Sefer Ha'Aggadah 514:83) רשב"ל אמר אף שמות המלאכים עלו בידןR. Simeon ben Lakish said: The names of ב( ויעף אלי אחד: בראשונה )ישעיהו ו/ מבבלangels came up in their hands from in] Babylon. Before [they went to [ מן השרפים )שם( שרפים עומדים ממעל לוexile Babylon,] it was (Is. 6:7) "One of the כא( והאיש גבריאל: מיכן והילך )דניאל טseraphim flew to me," and (Is. 6:2), /כא( כי אם מיכאל שרכם:" )דניאל יAbove [God] stood the seraphim" But after they went [up from Babylon], it is (Dan. 9:21), "the man Gavriel" and (Dan. 10:21) "for with Michael, your prince." Bereishit Rabbah 48:9 א"ר חנינא שמות חדשים עלו מבבל רישR. Chanina said: The names of the לקיש אמר אף שמות מלאכים מיכאל רפאלmonths came up [with us] from [exile Babylon. Reish Lakish said: Also the / וגבריאלin] names of the angels Michael, Raphael and Gabriel. Daniel 9:20-23 אתי ִ Yָ ה ַחSֶ מ ְת ַוU ִ מ ְת ַפּלֵּ לU ִ רCֵ ד ֲאנִ י ְמ ַדI ְוע/ כ20. And as I was speaking and praying, wמ ִפּיל ְתּ ִחנָּ ִתי לִ ְפנֵ י הU ַ את ַע ִמּי יִ ְשׂ ָר ֵאלYַ ְו ַחand confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, presenting supplication to :היO ָ הי ַעל ַהר־ק ֶֹדשׁ ֱאO ַ ֱאYHVH my God on God's holy mountain, יאל ֵ ְב ִרDַ ְתּ ִפלָּ ה ְו ָה ִאישׁCַ רCֵ ד ֲאנִ י ְמ ַדIכא ְוע ָיעף נ ֵֹג ַע ֵאלַ יCִ ְתּ ִחלָּ ה ֻמ ָעףCַ ןIיתי ֶב ָחז ִ ֲא ֶשׁר ָר ִא :ת־ע ֶרב ָ ְכּ ֵעת ִמנְ ַח 21. And as I spoke in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I saw in [my] vision at the start, was caused to fly swiftly, touching me at the time of the evening sacrifice. אתי ִ ֵ אל ַע ָתּה יָ ָצH ִנSָ אמר ַ ֹHר ִע ִמּי ַוCֵ ָ ֶבן ַויְ ַדH כב ַו22. And he made me understand, and : ִבינָ הW ְ לְ ַה ְשׂ ִכּילtalked with me, and said, "Daniel, I now went out to give you wisdom [in] understanding. אתי ִ Cָ יָ ָצא ָד ָבר ַו ֲאנִ יWנֶ יU ְת ִחלַּ ת ַתּ ֲחנCִ כג ָבר ְו ָה ֵבןSָ Cַ ביןUִ ת ָא ָתּהIדUיד ִכּי ֲחמDִ לְ ַה23. "At the start of your supplication the : ַמּ ְר ֶאהCַ command came out, and I have come to tell it, for you are greatly beloved; so consider the word, and understand the vision [as I now explain it to you]." - 70 - Daniel 10:13-21 י ֶע ְשׂ ִרים ְו ֶא ָחדSִ ת ָפּ ַרס ע ֵֹמד לְ נֶ ְגU יג ְו ַשׂר ַמלְ כ13. [T]he prince of Persia withstood me אCָ יכ ֵאל ַא ַחד ַה ָשּׂ ִרים ָה ִראשֹׁנִ ים ָ ם ְו ִהנֵּ ה ִמI יfor twenty-one days but, behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came :ת ְר ִתּי ָשׁם ֵא ֶצל ַמלְ ֵכי ָפ ָרסIנ ַ לְ ָעזְ ֵרנִ י ַו ֲאנִ יto help me; and I was left there beside the kings of Persia. W ֵאת ֲא ֶשׁר־יִ ְק ָרה לְ ַע ְמּW ְאתי לַ ֲה ִבינ ִ בUָ יד14. Now I come to make you understand :ָ ִמיםH ַן לIד ָחזIָ ִמים ִכּי־עH ַא ֲח ִרית ַהCְ what will befall your people in the latter days, for the vision is for days yet to ָב ִרים ָה ֵאלֶּ ה נָ ַת ִתּי ָפנַ יSְ ִע ִמּי ַכּIרCְ ב ַדUְ טוcome. : ַא ְר ָצה ְונֶ ֱאלָ ְמ ִתּי15. And when he spoke these words to me, I set my face to the ground and ל־שׂ ָפ ָתי ְ נֵ י ָא ָדם נ ֵֹג ַע ַעCְ תU טז ְו ִהנֵּ ה ִכּ ְדמbecame dumb. יSִ ל־הע ֵֹמד לְ נֶ ְג ָ ָרה ָוא ְֹמ ָרה ֶאCְ ח־פּי ָו ֲא ַד ִ ָו ֶא ְפ ַתּ16. Behold, one in the likeness of the :א ָע ַצ ְר ִתּי כּ ַֹחO ִצ ַירי ָעלַ י ְוU ַמּ ְר ָאה נֶ ֶה ְפכCַ ֲאדֹנִ יsons of men touched my lips; I opened my mouth and spoke, and said to him who stood before me, "My lord, in [my] ם־אדֹנִ י זֶ ה ֲ ר ִעCֵ כל ֶע ֶבד ֲאדֹנִ י זֶ ה לְ ַדUי ַ Q יז ְו ֵהיvisions pains come on me, and I have אO נְ ָשׁ ָמהU י כּ ַֹחCד־ ִ א־יַ ֲע ָמO ַו ֲאנִ י ֵמ ַע ָתּהnot retained strength. :ה־בי ִ נִ ְשׁ ֲא ָר 17. "So how can my lord's servant talk with my lord? Now no strength remains :ְ ֵקנִ יZי ְכּ ַמ ְר ֵאה ָא ָדם ַויְ ַחCע־ ִ Dַ ִHֹ ֶסף ַוH יח ַוin me, and no breath is left in me." 18. [Once again] one in the likeness of a Q ָם לIת ָשׁלIישׁ־ח ֻמד ֲ ל־תּ ָירא ִא ִ אמר ַא ֶ ֹH יט ַוman touched me and strengthened me. ַ ְק ִתּי ָוא ְֹמ ָרהZ ִע ִמּי ִה ְת ַחIרCְ כ ַדU ְ ֲחזַ ק ַו ֲחזָ ק19. He said, "Do not fear, greatly :ַ ְק ָתּנִ יZר ֲאדֹנִ י ִכּי ִחCֵ יְ ַדbeloved [one]; peace be to you; be strong, be strong." And like his words ְו ַע ָתּהWאתי ֵאלֶ י ִ Cה־ ָ אמר ֲהיָ ַד ְע ָתּ לָ ָמּ ֶ ֹH כ ַוwith me, I became strengthened and צא ְו ִהנֵּ הIי ֵ ם־שׂר ָפּ ָרס ַו ֲאנִ י ַ ב לְ ִהלָּ ֵחם ִעU ָאשׁsaid, "Let my lord speak, for you have strengthened me." :אCָ ַשׂר־יָ ָון 20. He said, "Do you know why I have to you? For now I will return to ְכ ָתב ֱא ֶמתCִ םUת־ה ָרשׁ ָ ֶאW ְיד לDִ כא ֲא ָבל ַאcome fight with the prince of Persia; and when ל־אלֶּ ה ִכּי ֵ ֵ ק ִע ִמּי ַעZ ְו ֵאין ֶא ָחד ִמ ְת ַחI depart from him, the prince of Greece :יכ ֵאל ַשׂ ְר ֶכם ָ ם־מ ִ ִאwill come. 21. But I will tell you that which is inscribed in the book of truth; and there is none who can overpower me against [these writings], except Michael your prince. - 71 - DOCUMENT 20 Archangelic Functions: Selected Midrashim Companies of Archangels Four companies of ministering angels utter praise before the Holy Blessed One. The first camp, that of Michael, at [God's] right; the second camp, that of Gabriel, at [God's] left; the third camp, that of Uriel, in front of [God]; and the fourth camp, that of Raphael, behind [God]. The presence of the Holy Blessed One is thus in the center. – Sefer Ha'Aggadah 512:69 As the Holy Blessed One created four winds (directions) and four banners (for Israel's army), so did God make four angels to surround God's throne – Michael, Gabriel, Uriel and Raphael. Michael is on its right, corresponding to the tribe of Reuben; Uriel on its left, corresponding to the tribe of Dan, which was located in the north; Gabriel in front, corresponding to the tribe of Judah as well as Moses and Aaron who were in the east; and Raphael in the rear, corresponding to the tribe of Ephraim which was in the west. – Shapiro, The Angelic Way, p. 80; Num. Rabbah 2:10 Individual Archangels NB: Gabriel is usually the angel who executes God’s judgment. Michael is associated with the national angel of Israel. When wicked Nimrod cast our father Abraham into the open fire, Gabriel spoke up to the Holy One of Blessing: “Master of the universe, may I go down and cool the fire, to save the righteous man from burning in it?” The Holy One replied, “I am the Unique One in My world, even as [Abraham] is the unique one in his. It is fitting that the Unique One should deliver the unique one. But since the Holy One does not hold back the reward of any creature,” he said to Gabriel, “yours will be the privilege of saving ... his descendants.” – Sefer Ha'Aggadah 33:9; B.T. Pesachim 118a Job 25:1-3 I ַה ְמ ֵשׁל ָו ַפ ַחד ִעמּ:אמֽר ַ ֹHד ַה ֻשּׁ ִחי ַוSַ ְלCִ ַ ַעןH ַוBildad the Shuhite answered [Job] and דיוUד ָ ֲהיֵ שׁ ִמ ְס ָפּר לִ ְג:מֽיוIר ָ ְמCִ םI ע ֶֹשׂה ָשׁלsaid: Dominion and fear are with [God], who makes peace in [God's] high places. :UרֽהIא ֵ םUֽא־יָ קO ל־מי ִ ְו ַעIs there a number to God's armies, and on whom does God's light not arise? - 72 - Rashi Job 25:3 כלפי שאמר איוב אערכה- " המשל ופחד עמוDominion and fear are with [God]" – אמר לו המשל ופחד עמו/ לפניו משפטOn this account it is said, I will arrange for Job. [Bildad] said to [Job], המשל זה מיכאל ופחד זה גבריאל כלוםjudgment dominion and fear are together. / אתה יכול להשיב את אחד מהםDominion (goodness) is Michael and fear is [with] Gabriel: one can't respond with [only] one of them. "And he lifted up his eyes, and looked, and lo, three men stood by him" (Gen. 18:2). What kind of people were these three [who were able to stir abroad on such a hot day]? They were the angels Michael, Raphael and Gabriel. Michael came to announce to Sarah [that she was to bear a child]; Raphael, to heal Abraham; and Gabriel, to overturn Sodom. – Sefer Ha'Aggadah 35:26; B.T. Bava Metzia 86b While Jacob and Michael were wrestling, Michael’s band of angels were about to put Jacob’s life in jeopardy. At that time Holy One revealed Godself to them. As Michael saw the Holy One, his strength was depleted, as it is said, “When he saw that he was unable to prevail against him, he could do no more than touch the hollow of his thigh" (Gen. 32:26). Then the Holy One said to Michael, “Was it seemly for you to cripple my priest?” Michael answered, “Master of the universe, am I not your priest?” God replied, “You are My priest above, while Jacob is My priest on earth.” At once Michael summoned Raphael and said, “My comrade, I beg you, stand to with me in my distress, for you are in charge of healing.” So Raphael went down and healed Jacob. – Sefer Ha'Aggadah 49:83; Midrash Avkir, Gen. 32 - 73 - DOCUMENT 21 Angels at the Sea Midrash Avkir, whose stories emerge primarily from the Books of Genesis and Exodus, is one of the shorter and later compendia of midrash aggadah. Named for the roshei teivot (רww )אבכיof the phrase completing each of its component midrashim ( אמן בימינו כן יהי רצון/ "Amen, in our day may it be [God's] will"), its precise provenance is unknown. Because its topics cover many of the same ones from Midrash Rabbah, some scholars date the work to the post-exilic era (c. 300 CE). Unlike much of Midrash Rabbah, however, Midrash Avkir has a distinctly mystical bent that repeatedly invokes angels, imagining a plethora of angels with identity and will independent of the Creator. Note how this Midrash Avkir selection implies that each nation has its own angel – a perspective that Reb Zalman z"l shared with the Dalai Lama (see The Jew in the Lotus, excerpted for Day Five). Also note the distinctions in content and tone between Midrash Avkir's rendition of the angels at the Sea, and the rendition codified in the Talmudic exegesis on Exodus 14. Ex. 14:19-20 לִ ְפנֵ י ַמ ֲחנֵ הQ ֵהים ַההֹלO ִ ָה ֱאQִ ַסּע ַמלְ ַאH יט ַו19. The angel of God, who went before ד ֶה ָענָ ןUִ ַסּע ַעמּHיהם ַו ֶ ֵמ ַא ֲח ֵרQ ֵֶ לH יִ ְשׂ ָר ֵאל ַוthe Israelite camp, went behind them; the pillar of cloud went and stood /יהם ֶ ַ ֲעמֹד ֵמ ַא ֲח ֵרHיהם ַו ֶ ֵ ִמ ְפּנand behind them. בין ַמ ֲחנֵ ה יִ ְשׂ ָר ֵאלUֵ ין ַמ ֲחנֵ ה ִמ ְצ ַריִ םCֵ ָ בֹאH כ ַו20. It came between the Egyptian camp ק ַרב-אO ָ הלָּ יְ לָ ה ְו-ת ַ ָ ֶאר ֶאH ַוQ ַויְ ִהי ֶה ָענָ ן ְו ַהח ֶֹשׁand Israelite camp; and there was the /הלָּ יְ לָ ה-ל ַ זֶ ה ָכּ- זֶ ה ֶאלcloud and the darkness, illuminating the night; and the one did not approach the other all night. Midrash Avkir, Ex. 14:20 (Trans. Sefer Ha'Aggadah 73:86) When the Holy One was about to drown the Egyptians in the sea, Uzza, the heavenly prince of Egypt, rose up and prostrated himself before the Holy One, saying: "Master of the universe, You created the world by the measure of mercy. Why then do You wish to drown my children?" The Holy One gathered the entire heavenly household and said to them: You be the judge between Me and Uzza, the prince of Egypt. At that moment, the heavenly princes of the other nations began to speak up in behalf of Egypt. When Michael [ed. – Michael is imagined to be Israel's "heavenly price"] perceived this, he gave the sign to Gabriel, who in one swoop darted down to Egypt, where he pulled out a brick with its clay enclosing a [dead] infant who had been immured alive in the structure. [Gabriel] then came back, stood before the Holy One, and said: Master of the Universe, thus did the Egyptians enslave Your children. Then did the Holy One sit in judgment over the Egyptians in accord with the measure of justice and drowned them in the sea. - 74 - B.T. Sanhedrin 39b ה במפלתן של רשעים? הכתיבww ומי חדי קבDoes the Holy Blessed One rejoice at the כא( בצאת לפני החלוץ ואמרים:ב כww )דהיfall of the wicked? Is it not written (2 20:21), "As they go out before the : כי לעולם חסדו' ואמר רבי יונתןw הודו להChron. army, say: Give thanks to YHVH, whose מפני מה לא נאמר בהודאה זו כי טוב' לפיmercy endures forever" – concerning 'ה שמח במפלתן של רשעיםww שאין הקבwhich R. Yochanan said: Why are the : דאמר רבי שמואל בר נחמן אמר רבי יונתןwords 'God is good' omitted from this כ( ולא קרב זה אל זה: מאי דכתיב )שמות ידexpression of thanks? Because the Holy One does not rejoice at the fall of כל הלילה' באותה שעה בקשו מלאכי השרתBlessed the wicked. R. Shmuel b. Nahman said :הwwה' אמר להן הקבww לומר שירה לפני הקבin R. Yochanan's name: What is meant מעשה ידי טובעין בים ואתם אומרים שירהby (Ex. 14:20) "And one did not ? לפניapproach the other all night?" In that hour the ministering angels wished to utter song before the Holy One, but God rebuked them saying: The works of my hands drown in the sea, and you utter song before Me? Shemot Rabbah 23:7 כו( קדמו שרים: סחwד )תהww" אז ישיר משה' ההThen Moses sang" (Ex. 15:1) – It is ר יוחנן בקשו המלאכים לומרww אחר נוגנים' אwritten (Ps. 68:26), "Singers go first, the follow." R. Yochanan said: ה באותו הלילה שעברוww שירה לפני הקבminstrels When the angels desired to chant song לwwה אww ישראל את הים ולא הניחן הקבbefore God on the night Israel crossed לגיונותי נתונין בצרה ואתם אומרים לפניthe Sea, God prevented them saying, My כ( ולא קרב זה אל זה:ד )שמות ידww שירה' ההlegions are in distress and you want to ג( וקרא זה: כל הלילה' כמה דתימא )ישעיה וutter song before Me? Hence it says (Ex. "And the one did not approach אל זה ואמר' וכיון שיצאו ישראל מן הים באו14:20), the other all night," as it says (Is. 6:3), לwwה אww" המלאכים להקדים שירה לפני הקבAnd one called to the other and said." ד אז ישיר משהwwה יקדמו בני תחלה ההww הקבAnd as soon as Israel emerged from the וכן דוד הוא אומר קדמו שרים אלו ישראל//// sea, the angels rushed in to be the first to שעמדו על הים דכתיב אז ישיר משה' אחרutter song before the Holy Blessed One. said to them: Let my children be הww נוגנים אלו המלאכים ולמה כך' אמר הקבGod first to do so; hence it says, "Then Moses למלאכים לא מפני שאני משפיל אתכם אניsang." ... This is why David says (Ps. אומר שיקדמו תחלה אלא מפני שבשר ודם68:26) "Singers go first," namely Israel יאמרו תחלה עד שלא ימות אחד מהם אבלstanding at the sea, as it says, Then אתם כל זמן שאתם מבקשים אתם חייםMoses sang. "The minstrels follow" – are the angels. Why? God said to / וקיימיםthese the angels: I don't in any way degrade you by saying that [my children] should precede you, but as flesh and blood they must be first, before they die, but you can [utter song] at any time you wish because you are immortal. - 75 - DOCUMENT 22 Liberation from Bondage In Torah's narrative of the Tenth Plague and the Haggadah's re-telling of Exodus, God – not an angel, a seraph or a messenger – liberated Israel from Egyptian bondage. Note how the Haggadah follows Rashi's attribution of liberation to God and not an angel, and how Ramban responds. Passover Haggadah ממצרים ביד חזקה ובזרע נטויהw ויוצאנו הAnd God brought us out of Egypt with a / ובמרא גדול ובאתות ומפתיםmighty hand and outstretched arm, with great awe, with signs and wonders. לא על ידי מלאך' ולא- ממצריםwויוצאנו ה על ידי שרף' ולא על ידי שליח' אלא הקדוש שנאמר' ועברתי/ברוך הוא בכבודו ובעצמו בארץ מצרים בלילה הזה והכיתי כל בכור בארץ מצרים מאדם ועד בהמה' ובכל אלהי /wמצרים אעשה שפטים אני ה And God brought us out of Egypt – Not by an angel, not by a seraph, not by a messenger, but rather the Holy Blessed One in [God's] glory and in [God's very] self. As it is said: "I will pass in the Land of Egypt on this night, and I will strike all the firstborn of Egypt, from man to beast, and on all gods of Egypt I will והכיתי/ אני ולא מלאך: ועברתי בארץ מצריםexecute judgment: I am YHVH." ובכל/ אני ולא שרף: כל בכור בארץ מצריםI will pass in the Land of Egypt: I and / אלהי מצרים אשעה שפטים' אני ולא השליחnot an angel. I will strike all the firstborn / אני הוא ולא אחר/w אני הof Egypt: I and not a seraph. And on all gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I and not a messenger. I am YHVH: I am [God], and there is no other. Ex. 12:12 יתי ִ ֶ ה ְו ִה ֵכּZלַּ יְ לָ ה ַהCַ ץ־מ ְצ ַריִ ם ִ " ְו ָע ַב ְר ִתּי ְב ֶא ֶרI will pass in the Land of Egypt on this ֵה ָמהCד־ ְ ֶא ֶרץ ִמ ְצ ַריִ ם ֵמ ָא ָדם ְו ַעCְ רIכCל־ ְ ָכnight, and I will strike all the firstborn of Egypt, from man to beast, and on all the :wהי ִמ ְצ ַריִ ם ֶא ֱע ֶשׂה ְשׁ ָפ ִטים ֲאנִ י הO ֵ ל־א ֱ ב ָכUְ gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am YHVH. Rashi, Ex. 12:12 כמלך העובר ממקום למקום- "" "ועברתיI will pass" – [Allegorically] like a king //// ובהעברה אחת וברגע אחד כולן לוקיןpassing from place to place, [but here] with a single passing, and in an instant, all were struck down.... אני בעצמי ולא ע"י- "w"אעשה שפטים אני ה /" שליחI will pass judgment, I am YHVH" – I Myself, and not by means of an [angelic] agent. - 76 - Ramban, Ex. 12:12 ועברתי בארץ מצרים אני ולא מלאך והכיתי כל בכור אני ולא שרף ובכל אלהי מצרים אניwאעשה שפטים אני ולא השליח אני ה פירושו כי בעבור שהפרשה/הוא ולא אחר דבר משה עם ישראל היה ראוי שיאמר "ועבר בארץ מצרים והכה כל בכור" ולכך ידרשוwה כי ועברתי אני בעצמי לא על ידי מלאך שלוח (טז:ב כדwwמאתו במגפות כענין בדוד )ש /(לה:ב יטwwובסנחריב )מ "I will pass in the Land of Egypt: I and not an angel. I will strike all firstborn of Egypt: I and not a seraph. And on all gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I and not a messenger. I am YHVH: I am [God], and there's no other." Its meaning is that, when Moses spoke with Israel, it was fitting – [only] for clarity's sake – that he should say, God passed through the Land of Egypt and smote all the firstborn. So explains [Rashi Ex. 12:12] concerning "I will pass" in the Land of Egypt: "I myself and not by means of an [angelic] agent," from whom arose plagues, as in the cases of David (2 Sam. 24:16) and Sennacherib (2 Kings 19:35). והכיתי כל בכור אני ולא שרף לומר כי גם המכה תהיה על יד הקב"ה לא כמלך שיעשה נקמה בשונאיו לפניו על ידי ספקלטורים שלו שהם השרפים שמהם תצא אש שורפת /(י:ב אww" באויביו כענין אליהו בשרי החמשים )מI will smite all the firstborn: I and not a ובכל אלהי מצרים אעשה שפטים ולא על ידיseraph" – says that the strike comes from the Holy Blessed One, but not like a king השליח השלוח מאתו יתברך לכל המעשיםtaking revenge against those who hate הנעשים בארץ והוא המלאך הגדול שנקראhim, by means of executioners who are בעבור כן מטטרון כי פירוש המלה מורהlike seraphim from whom fire goes out הדרך כמו שאמר בספרי מאצבעו של הקב"הto burn enemies, as in the case of Elijah לשון שומר( למשה: נעשה מטטרון )הגהand the fifty captains (2 Kings 1:10). "וישמע/// " והראהו כל ארץ ישראל ובילמדנוAnd on all gods of Egypt I will execute לו( ששלח: בלק כי בא בלעם" )במדבר כבjudgment" – not from the emissary sent מטטרון לפניו ועוד שם "ראה החילותי תתby God, Blessed Be, to all creations of earth, who is the great angel called לא( אי אכפת לך אני: לפניך" )דברים בMetatron. Such is the usual explanation מטטרון שלך ואל תתמה שהרי אני עתידof the word "Metatron," as in Sifre: From לעשות מטטור לפני אדם ערל לפני כורשthe Holy Blessed One's finger, Metatron ב( לפני:( שנאמר "אני לפניך אלך" )ישעיה מהi.e. "guardian") was made for Moses to w לפני דבורה וברק שנאמר "הלא ה/// אשהshow him all the Land of Israel.... We are taught, "Balak heard that Bil'am came" יד( וכן במקומות:( יצא לפניך" )שופטים דNum. 22:36), for God sent Metatron " רבים וכן שמעתי כי שליח בלשון יון "מטטרbefore him; and "See, I began to deliver אני הוא ולא אחר שהוא אחדw[ ודרשו אני הthe Land to you]" (Deut. 2:31), which / ואין אלהים עמו למחות על ידוcouldn't be so unless "I" refers to your emissary, Metatron. But don't speculate if in the future "I" will send a guardian for a non-Jew like Cyrus as in, "I will go before you" (Is. 45:2); or for a woman like Deborah and Barak as in, "Doesn't God go out before you?" (Judges 4:14); and many other places. I [also] heard that the Greek for "emissary" is metator. Hence the explanation of "I am YHVH: I am God and there is no other" – God is One and there are no gods to limit Him. - 77 - 2 Sam. 24:14–16 ד ַצר־לִ י ְמאֹד נִ ְפּלָ ה־נָּ א ְביַ דDל־ ָ ִוד ֶאSָ אמר ֶ ֹH ַוDavid said to Gad, I am in great distress: ִ ֵתּןH ַו:ל־אפֹּלָ ה ֶ ד־א ָדם ַא ָ ַביUְ ים ַר ֲח ָמיוCִ י־ר ַ ִכּw הlet us fall into the hand of God, whose mercies are great, and let me not fall into ָ ָמתHעד ַוIמ ֵ ד־עת ֵ ֶֹקר ְו ַעCיִ ְשׂ ָר ֵאל ֵמ ַהCְ ֶברSֶ w הthe hand of man. God sent pestilence on ֵאר ֶשׁ ַבע ִשׁ ְב ִעים ֶאלֶ ףCד־ ְ ן ְו ַעSָ ן־ה ָעם ִמ ָ ִמIsrael from morning to the appointed Vשׁלַ ם לְ ַשׁ ֲח ָתUר ָ ְ יQ ַה ַמּלְ ָאIִ ְשׁלַ ח יָ דH ַו: ִאישׁtime; and there died seventy thousand ַה ַמּ ְשׁ ִחיתQאמר לַ ַמּלְ ָא ֶ ֹHל־ה ָר ָעה ַו ָ ֶאwִ נָּ ֶחם הH ַוof the nation from Dan to Beersheba. ////W ָעם ַרב ַע ָתּה ֶה ֶרף יָ ֶדCָ When the angel stretched out his hand on Jerusalem to destroy it, God repented of the evil, and said to the angel who destroyed the people, "Enough: now stay your hand...." 2 Kings 19:31-36 ןIHיטה ֵמ ַהר ִצ ָ ֵפלU ְ שׁלַ ם ֵתּ ֵצא ְשׁ ֵא ִריתUיר ָ ִכּי ִמFor from Jerusalem will go forth a wֹה־א ַמר ה ָ לָ ֵכן כּ:ֹאתZת ַתּ ֲע ֶשׂה־I ְצ ָבאw ִקנְ ַאת הremnant [along with] they who escape from Mount Zion; the zeal of the Lord of א־Oֹאת ְוZל־ה ִעיר ַה ָ א יָ בֹא ֶאO רU ַאשּׁQ ֶל־מל ֶ ֶאHosts will do this. So thus said YHVH Qֹא־יִ ְשׁפּO ֶמנָּ ה ָמ ֵגן ְוSְ א־יְ ַקOרה ָשׁם ֵחץ ְוIי ֶ concerning the king of Assyria: He will ב ְו ֶאל־U יָ שׁVCָ ֲא ֶשׁר־יָ בֹאQ ֶרSֶ Cַ :יה סֹלְ לָ ה ָ ֶ ָעלnot come to this city, or shoot an arrow ל־ה ִעיר ָ תי ֶאIנּ ִ ְו ַג:wא יָ בֹא נְ ֻאם־הO ֹאתZ ָה ִעיר ַהthere, or come before it with a shield, or up a mound against it. By the way ַויְ ִהי:יSִ ִוד ַע ְבSָ לְ ַמ ַעןU לְ ַמ ֲענִ יVשׁ ָיעIה ִ ְֹאת לZ ַהcast he came, by the same he will return, and רU ַמ ֲחנֵ ה ַאשּׁCְ Q ַH ַוw הQֵ ֵצא ַמלְ ַאHא ַוUלַּ יְ לָ ה ַההCַ will not come into this city, said YHVH. ֶֹקרC ַבUַ ְשׁ ִכּימHנִ ים ַו ֲח ִמ ָשּׁה ָאלֶ ף ַוI ֵמ ָאה ְשׁמFor I will defend this city, to save it for ָ ָשׁבH ַוQ ֵֶ לHִ ַסּע ַוHו:ַ ְו ִהנֵּ ה ֻכלָּ ם ְפּ ָג ִרים ֵמ ִתיםMy own sake and My servant David’s /נִ ינְ ֵוהCְ ֵ ֶשׁבHר ַוU־אשּׁQ ַ ֶ ַסנְ ֵח ִריב ֶמלsake. And it came to pass that night, that God's angel went out, and struck in the Assyrian camp one hundred and eighty five thousand; and when they arose in the morning, all were dead corpses. Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, went, returned and dwelled in Nineveh. 2 Kings 1:10 ל־שׂר ַה ֲח ִמ ִשּׁים ְו ִאם־ ַ ר ֶאCֵ ַויְ ַדUָ הH ִַ ֲענֶ ה ֵאלH ַוElijah answered and said to the captain ֹאכל ַ ן־ה ָשּׁ ַמיִ ם ְות ַ הים ָאנִ י ֵתּ ֶרד ֵאשׁ ִמO ִ ִאישׁ ֱאof fifty: "If I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven, and consume ן־ה ָשּׁ ַמיִ ם ַ ַו ֵתּ ֶרד ֵאשׁ ִמWת־ח ִמ ֶשּׁי ֲ ְו ֶאW א ְֹתyou and your fifty." Fire descended from :ת־ח ִמ ָשּׁיו ֲ ְו ֶאIֹאכל אֹת ַ ַותּheaven and consumed him and his fifty. - 78 - DOCUMENT 23 Elior, R., "Mysticism, Magic & Angelology: The Perception of Angels in Hekhalot Literature," Jewish Stud. Q. 1 (1993), 37-39 - 79 - - 80 - - 81 - DOCUMENT 24 Wiener, S., "Guidance from Other Dimensions of the God-Field: Ancestors, Angels and Guides,” in Milgram & Wiener (eds.), Seeking and Soaring: Jewish Approaches to Spiritual Guidance and Development, 2nd ed, Reclaiming Judaism Press, New Rochelle, NY (2014), pp. 226-227. I used to think that angels were mere folklore, a literary device found in talltales. My shift began in the mid 1980’s, when I joined the Manhattan congregation of the great musical rebbe, Shlomo Carlebach, of blessed memory. In addition to the music being gloriously uplifting, his theology challenged and inspired me. My favorite song was B’Shaim HaShem (in the name of God) – The Angel Song, which contained the text asking for blessing, in the name of God, from the four Archangels Michael, Gavriel, Uriel and Raphael, as well as the Shechinah (God’s presence in rabbinic literature, which evolved into God’s feminine side in Judaism). This text appears in traditional prayer books as part of the bedtime Shema prayer. I made it a practice to chant the song or say the words morning and night, as well as at other times when I needed protection. I wasn’t sure initially whether the angels were “real” or just a name for energetic qualities of love, strength, vision, and healing. After studying the tradition and realizing that they appear in many places in the Hebrew Bible, as well as in the Talmud and mystical Jewish literature, I was able to suspend my doubts. One day in 1994, I was lying on my bed, in a meditative frame of mind, when a huge, loving wave of energy swept through my body. In my mind’s eye I saw a large, loving man with huge wings, and felt intuitively that he was an angel. A name came to me, which I hold close to my heart. As I called out this name, my body became swept up in waves of ecstatic energy. That is how this angel made his appearance known. Since that time, I connect regularly with his presence, which feels like a loving and wise guide. I sense that he is the specific angel that God has sent me to help with my work as a mashpi’ah and teacher of hashpa’ah. - 82 - Our sister religions, Christianity and Islam, also teach about the significance of angels as agents of God. M. Ibrahim Baha’uddin Farajaje, a professor, sheikh and spiritual director in the Sufi tradition, shared with me his life-changing encounter with an angel. A couple of years ago he was in the hospital, at death’s door due to a serious lung infection, feeling as if he were drowning. Finally he dozed, and saw an enormous Archangel place his hands on the left side of his chest and pull out “something.” The Archangel communicated without words that all would be well, and that this was his initiation so that he could help others through the passageway to the Divine Light. The following day chest X-rays were taken, revealing only healthy tissue. The pathology in the left side of his lung had vanished. Professor Farajaje experienced this as a miracle sent by God through the Divine messenger, the Archangel. Not all encounters with angels bring about miracles; but they always serve a function or bring a message. For example, in the spring of 2008, while in meditation, I wrote down the following, which I felt came from the angelic realm: Dearly Beloved, I come to you today with a message of hope. Be not fearful for your future. We here stand ready to assist you in the evolution of your planet. But we must be asked…. You have been given a great and difficult task, to raise the energies of your bodies and of your planet to a level where peace and love will prevail. It begins with you, each one of you. Know that the force of light can banish darkness whenever it is directed in sufficient strength. Your strength lies in numbers. It says in your Talmud, “Every blade of grass has its angel that bends over it and whispers, ‘Grow, grow.’ How much more is it true for every human. We bless you to grow, grow. - 83 - DOCUMENT 25 Excerpts from Bedtime Shema & HaMapil 'תיIא ִ חל לְ ָכל ִמי ֶשׁ ִה ְכ ִעיס ְו ִה ְקנִ יטIמ ֵ ֲה ֵרינִ י יןCֵ נִ יI ָממCְ יןCֵ פיUג ִ Cְ יןCֵ יSִ ֶשׁ ָח ָטא ְכּנֶ ְגIא יןCֵ 'אֹנֶ סCְ יןCֵ 'ין ְב ָכל ֲא ֶשׁר לִ יCֵ דיIב ִ ְכCִ רUC ִדCְ יןCֵ ' ֵמזִ ידCְ יןCֵ 'גגIשׁ ֵ Cְ יןCֵ 'ןI ָרצCְ יןCֵ 'רU ִה ְרהCְ יןCֵ ַמ ֲח ָשׁ ָבהCְ ' ַמ ֲע ֵשׂהCְ יןCֵ םUא יֵ ָענֵ שׁ שׁOל ַא ֵחר' ְוU ִגלְ גCְ יןCֵ ל זֶ הU ִגלְ גCְ / ִתיCָ ִסCְ ָא ָדם I hereby forgive anyone who angered and antagonized me, or transgressed against me, whether against my body, my property, my honor or against any thing of mine; whether by accident, intentionally, carelessly or purposely; whether by speech or by action, by thought or idea; whether in this life or in another life – and may no one be punished because of me. תיIב ַ הי ֲאOא ֵ הי ֵוO ַ ֱאw הWן ִמלְּ ָפנֶ יIיְ ִהי ָרצ אתי ִ מה ֶשּׁ ָח ָטU ַ 'דIא ֶא ֱח ָטא עVתי' ֶשׁIמ ַ ְו ִא א ַעלO ים' ֲא ָבלCִ ָה ַרW ַר ֲח ֶמיCְ קI ְמחWלְ ָפנֶ י ן ִא ְמ ֵריI לְ ָרצU יִ ְהי/רים ָו ֳחלָ יִ ים ָר ִעיםUסּ ִ ִיִ ֵדי י /רי ְוג ֲֹאלִ יUצ ִ w' הWי לְ ָפנֶ יCִ ִן לIִפי ְו ֶה ְגי May it be Your will, Yah, my God and God of my fathers and mothers, that I sin (miss the mark) no more. Whatever my sins (missed marks) of the past before You, blot them out in Your abundant mercy – but not by suffering or severe illness. May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable to You, Yah, my Rock and my Redeemer. לָ ם' ַה ַמּ ִפּילI ָהעQ ֶ ֶמלUהינO ֵ ֱאw ַא ָתּה הQUרCָ יהי ִ ִו/מה ַעל ַע ְפ ַע ָפּיUנ ָ תU ְ ֶח ְבלֵ י ֵשׁנָ ה ַעל ֵעינָ י תיIב ַ הי ֲאOא ֵ הי ֵוO ַ ֱאw הWן ִמלְּ ָפנֶ יIָרצ ם ְו ַת ֲע ִמ ֵידנִ יIתי' ֶשׁ ַתּ ְשׁ ִכּ ֵיבנִ י לְ ָשׁלIמ ַ ְו ִא ת ָר ִעיםIמIנַ י ַו ֲחלIנִ י ַר ְעיUם' ְו ַאל יְ ַב ֲהלIלְ ָשׁל ִתי ְשׁלֵ ָמהYָ ת ֵהא ִמU ְ 'רים ָר ִעיםUה ִ ְו ַה ְר ישׁן ַה ָמּ ֶות' ִכּי ַא ָתּה ַ ' ְו ָה ֵאר ֵעינַ י ֶפּן ִאWלְ ָפנֶ י 'w ַא ָתּה הQUרCָ /ת ָעיִ ןCַ ןIַה ֵמּ ִאיר לְ ִאישׁ /IדI ְכבCִ Iלָ ם ֻכּלּIַה ֵמּ ִאיר לָ ע Blessed are You, Yah our God, sovereign of time and space, who casts the bonds of sleep on my eyes and slumber on my eyelids. May it be Your will, Yah, my God and God of my fathers and mothers, that You lay me to sleep in peace and raise me in peace. May my ideas, bad dreams and bad thoughts not confound me: may my resting place be perfect before You. May You illuminate my eyes lest I die in sleep, for You illuminate the pupil of the eye. Blessed are You, Yah, illuminating all of space-time with [Your] glory. Concentrate on surrendering to God. Shema Yisrael Adonai Eloheinu Adonai Echad. (Baruch shem k'vod malchuto l'olam va'ed.) : | ֶא ָחדw הUהינO ֵ | ֱאwְשׁ ַמע | יִ ְשׂ ָר ֵאל ה (/לָ ם ָו ֶעדI לְ עIתUד ַמלְ כI ֵשׁם ְכּבQUרC)ָ * * - 84 - * ֶאתQ ֵֹאל א ִֹתי ִמ ָכּל ָרע יְ ָב ֵרD ַהQַה ַמּלְ ָא תיIב ַ ַה ָנְּע ִרים ְויִ ָרּ ֵרא ָב ֶהם ְשׁ ִמי ְו ֵשׁם ֲא : ֶק ֶרב ָה ָא ֶרץCְ לָ רֹבUDַא ְב ָר ָהם ְויִ ְצ ָחק ְויִ ְד * :W ְויִ ְשׁ ְמ ֶרw הWיְ ָב ֶר ְכ :W ֶ ִו ֻיחנּW ָפּנָ יו ֵאלֶ יwיָ ֵאר ה :םI ָשׁלW ְ ְויָ ֵשׂם לW ָפּנָ יו ֵאלֶ יwיִ ָשּׂא ה May [God's] angel who redeems me from all evil bless the children, and may my name be declared on them and the names of my forefathers Abraham and Isaac. May they be abundant as the fish [in the sea even] amidst the land (Gen. 48:16). * * May God bless you and keep you. May God illuminate you and grace you. May God's countenance turn toward you and give you peace (Num. 6:24-26). :מר יִ ְשׂ ָר ֵאלIשׁ ֵ ישׁן ָ ִא יOם ְוUא יָ נO ִהנֵּ הBehold, the guardian of Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps (Ps. 121:4). 'wיתי ה ִ Uִ ִקWע ְתUישׁ ָ ִ לFor Your salvation I long, Yah 'w הWע ְתUישׁ ָ ִיתי ל ִ Uִ ִקI long, Yah, for Your salvation. :יתי ִ Uִ ִקWע ְתUישׁ ָ ִ לw הYah, for Your salvation I long. (Gen. 49:18) * 'הי יִ ְשׂ ָר ֵאלO ֵ ֱאw ֵשׁם הCְ 'יכ ֵאל ָ ימינִ י ִמ ִ ִמ 'יאל ִ ֵ ְב ִרDַ מ ְשּׂמֹאלִ יU 'יאל ֵ רUא ִ מלְּ ָפנַ יU ִ 'רי ְר ָפ ֵאלIח ַ מ ֲאU ֵ /ֹאשׁי ְשׁ ִכינַ ת ֵאל ִ ְו ַעל ר * * In the name of Yah, God of Israel, May Michael be at my right, Gavriel at my left, Uriel before me, Raphael behind me, And above my head Shechinat-El. - 85 - DOCUMENT 26 Angelic Opposition and Prosecution The Jewish canon envisions a spectrum of angelic roles in the shadows of human and spiritual life. This spectrum ranges from recognizing negative behaviors and proclaiming their consequences, to representing the negative as God's agent of redirection, to standing as God's loyal opposition and human prosecutor, to representing or encouraging the so-called evil inclination as an independent angelic entity standing opposed to God. From historical and textual perspectives, this broad spectrum might well be developmental, representing natural midrashic process and the evolution of human understanding of "evil" and the Jewish "Satan" from verb/process to noun/identity. In a spiritual sense, this spectrum – like much else in the Jewish canon concerning angels – offers clergy and seekers a textual palette with which to connect and uplift the breadth of individual and collective experience in the inevitable shadows of human life. Also like much else in Jewish angelology, this breadth about angelic shadow cues up core questions of theology: what is "evil," why does God allow "evil" to exist, how do we understand the roles of "evil" and "opposition" in spiritual life, and what do our answers mean for our own faith and practice? The following texts offer examples (but by no means exhaustive examples) of this philosophical and spiritual breadth, demonstrating some of how the Jewish canon wrestles with angels through the lenses of shadow, temptation and evil. A. An "Evil" Angel: Recognizing What Is B.T. Shabbat 119b יוסי בר יהודה אומר שני מלאכיw תניא רIt was taught, R. Yosi b. R. Yehudah השרת מלוין לו לאדם בע"ש מבית הכנסתsaid: Two ministering angels accompany shul goer] on the eve of Shabbat from וכשבא לביתו/[ לביתו אחד טוב ואחד רעa the synagogue to one's home – one a ומצא נר דלוק ושלחן ערוך ומטתו מוצעתgood [angel] and one an evil [angel]. מלאך טוב אומר יהי רצון שתהא לשבתWhen [the shul goer] arrives home to / אחרת כך ומלאך רע עונה אמן בעל כרחוfind the [Shabbat] lamp burning, the ואם לאו מלאך רע אומר יהי רצון שתהאtable set and the [bed] covered with a the good angel says, "May the / לשבת אחרת כך ומלאך טוב עונה אמןspread, next Shabbat be like this [also]," and the evil angel unwillingly answers, "Amen." But if not, the evil angel says, "May the next Shabbat be like this [also]," and the good angel unwillingly answers, "Amen." - 86 - B. "Satan": Angelic Opposition for the Sake of Heaven Num. 22:22-33 ִ ְתיַ ֵצּבHא ַוU הQ ֵלIהים ִכּי־הO ִ ר־אף ֱא ַ ִ ַחH כב ַו22. God’s anger flared because [Bilam] Iל־אתֹנ ֲ א ר ֵֹכב ַעU ְוהI לְ ָשׂ ָטן לQ ֶרSֶ Cַ w הQ ַמלְ ַאwent; God's angel stood in the way to oppose him. Now he rode his donkey, :Iשׁנֵ י ָנְע ָריו ִעמּU ְ and his two servants were with him. IC ְו ַח ְרQ ֶרSֶ Cַ נִ ָצּבw הQת־מלְ ַא ַ ן ֶאIכג ַו ֵתּ ֶרא ָה ָאת Q ֶ ַו ֵתּלQ ֶרSֶ ן־ה ַ ן ִמI ַו ֵתּט ָה ָאתIיָ דCְ פהUל ָ ְשׁ :Q ֶרSָ ַהV ָֹתYן לְ ַהIת־ה ָאת ָ לְ ָעם ֶאCִ Q ַH ָשּׂ ֶדה ַוCַ 23. The donkey saw God's angel in the way, his sword drawn in his hand; the donkey turned out of the way and went into the field; Bilam struck [her] to turn her to the way. ֵדרDָ ל ַה ְכּ ָר ִמיםI ִמ ְשׁעCְ w הQַ ֲעמֹד ַמלְ ַאHכד ַו :ֶ הZֶ ה ְו ָג ֵדר ִמZ ִמ24. God's angel stood in a path of the vineyards, a wall on each side. ַו ִתּלָּ ֵחץ ֶאל־w הQת־מלְ ַא ַ ן ֶאI כה ַו ֵתּ ֶרא ָה ָאת25. The donkey saw God's angel, pushed ֹ ֶסףHל־ה ִרּיר ַו ַ לְ ָעם ֶאCִ ת־ר ֶגל ֶ ַה ִרּיר ַו ִתּלְ ַחץ ֶאherself to the wall and crushed Bilam's :V לְ ַהכּ ָֹתfoot against the wall; again he hit her. 26. God's angel passed and stood in a ם ָצרI ָמקCְ ַ ֲעמֹדHר ַוI ֲעבw־הQסף ַמלְ ַאIH ֶ כו ַוnarrow place, with no way to turn right :שׂמֹאולU ְ ת יָ ִמיןI לִ נְ טQ ֶרSין־ ֶ ֲא ֶשׁר ֵאor left. ץ ַתּ ַחתCַ ַו ִתּ ְרw הQת־מלְ ַא ַ ן ֶאI כז ַו ֵתּ ֶרא ָה ָאת27. When the donkey saw God's angel, : ַמּ ֵרּלCַ ןIת־ה ָאת ָ ֶאQ ַHלְ ָעם ַוCִ ר־אף ַ ִ ַחHלְ ָעם ַוCִ she fell under Bilam; [his] anger flared and he struck [her] with a staff. ֹאמר לְ ִבלְ ָעם ֶ ן ַותּIת־פּי ָה ָאת ִ ֶאwִ ְפ ַתּח הH כח ַו28. God opened the donkey's mouth, :יתנִ י זֶ ה ָשׁלשׁ ְר ָגלִ ים ָ ִכּי ִה ִכּW ְיתי ל ִ ה־ע ִשׂ ָ ֶמand she said to Bilam: What did I do to you that you struck me so three times? Uי לCִ ן ִכּי ִה ְת ַעלַּ לְ ְתּIלְ ָעם לָ ָאתCִ אמר ֶ ֹH כט ַו29. Bilam said to [her]: Because you :Qיָ ִדי ִכּי ַע ָתּה ֲה ַר ְג ִתּיCְ שׁ־ח ֶרב ֶ ֶ יabused me; would that I had a sword in my hand so now I could kill you. W ְא ָאנ ִֹכי ֲאתֹנIלְ ָעם ֲהלCל־ ִ ן ֶאIֹאמר ָה ָאת ֶ ל ַותּ [She] said to Bilam: Am not I your ֶ ה ַה ַה ְס ֵכּןZם ַהIHד־ה ַ ַעWדIע ְ ר־ר ַכ ְב ָתּ ָעלַ י ֵמ ָ ֲא ֶשׁ30. donkey that you rode all this time? Have :אO אמר ֶ ֹH כֹּה ַוW ְת לI ִה ְס ַכּנְ ִתּי לַ ֲעשׂI ever done this to you? He said: No. w הQת־מלְ ַא ַ ַ ְרא ֶאHת־עינֵ י ִבלְ ָעם ַו ֵ ֶאwלא ַויְ ַגל ה Uִ ְשׁ ַתּחHִ רֹּד ַוH ַוIיָ דCְ ְשׁ ֻל ָפהIC ְו ַח ְרQ ֶרSֶ Cַ נִ ָצּב :לְ ַא ָפּיו 31. Then God opened Bilam's eyes, and he saw God's angel standing in the way, sword drawn in his hand; and he bowed his head, and fell on his face. ית ֶאת־ ָ ל־מה ִה ִכּ ָ ַעw הQאמר ֵאלָ יו ַמלְ ַא ֶ ֹHלב ַו אתי לְ ָשׂ ָטן ִ שׁ ְר ָגלִ ים ִהנֵּ ה ָאנ ִֹכי יָ ָצI זֶ ה ָשׁלW ְֲאתֹנ :יSִ לְ נֶ ְגQ ֶרSֶ ִכּי־יָ ַרט ַה 32. God's angel said to him: Why did you strike your donkey so three times? Look, I went out to oppose you because your way is perverse before me. ן ַו ֵתּט לְ ָפנַ י זֶ ה ָשׁלשׁ ְר ָגלִ יםI לג ַו ִתּ ְר ַאנִ י ָה ָאת33. The donkey saw Me and turned from ם־א ְֹת ָכה ָה ַר ְג ִתּיDַ לַ י נָ ְט ָתה ִמ ָפּנַ י ִכּי ַע ָתּהU אMe three times; had she not turned from :יתי ִ ֵ ֶה ֱחיVתIא ָ ְוMe, I would've slain you and let her live. - 87 - Rashi Num. 22:22 מלאך של רחמים היה והיה רוצה/ לשטן לוTo oppose him – He was an angel of / למנעו מלחטוא' שלא יחטא ויאבדmercy, who had wanted to prevent [Bilam] from sinning, that he shouldn't sin and be destroyed. Ibn Ezra Num. 22:22 כבר פירשתיו בספר איוב כי השטן/ לשטן לוTo oppose him – As already explained היה המלאך ודברי הגאון שהוא בן אדם לאin the Book of Job, the opposer is the whom the wise held to be the Son / מעלין ולא מורידיןangel of Man neither ascended nor descended. Kitzur Ba'al HaTurim, Num. 22:32 יצאתי ממדתי ממדת/ הנה אנכי יצאתי לשטןLook, I went out to oppose you – I went : רחמים שמלאך רחמים היהout from My qualities, from the quality of mercy [like] the angel of mercy. C. "Satan": God's Loyal Prosecutor Job 1:6 wהים לְ ִה ְתיַ ֵצּב ַעל־הO ִ נֵ י ָה ֱֽאCְ Uָ בֹאHם ַוIH ַויְ ִהי ַהThe day came that the Bnei Elohim came :כֽםIת ָ Cְ ם־ה ָשּׂ ָטן ַ א ַגIָ בH ַוto stand in God's way; the Satan also came among them. Rashi Job 1:6 / לקטרג הבריות/ ויבא גם השטן בתוכםThe Satan also came among them – The accuser of all creatures. Avot 4:11 רבי אליעזר בן יעקב אומר העושה מצוהR. Eliezer b. Yaakov said: One who does והעובר עברה/ אחת קונה לו פרקליט אחדone good deed acquires a defender. One //// אחת קונה לו קטיגור אחדwho does one sin acquires a prosecutor. Bartenura Avot 4:11 Ovadiah b. Avraham (c. 1445-1515) was born in Bertinoro, Italy, and became an intellectual leader of Jews exiled from Spain in 1492. He is best known for "The Bartenura," his rationalist commentary on the Mishnah based primarily on Rashi and Rambam. / מלאך מליץ טוב- ְפּ ַר ְקלִ יטPraklit – An angel advocating for good. / מליץ רע ולשון קטיגור קורא תגר- קטיגורKatigor – [An angel] advocating for bad, / וסניגור שהוא הפך קטיגור פירושו שונא תגרmeaning to proclaim prosecution. And Sanegor is opposite Katigor, meaning to hate (oppose) prosecution. - 88 - Ex. 12:29 ֶא ֶרץCְ רIכCל־ ְ ִה ָכּה ָכw ֲח ִצי ַהלַּ יְ לָ ה ַוהCַ ַויְ ִהיIt came to pass, that at midnight God רIכCְ ַעדIל־כּ ְסא ִ ֹ ֵשׁב ַעHכֹר ַפּ ְרעֹה ַהCְ ִמ ְצ ַריִ ם ִמstruck all the firstborn of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his : ֵה ָמהCְ רIכCְ ר ְוכֹלIC ֵבית ַהCְ ַה ְשּׁ ִבי ֲא ֶשׁרthrone to the firstborn of the captive in prison; and all the firstborn of cattle. Ex. Rabbah 18:5 (Trans. Sefer Ha'Aggadah 333:7) - ? למה מיכאל וסמאל דומין: אמר רבי יוסיR. Yose said: To whom are Michael and לסניגור וקטיגור עומדין בדין' זה מדבר וזהSamael compared? To an advocate and before a court. One speaks מדבר' גמר זה דבריו וזה דבריו' ידע אותוprosecutor and the other speaks. When one finishes הסניגור שנצח' התחיל משבח את הדייןwhat he has to say, and the other שיוציא איפופסין' בקש אותו קטיגור להוסיףfinishes what he has to say, if the החרש ונשמע מןw דבר' אמר לו הסניגורadvocate knows that he has prevailed, כך מיכאל וסמאל עומדים לפני/w הדייןhe begins to praise the judge in the hope he will give his verdict [in favor of השכינה והשטן מקטרג ומיכאל מלמד זכותןthat the defendant]. Then, if the prosecutor של ישראל' והשטן בא לדבר ומיכאלwishes to say more, the advocate tells ט( אשמעה: פהw משתקו' למה? שנאמר )תהhim, “Be quiet and let's hear the judge.” /" כי ידבר שלום אל עמוw מה ידבר האל הSo do Michael and Samael stand before the Presence, Satan making accusations and Michael pointing to Israel’s merits. When Satan wishes to say more, Michael silences him as in (Ps. 85:9), “Let me hear what God will say: for [God] will speak shalom for [God's] people” D. "Satan": The Evil Urge and Angelic Disruptor Gen. 3:1 ַ ת ַה ָשּׂ ֶדה ֲא ֶשׁר ָע ָשׂהHם ִמכֹּל ַחU ְו ַהנָּ ָחשׁ ָהיָ ה ָערThe serpent was more cunning than any י־א ַמר ָ ל־ה ִא ָשּׁה ַאף ִכּ ָ אמר ֶא ֶ ֹHהים ַוO ִ ֱאw הbeast of the field which YHVH God had made. He said to the woman: Did God :ןDָ ִמכֹּל ֵעץ ַהUֹאכל ְ א תO היםO ִ ֱאsay not to eat of every tree in the garden? Sforno Gen. 3:1 והנחש הוא שטן הוא יצר הרע רב החזק עםThe snake – Satan, the evil urge (yetzer כי אמנם יקרא הדבר/ מעוט היותו נראהha'ra), seen as very strong even in its It is common to name things by בשם איזה דומה לו כמו שנקרא המלך אריהsubtlety. other examples of it, like a king is called כאמרו עלה אריה מסכבו ויקרא האויביםlion as in (Jer. 4:7), "a lion rose from his המזיקים נחשים צפעונים אשר אין להםthicket" [alluding to Nebuchadnezzar]; לחש כאמרו הנני משלח בכם נחשיםand enemies are called (Jer. 8:17) "adders ועל זה הדרך קרא בזה המקום/w צפעונים וכוthat cannot be charmed," etc. Similarly, called the evil urge that impels one / את היצר הרע המחטיא נחשGod to sin "the snake." - 89 - Midrash Tanchuma, Noach (Trans., Sefer Ha'Aggadah 29:134) When Noah began planting [his vineyard after the Flood], Satan came, stationed himself before him, and asked, “What are you planting?” Noah answered, “A vineyard.” Satan asked, “What is its nature?” Noah said, “Its fruit, whether fresh or dried, is sweet, and from it one makes wine, which gladdens a man’s heart.” Satan asked, “Will you agree to let both of us plant it together?” Noah said, “Very well.” What did Satan do? He brought an ewe lamb and slaughtered it over a vine. After that, he brought a lion, which he likewise slaughtered. Then a monkey, which also he slaughtered over it. Finally a pig, which he again slaughtered over that vine. And with the blood that dripped from them, he watered the vineyard. The charade was Satan’s way of saying that when a man drinks one cup of wine, he acts like an ewe lamb – humble and meek. When he drinks two, he immediately believes himself to be as strong as a lion and proceeds to brag mightily, saying, “Who is like me?” (ed. – the opposite of מי כמוך/ Who is like You?). When he drinks three or four cups, he immediately becomes like a monkey, hopping about giggling, and uttering obscenities in public, without realizing what he is doing. Finally, when he becomes blind drunk, he is like a pig, wallowing in mire and coming rest among refuse. All the above befell Noah at Satan's behest. - 90 - DOCUMENT 27 Nusach HaTefilah: Ma'ariv l'Chol, Hashkiveinu U ַמלְ ֵכּנUם ְו ַה ֲע ִמ ֵידנI לְ ָשׁלUהינO ֵ ֱאw הUַה ְשׁ ִכּ ֵיבנ U ְו ַת ְרּנֵ נWמIל ֶ ֻס ַכּת ְשׁUשׂ ָעלֵ ינIפרU ְ ִ יםHלְ ַח 'W לְ ַמ ַען ְשׁ ֶמUשׁ ֵיענIה ִ ' ְוWבה ִמלְ ָפנֶ יIט ָ ֵע ָצהCְ 'יֵ ב' ֶד ֶבר ְו ֶח ֶרבI אU' ְו ָה ֵסר ֵמ ָעלֵ ינU ַע ֵדנCַ ְו ָה ֵגן /ןIְו ָר ָעב ְויָ ג Lay us down in peace, YHVH our God, and stand us up to life, our Sovereign. Shelter us with Your sukkah of peace and guide us with Your good counsel, and save us for Your Name's sake. Shield us from enemy, plague and sword, famine and anguish. Wב ֵצל ְכּנָ ֶפיUְ 'Uמ ַא ֲח ֵרנU ֵ Uְו ָה ֵסר ָשׂ ָטן ִמלְ ָפנֵ ינ ָא ָתּה' ִכּי ֵאלUמ ִצּילֵ נU ַ Uמ ֵרנIשׁ ְ ִכּי ֵאלUַתּ ְס ִתּ ֵירנ UאנIבU ֵ Uאתנ ֵ ר ֵצIשׁמU ְ 'ם ָא ָתּהUן ְו ַרחU ַחנּQ ֶֶמל /לָ םIם ֵמ ַע ָתּה ְו ַעד עIלְ ָשׁלU ִ יםHלְ ַח Remove Satan from before and behind us, and hide us in the shade of Your wing. For You are our guardian and rescuer; for You are a sovereign God of grace and mercy. And guard our going out and returning, for peace and life, /WמIל ֶ ֻס ַכּת ְשׁUפרֹשׂ ָעלֵ ינU ְ from now until forever. : יִ ְשׂ ָר ֵאל לָ ַעדIמר ַעמּIשׁ ֵ 'w ַא ָתּה הQUרCָ Shelter us with Your sukkah of peace. Blessed are You, YHVH, guardian of Your people Israel forever. - 91 - DOCUMENT 28 Angels of Death and Destruction: Selected Materials A. The "Destroyer" in Tanakh Ex. 12:12-13, 23 יתי ִ ֶ ה ְו ִה ֵכּZלַּ יְ לָ ה ַהCַ ץ־מ ְצ ַריִ ם ִ יב ְו ָע ַב ְר ִתּי ְב ֶא ֶר12. [God spoke to Moses saying:] I will ֵה ָמהCד־ ְ ֶא ֶרץ ִמ ְצ ַריִ ם ֵמ ָא ָדם ְו ַעCְ רIכCל־ ְ ָכpass in the Land of Egypt on this night, and I will strike all the firstborn of :wהי ִמ ְצ ַריִ ם ֶא ֱע ֶשׂה ְשׁ ָפ ִטים ֲאנִ י הO ֵ ל־א ֱ ב ָכUְ Egypt, from man to beast, and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I ִתּים ֲא ֶשׁר ַא ֶתּםCָ ם לָ ֶכם לְ אֹת ַעל ַהSָ יג ְו ָהיָ ה ַהam YHVH. א־Oפ ַס ְח ִתּי ֲעלֵ ֶכם ְוU ָ םSָ ת־ה ַ יתי ֶא ִ ָשׁם ְו ָר ִא13. The blood will be for you a sign on : ֶא ֶרץ ִמ ְצ ָריִ םCְ ַהכּ ִֹתיCְ יִ ְהיֶ ה ָב ֶכם נֶ ֶגף לְ ַמ ְשׁ ִחיתthe houses where you are; and when I *** see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague will not be on you to destroy when I strike the land of Egypt. םSָ ת־ה ַ ת־מ ְצ ַריִ ם ְו ָר ָאה ֶא ִ ֹף ֶאD ְ לִ נwכג ְו ָע ַבר ה *** ַעל־wפ ַסח הU ָ זֹתUף ְו ַעל ְשׁ ֵתּי ַה ְמּזIל־ה ַמּ ְשׁק ַ ַע 23. [Moses said to the Elders of Israel]: יכם ֶ ֵתּCל־ ָ א יִ ֵתּן ַה ַמּ ְשׁ ִחית לָ בֹא ֶאO ַה ֶפּ ַתח ְוYHVH will pass through to strike the :ֹףD ְ לִ נEgyptians; and when [God] sees the blood on the lintel and on the two side posts, YHVH will pass over the door, and will not let the destroyer come into your houses to plague [you]. 2 Sam. 24:14–16 ד ַצר־לִ י ְמאֹד נִ ְפּלָ ה־נָּ אDל־ ָ ִוד ֶאSָ אמר ֶ ֹH יד ַו14. David said to Gad, I am in great :ל־אפֹּלָ ה ֶ ד־א ָדם ַא ָ ַביUְ ים ַר ֲח ָמיוCִ י־ר ַ ִכּw ְביַ ד הdistress: let us fall into the hand of God, whose mercies are great, and let me not fall into the hand of man. ד־עת ֵ ֶֹקר ְו ַעCיִ ְשׂ ָר ֵאל ֵמ ַהCְ ֶברSֶ wִ ֵתּן הHטו ַו 15. God sent pestilence on Israel from ֵאר ֶשׁ ַבעCד־ ְ ן ְו ַעSָ ן־ה ָעם ִמ ָ ָ ָמת ִמHעד ַוIמ ֵ : ִשׁ ְב ִעים ֶאלֶ ף ִאישׁmorning to the appointed time; and there died seventy thousand of the nation from Dan to Beersheba. ִ נָּ ֶחםH ַוVשׁלַ ם לְ ַשׁ ֲח ָתUר ָ ְ יQ ַה ַמּלְ ָאIִ ְשׁלַ ח יָ דHטז ַו ָעםCָ ַה ַמּ ְשׁ ִחיתQאמר לַ ַמּלְ ָא ֶ ֹHל־ה ָר ָעה ַו ָ ֶאw ה16. When the angel stretched out his ////W ַרב ַע ָתּה ֶה ֶרף יָ ֶדhand on Jerusalem to destroy it, God repented of the evil, and said to the angel who destroyed the people, "Enough: now stay your hand...." - 92 - 2 Kings 19:31-36 ןIHיטה ֵמ ַהר ִצ ָ ֵפלU ְ שׁלַ ם ֵתּ ֵצא ְשׁ ֵא ִריתUיר ָ ִכּי ִמFor from Jerusalem will go forth a wֹה־א ַמר ה ָ לָ ֵכן כּ:ֹאתZת ַתּ ֲע ֶשׂה־I ְצ ָבאw ִקנְ ַאת הremnant [along with] they who escape from Mount Zion; the zeal of the Lord of א־Oֹאת ְוZל־ה ִעיר ַה ָ א יָ בֹא ֶאO רU ַאשּׁQ ֶל־מל ֶ ֶאHosts will do this. So thus said YHVH Qֹא־יִ ְשׁפּO ֶמנָּ ה ָמ ֵגן ְוSְ א־יְ ַקOרה ָשׁם ֵחץ ְוIי ֶ concerning the king of Assyria: He will ב ְו ֶאל־U יָ שׁVCָ ֲא ֶשׁר־יָ בֹאQ ֶרSֶ Cַ :יה סֹלְ לָ ה ָ ֶ ָעלnot come to this city, or shoot an arrow ל־ה ִעיר ָ תי ֶאIנּ ִ ְו ַג:wא יָ בֹא נְ ֻאם־הO ֹאתZ ָה ִעיר ַהthere, or come before it with a shield, or up a mound against it. By the way ַויְ ִהי:יSִ ִוד ַע ְבSָ לְ ַמ ַעןU לְ ַמ ֲענִ יVשׁ ָיעIה ִ ְֹאת לZ ַהcast he came, by the same he will return, and רU ַמ ֲחנֵ ה ַאשּׁCְ Q ַH ַוw הQֵ ֵצא ַמלְ ַאHא ַוUלַּ יְ לָ ה ַההCַ will not come into this city, said YHVH. ֶֹקרC ַבUַ ְשׁ ִכּימHנִ ים ַו ֲח ִמ ָשּׁה ָאלֶ ף ַוI ֵמ ָאה ְשׁמFor I will defend this city, to save it for ָ ָשׁבH ַוQ ֵֶ לHִ ַסּע ַוH ַו: ְו ִהנֵּ ה ֻכלָּ ם ְפּ ָג ִרים ֵמ ִתיםMy own sake and My servant David’s /נִ ינְ ֵוהCְ ֵ ֶשׁבHר ַוU־אשּׁQ ַ ֶ ַסנְ ֵח ִריב ֶמלsake. And it came to pass that night, that God's angel went out, and struck in the Assyrian camp one hundred and eighty five thousand; and when they arose in the morning, all were dead corpses. Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, went, returned and dwelled in Nineveh. B. The "Angel of Death" in Tanakh Prov. 16:13-14 :י־צ ֶדק ְוד ֵֹבר יְ ָשׁ ִרים יֶ ֱא ָהב ֶ ן ְמלָ ִכים ִשׂ ְפ ֵתI יג ְרצ13. Righteous lips are the kings' delight: they love him who speaks right. :י־מ ֶות ְו ִאישׁ ָח ָכם יְ ַכ ְפּ ֶרנָּ ה ָ ַמלְ ֲא ֵכQ ֶת־מל ֶ יד ֲח ַמ14. A king's wrath is like the angel of death, but a wise man will pacify it. C. The "Angel of Death" in Midrash It is said regarding the Angel of Death that he is full of eyes. When a sick person is about to die, he stands above his head with his sword drawn and a drop of poison hanging from its tip. When the sick person sees him he trembles and opens his mouth; [the Angel of Death] then drops the poison into his mouth. – B.T. Avodah Zara 20b The Angel of Death sometimes appears as a brilliant flashing light accompanied by a sweet smell. Sometimes beautiful and glorious, at other times it has the appearance of a goat, ram, or ugly beast. It has been called the Prince of Darkness and at times has the name of Belial, an angel of hatred whose dominion is darkness. Death has a number of angel names. When death is related to wild animals, the name of death is Meshabber (angel of shattering). In relation to domestic animals death is called Hemah (angel of fever); and in relation to children, death is called Mash’khit (angel of slaughtering). Death also has the name of Af (angel of anger), and death over kings is known as Kazful (angel of destruction). – Cooper, Invoking Angels, 78 - 93 - While seated at the bedside of R. Nachman, Rava saw him lapsing into the sleep of death. Yet R. Nachman managed to say to Rava, “Tell the Angel of Death not to torment me.” Rava replied, “But are you not important enough [to tell him yourself]? R. Nachman: “Who is sufficiently important, esteemed or vigorous enough [on his deathbed to make such a request]? Then Rava implored R. Nachman, “Show yourself to me [in a dream].” When he did show himself [after he died], Rava asked him, “Did you suffer any pain?” and he replied, “As little as taking a hair from milk. Still, if the Holy One were to say to me, ‘Go back to that world,’ I would not consent, the fear of death being so great.” – Sefer Ha'Aggadah 581:62 (from B.T. Moed Katan 28a) As soon as Israel accepted the Torah, the Holy One invested them with some of the splendor of [God's] own majesty. What precisely did [God] invest them with? Crowns, according to R. Yochanan; weapons, according to R. Simeon ben Yochai, on which God’s Explicit Name was engraved: as long as these weapons were in their hands, the Angel of Death had no power over them. – Sefer Ha'Aggadah 81:48 (from Ex. Rabbah 51:8) Two Cushites stood in the presence of King Solomon—Elihoreph and Ahijah sons of Shisha, who were [Solomon’s] scribes. One day, observing that the Angel of Death looked distressed, Solomon asked [the Angel of Death], “Why are you distressed?” The Angel of Death replied, “Because the two Cushites seated here are about to be summoned by me.” So [to thwart the Angel of Death] Solomon had spirits take charge of the two and convey them to the city of Luz (a city where people live forever). But as soon as they reached its wall, they died. The following day, Solomon observed that the Angel of Death was cheerful. When Solomon asked him, “Why are you so cheerful?” he replied, “You sent them to the very place where they were to be summoned by me.” At that, Solomon spoke up, saying, “A man’s feet are responsible for him. They lead him to the place where he is about to be summoned.” – Sefer Ha'Aggadah 583:73 (from B.T. Sukkah 53a) R. Chisda was sitting in the school [of Rav] studying, so that the Angel of Death was unable to come near him, for his mouth did not cease reciting the words of the lore he was at. But when he proceeded to sit down on a cedar bench in the school, [the Angel of Death saw to it that] it split under under him, so that R. Chisda was silent for a moment. In that moment, the Angel of Death prevailed over him. – Sefer Ha'Aggadah 309:622 (from B.T. Makkot 10a) R. Simeon ben Lakish said: Satan, the impulse to evil, and the Angel of Death – all three are the same thing. – Sefer Ha'Aggadah 537:15 (from B.T. Bava Batra 16a) - 94 - DOCUMENT 29 Pinchas of Koretz on the Angel of Friendship Pinchas Shapiro of Koretz (1726-1790) was one of the Ba'al Shem Tov's students and one of the pillars of the Hasidic dynasties. A devoted scholar of both Talmud and Zoharic mysticism, Pinchas was one of the mekubalim of not only his own generation but of the centuries following the Besht. Of him, the Besht reportedly said that "A soul such as that of R. Pinchas comes down to this world only once every 500 years." While R. Pinchas did not publish any books, his own students published many writings and teachings in his name. Thanks to R. Elliot Ginsburg for leading us to this beautiful text. – SHW & DEM Likkutei Amrei Pinchas: P. Bechukotai 29 הנה אדם יש לו אור למעלה' וכששני בני האורותwאדם נפגשים ביחד מתחברין ב 'ויוצא מביניהם אור אחד' ומזה נקרא הולדה ב חודשwwאבל המלאך הזה אינו מתקיים רק י וכשחוזרין ונפגשים אלו השני בני האדם תוך ////ב חודשwwי Each person has a supernal light. When two people meet, their two lights link together and a single light emerges from between them – and thus an [angel] is born. However, this angel can survive only 12 months unless these two friends return and meet within 12 months.... ב חדשיםwwטעם על שרואה חבירו אחר י מברך מחיי המתים' דכשאינם נגפשים אלא 'ב חדשים אז המלאך כבר בטלwwאחר י רק שפועלין בהפגשתן/ובחינת מיתה יתקרי ב חדשים ליתן קצת הארהwwיחד לאחר י 'ורשימו בזה המלאך להחיותו מבחינת מיתה ולזה מברכין מחיה המתים' דקאי על זה /המלאך The reason that [halachically] one who sees a friend after 12 months blesses God for "raising the dead" is that when [friends] don't meet for 12 months, the angel [born between them] has since become [diminished, as if of] a quality of death. But by action of meeting after 12 months, a bit of the light and residue of this angel remains alive amidst its "death," and this is what we bless when we [bless God for] "raising the dead," referring to this angel. - 95 - DOCUMENT 30 Compendium of Personal Narratives Below is a sampling of first person angel testimonies, touching on the categories of angels who guide (announce), destroy, save, heal and transform. Alexander, E., The Map of Heaven: How Science, Religion and Ordinary People Are Proving the Afterlife. Simon & Schuster, New York, NY (2014), pp. xxvii-xxix. Dr. Alexander is an academic neurosurgeon who has practiced at Harvard Medical School among other prestigious places. An NDE (near-death experience) is a term referring to someone who was pronounced clinically dead but returned to life. There is a wide body of literature on this subject, documenting similar other worldly experiences in the realm of the Light, and psycho-spiritual changes upon returning to this world. Although Dr. Eben does not identify the bacterial meningitis as an “angel of destruction” it could be read that way, based on our prior studies of angels as forces of nature. I’m a doctor who had an NDE – a solid member of the “dogmatic science” side of the room, who had an experience that sent him over to the other side. Not the “dogmatic religion” side but a third side of the room, if you will: a side that believes science and religion both have things to teach us, but that neither has, or ever will, have all the answers. This side of the room believes that we are on the edge of something genuinely new: a marriage of spirituality and science that will change the way we understand and experience ourselves forever. In Proof of Heaven, I described how the sudden onset of a very rare strain of bacterial meningitis put me in a hospital, and a deep coma, for seven days. During that time, I underwent an experience that I am still in the process of absorbing and comprehending. I journeyed through a series of supra-physical realms, each one more extraordinary than the last. In the first, I was immersed in a primitive, primordial state of consciousness that felt, while I was in it, something like being buried in earth. It was, however, not ordinary earth, for all around me I sensed – and sometimes heard and saw – other forms, other entities. It was part horrific, part comforting…. Eventually, a being of light – a circular entity that gave off a beautiful, heavenly music that I called the - 96 - Spinning Melody – came slowly down from above, throwing off marvelous filaments of living silver and golden light. The light opened up like a rip in the fabric of that coarse realm, and I felt myself going through the rip, like a portal, up into a staggeringly beautiful valley full of lush and fertile greenery, where waterfalls flowed into crystal pools. I found myself as a speck of awareness on a butterfly wing among pulsing swarms of millions of other butterflies. I witnessed stunning blueblack velvety skies filled with swooping orbs of golden light, which I later called angelic choirs, leaving sparkling trails against billowing, colorful clouds. Those choirs produced hymns and anthems far beyond anything I had ever encountered on earth. There was also a vast array of larger universes that took the form of what I came to call an “over-sphere,” that was there to help in imparting the lessons I was to learn. The angelic choirs provided yet another portal to higher realms. I ascended until I reached the Core, that deepest sanctum sanctorum of the Divine – infinite inky blackness, filled to overflowing with indescribable divine unconditional love. There I encountered the infinitely powerful, all-knowing deity whom I later called Om, because of the sound I sensed so prominently in that realm. I learned lessons of a depth and beauty entirely beyond my capacity to explain. Throughout my time in the Core, there was always the strong sense of there being three of us (the Divine, the brilliant orb, and pure conscious awareness). * * * Skilling, Johanna, “Marc Chagall: Painter of Angels,” in The Big Book of Angels, eds. Rodale and Beliefnet. Inc., 2002), p. 318. Becoming an artist was an unlikely goal for a boy growing up in rural Russia, and it was not an idea that Marc’s parents supported. Marc and his father fought frequently about his future. One day, after a particularly furious argument, Marc ran away form home to the imperial capital of St. Petersburg. He wasn’t yet twenty - 97 - years old. Far away from home, living in a small, furnished room, Marc faced many challenges. As a Jew, he was forbidden to live in St. Petersburg. Without a permit to live in the city, he was continually forced to evade the authorities. Marc was jailed once but still managed to study at two of St. Petersburg’s great art schools. At that time, an amazing vision had a cataclysmic effect on his life and art. One night, drifting into sleep in his small room, Chagall thought he heard the rustle of wings. He opened his eyes and immediately felt pins and needles of pain in his forehead. The room was filled with an unearthly, brilliant blue light. An angel hovered above him. As Chagall watched, the angel slowly floated up through the ceiling; the light and the beautiful blue air vanished with him. After this vision, Chagall began a lifetime of work to portray the wonder of the angel and the color of the beautiful blue air. * * * Wiener, S., "Saved by an Unknown Force" (first narrated about 15 years ago) I have a dear friend, a well-grounded man whose profession requires strong logical abilities. One year he decided to visit the town in Germany where his ancestors had resided, and through asking many questions of the town’s current residents, found the exact home where they had lived. It was an old stone house, with a basement where his family plied their Kosher butcher trade and smoked meats. Leading to the basement was a set of wellworn stone stairs, heavily covered with soot. As he began to descend the stone steps he slipped, and felt himself rapidly sliding downward. He remembers a tremendous moment of fear-- surely he would crack his head on the stone steps or cement floor, or at least be badly bruised. When he landed on his two feet, to his astonishment, he was totally unharmed. Nothing hurt. Moreover, there was not a spot of soot on his - 98 - pants or shirt. Surely this must have been an angel that carried him, he concluded. He has told me this story several times since, always with a sense of awe. * * * Myss, Caroline, Invisible Acts of Power: Channeling Grace in Your Everyday Life, Simon & Schuster, New York, NY (2004), pp. 223-4. (A narrative from "Christopher" about an angelic intervention in a serious accident.) “By my mid-forties I was drifting more and more into a numbness of mind and spirit. The only way I could connect with life was through that adrenaline rush racing motorcycles and balancing on that fine line between life and death. Now this is a very seductive high –a mistress one pays dearly for. I lived from high to high not seeing the beauty in the ordinary or feeling a sense of gratitude for just being alive. All this changed one beautiful moonlit night on a lonely country road. The moon was so bright that I was awestruck. I was traveling at double the posted speed limit on a motorcycle that felt as if it were a mere extension of my thoughts. Man and machine ere one and adrenaline flooded my senses. Through this trance I caught the reflection of two eyes – a deer’s – glowing in the bushes. Time started to slow down; it was as if some power were taking over. I knew this was my destiny on that beautiful night. The deer responded as if on cue and started charging across the road. I slammed on the brakes and we collided at eighty miles per hour. “The sound was horrific. The flight into midair was wrenching and the motorcycle cartwheeled. Then we all lay silent. The deer was dead, the motorcycle was a wreck, but I was still alive. I couldn’t breather let alone move and I was in the middle of the road. As I lay there a voice – that inner guiding voice – kept affirming, ‘You will be fine.’ It was dark, and I was dressed black leather, impossible for an oncoming car to see. I thought, ‘Did I survive the crash only to be hit by a car?’ I heard a car approaching. Then I heard the door slam and the sound of purposeful - 99 - footsteps coming toward me. It felt like grace descending as she spoke, her voice calm but authoritative. Her presence was so reassuring. I will never forget the feeling of her compassion. This beautiful spirit from out of the night orchestrated my rescue and subsequent transportation by helicopter to a local trauma unit. While in her presence, I felt the outpouring of love and security, and as I was taken from her side, the night became truly cold and painful. I have never really believed in angels, but I met one that night. Though I never saw her face, I know her love. Months later I tried to find her. I searched the police reports and I found no mention of her. It’s as if I was the only one who knew that she had been there at the scene. This was an angel who came to comfort me in my time of need, who taught me to trust in another, and who demonstrated the marvelous ways Spirit works. “My life took on a new meaning and purpose. I sold the motorcycle and I am grateful to the deer and the part she played in my awakening. My perspective toward life truly shifted. Spirit works to awaken us and it seems that if we don’t attend to the subtle messages, the messages increase in volume and severity. On the very day of the crash, I had been warned to slow down by a rabbit crossing my path. I remember how close I was to crashing then and how strange it was to see an animal act in this fashion. Now I know that this as a sign to slow down and pay more attention. I am grateful for the crash and I will never call it an accident because of the profound gift it provided. Years have passed and I remain grateful to be able to breathe and walk and to share my love with others.” * * * - 100 - Jacobs, Louis, Book of Jewish Mystical Testimonies, Schocken Books: New York, NY (1977), pp. 169-170 (Excerpts from a translated letter by Jekuthiel Gordon to Rabbi Mordecai Yoffe, published by S. Ginsburg in Rabbi Moshe Hayyim Luzzatto u’Venei Doro (1937), pp. 18-20). I come regarding things of the Torah to inform my Lord of the choice gift the Holy Blessed One has granted us from [God's] treasure store. There is here a young man, tender in years, no older than the age of twenty-three. He is a holy man, my master and teacher, the holy lamp, the man of God, his honor Rabbi Moses Hayyim Luzzatto. For these past two and a half years a maggid has been revealed to him, a holy and tremendous angel who reveals wondrous mysteries to him…. He is very modest, telling nothing of this even to his own father and obviously not to anyone else. It was by the counsel of the Lord that I discovered it by accident – here is not the place to describe how. For the past month I have been ministering to him, drawing water from his well, happy the eye that has seen all this and happy the ear that has heard of it. He is a spark of Akiva ben Joseph. Eight months have passed since the time that the holy and tremendous angel was first revealed to him. He delivered to him numerous mysteries and imparted the methods by means of which he could summon to him the members of the Heavenly Academy. With the approval of the Holy One, blessed be He, and His Shekhinah, he ordered him to compose a Book of the Zohar, called in Heaven, the Second Zohar, in order that a great tikkun known to us should be carried out. This is what happens. The angel speaks out of his mouth but we, his disciples, hear nothing. The angel begin to reveal to him great mysteries. Then my master orders Elijah to come to him and he comes to impart mysteries of his own. Sometimes, Metatron, the great prince, also comes to him…. * * * - 101 - Anderson, Joan Wester, “Angels by His Side (Padre Pio), in The Big Book of Angels, eds. Rodale and Beliefnet. Inc. (2002), pp. 183-4 Padre Pio was a monk born in Italy in 1887 and declared a saint in 2002. He devoted his life to building homes for the sick, the handicapped, and the elderly, but was especially known for his relationship with his guardian angel whom he met as a boy. I have read many stories of similar miraculous cures attributed to the last Lubavitch Rebbe, Menachem Mendel Schneerson z”l, as well as his ability to send the exact blessing needed in advance of hearing of a problem. However, angels are not mentioned. – SHW At times, according to witnesses, Padre Pio was able to read and speak languages he didn’t know. When asked how he could do it, he said that his guardian angel translated for him. On occasion, a number of his fellow monks heard voices singing in heavenly harmony but couldn’t discover the source of the music. Padre Pio explained that the voices were angels, escorting souls into heaven. Padre Pio believed that people could send their angels to others to help or intercede. He encouraged his vast network of friends to send their angels to him if they could not come themselves. “Your angel can take a message from you to me,” he would say, “and I will assist you as much as I can.” On one occasion, Cecil, an English friend of the Padre, was hurt in a car crash. A friend went to the post office to send a telegram to Padre Pio, requesting prayers for the accident victim. When the friend presented the telegram at the desk, the man gave him back a telegram from Padre Pio assuring him of his prayers for Cecil. Later, after Cecil had recovered, he and his friend went to see Padre Pio. “How did you know of the accident?” both asked. “We got your telegram before we had sent ours.” “Do you think angels go as slowly as planes?” the monk replied, smiling. * * * - 102 - Grain, T., "Prayer for Healing," in Harper & O’Connor (eds.), 365 Days of Angel Prayers, Spiritual Living LLC, at. 41. Prayer for Healing I invite in the highest vibration of light of the angels I ask Archangel Raphael to shower me with his gentle healing rays on my physical, mental, emotional and spiritual bodies. I ask for healing and trust that you will take care of my well-being and lead me to wellness. I thank you for guiding me to the people who can help me, I thank you for the healing already given and for the blessings already in my life. I accept your healing now, and so it is, and so be it. - 103 -
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