[Other] Reading Days
by Jeni
Ah, the first day of Reading Days. Other than spending the entire morning in pj's and the absence of chapel, it was a day like any other. Maybe they should re-dub the first two days of the third week of October PJ days. I'd second that; will someone make a motion?
I have, in the spirit of reading days, practically spent my whole day reading (though not really for class). For whatever reason, I woke up to greet Reading Days at 5 this morning. What was first on my list? You'll never guess: Leviticus (the whole book, not just the nice parts). I know, you're jealous. "Why?" you may ask--I'm preparing a sermon and I thought it prudent to re-aquaint myself with the entire text.
There were some great surprises, like this gem from 26:3-6b
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My other non-assigned Reading Days companion is the book of collected Abraham Heschel nuggets in the book I Asked for Wonder.
The title comes from a preface to a book of Yiddish poems: "Khob gebetn vunder anshtot glik, un du host zey mir gegebn." Meaning, "I did not ask for success; I asked for wonder. And You gave it to me."
The introduction by Rabbi Samuel Dresner is worthy of the holy words that follow:
"But [Heschel showed] also astounding knowledge, keen understanding, and profound feeling: an awareness that man dwells on the tangent of the infinite, within the holy dimension; that the life of man is part of the life of God." (p. x)
Happy Reading Days, one and all!
I have, in the spirit of reading days, practically spent my whole day reading (though not really for class). For whatever reason, I woke up to greet Reading Days at 5 this morning. What was first on my list? You'll never guess: Leviticus (the whole book, not just the nice parts). I know, you're jealous. "Why?" you may ask--I'm preparing a sermon and I thought it prudent to re-aquaint myself with the entire text.
There were some great surprises, like this gem from 26:3-6b
456
If you follow my statutes and keep my commandments and observe them faithfully, I will give you your rains in their season, and the land shall yield its produce, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. Your threshing shall overtake the vintage, and the vintage shall overtake the sowing; you shall eat your bread to the full, and live securely in your land. And I will grant peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and no one shall make you afraid.I especially like the piece about the threshing overtaking the vintage and the vintage overtaking the sowing. We do reap more than we can sow.
My other non-assigned Reading Days companion is the book of collected Abraham Heschel nuggets in the book I Asked for Wonder.
The title comes from a preface to a book of Yiddish poems: "Khob gebetn vunder anshtot glik, un du host zey mir gegebn." Meaning, "I did not ask for success; I asked for wonder. And You gave it to me."
The introduction by Rabbi Samuel Dresner is worthy of the holy words that follow:
"But [Heschel showed] also astounding knowledge, keen understanding, and profound feeling: an awareness that man dwells on the tangent of the infinite, within the holy dimension; that the life of man is part of the life of God." (p. x)
Happy Reading Days, one and all!
posted by Jeni at 5:48 PM
1 Comments:
I got this Heschel book out of the library at Tantur, in Jerusalem. I loved it so much that I broke the spine on the thing and very nearly smuggled it home in my bag. I suggest that the first of the two PJ days be devoted to the OT and its best ambassadors - Heschel, and maybe Chaim Potok. Day two can include Jesus and stuff.
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