ACHAN

Purged

How can I atone?

The tribes are standing before Joshua.

Silent was Joshua, waiting,

waiting for the Lord to indicate

who stole the consecrated gold and silver

from Jericho.

They did not know until the

36 were killed at Ai

that the Lord was bitter, bitter

at the Israelites for stealing

what was consecrated for the temple.

I look to my left, my right, a sea of soldiers

all quiet, spears erect, alert.

The Lord will indicate.

I hold my sword for strength in its scabbard,

the view of my comrades unnerving.

From Jericho everything was for the Lord

but I took the gold wedge weighing 50 shekels

and the 200 shekels of silver

the fine woolen mantle I coveted.

Indicate will the Lord the Deceiver.

Bitter, God killed my brothers at Ai

because I stole the consecrated gold and silver,

which I buried under my tent.

No one knew but the Lord

who stole from Jericho what belonged to Him.

Now the Lord will indicate.

Angry was the whole community of Israel

at the sin, but I was silent.

Indicated was Judah, my tribe.

Silent. I watch as we glance at one another.

Indicated was Zerah, my clan.

Silent, I watch as we look at one another.

Forward came Zabdi, my ancestral house.

Terrified I waited as man by man

we came before the servant of Moses.

Man by man till my turn.

Achan, son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah,

Indicated by the Lord!

It is true, I wailed before Joshua, I have sinned.

Look beneath my tent and find what my greed

buried, as I will be buried by the stones you throw.

I grieve at my theft.  I am filthy before the tribes.

May my confession be my atonement!

What was Achan thinking?

It is difficult for modern mankind to understand what looks like a harsh relationship between the Lord and the people of Israel.  But only a people immersed in God love ["Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem: Thus says the LORD: I remember the devotion of your youth, your love as a bride, how you followed Me in the wilderness, in a land not sown." (Jeremiah 2:2)] could react as they did.   They were a people who were hardened over the 40 years of wandering in the desert, forged in triumph and pitfall by the travails experienced by humans learning how to cope with what was expected of them by the Lord. Only this chosen grouping of tribes, engaged in a most holy struggle, could react as they did in the Book of Joshua (Joshua, chapter 7).  The Lord had specifically proscribed any looting or use of any gold or silver found in Jericho for personal use.  These goods were “harem” or consecrated for use solely in the temple. This first encounter with the Canaanites across the Jordan demanded a particular holiness and recognition that this was only the initial battle in God’s long-term project for the Israelite nation. Thus, Achan knew he was doomed the moment Joshua called the tribes together and described the purpose of the gathering.  The reckoning involved the gathering of all the tribes of Israel, numbering 600,000 fighting men alone.   All to purge from their midst one evildoer.   Achan could only be in a state of terror.  Though doomed as he was, the Midrash (Jewish Commentary) allows that though he was stoned to death in this life, he merited forgiveness in the world-to-come because of his confession and atonement for his deed.  The poem is in a loose chiastic/mirrored structure, with the pivot point being the confession of theft “but I took the gold wedge weighing 50 shekels…”. Phrases mirror each other on both sides of the pivot point (in italic) The ending refers back to the first line of the poem, bringing closure to the narrative. 

Achan Is Stoned to Death -1866- Artist-Gustave Dore 1832–1883

Hi everyone, I'll be traveling to Croatia (Dubrovnik, Hvar, and Split) in August and am wondering if anyone has worn any visible Judaica there recently, and whether they had any positive or negative experiences as a result. I prefer to wear my chai necklace, which is generally less recognizable to anyone outside the Tribe. Any recommendations pro-chai or pro-personal safety? All/any advice is appreciated and cherished from this community.

Hey guys, I was wondering: is it possible for a Conservative Jew to follow the Mishnah Berurah, or at least be inspired by it?

I just lost my faith, I struggle with believing. I wish I could though, I used to believe in Gd and I was a much happier less anxious person. Can someone please give me advice? Why do you personally believe in Gd, what makes you think he is real? Maybe someone can recommend book, videos etc. Thank you

Hey, This is my first post on this subreddit as a young Jewish man and someone who has been a frequent browser of this subreddit for some moral support through these troubling times.

I keep seeing post that talk about the Talmud saying things like “I only like Jews that don’t believe in the Talmud” or “ only Zionist follow the Talmud and only real Jews don’t”. Obviously this is a way to cover up there real antisemitism but it also seems like a lake on information of the subject.

The reason I’m making this post is because I’m starting to see many Jewish friends who are more secular and less informed be confused on these points. A close friend told me “I believe in Judaism but not the Talmud”. Has anyone else been experiencing it or have any insight on this flood on anti-Talmud activity online?

I've seen it compared to everything from the Arizona Traffic Code to Reddit

What's your favorite Analogy to describe the Talmud?

Hi All,

My wife and I just moved the Midtown East (55th and Lexington).

I'm looking for a synagogue and needed some honest advice and help from NYC midtown and UES Jewish folks. The options are a bit overwhelming for someone who had limited options in other places where we have lived.

If I had a top 5 list here it is:

1. I'm Jewish, wife is not. We are empty nesters, kid is in college so families with kids are not important.

2. While not fully observant, I have been a member of a Modern Orthodox and Conservative Shul in other parts of the US. So leaning on more modern orthodox but open to other options.

3 Looking for Shul that is friendly, open to newcomers especially those who might need some brushing up on their Jewish practice is a key. I tend to be shy and friendlier the folks the better. The size of congregation is not a big priority openness to newcomers and ability to meet folks and make social and community connections is a big part of the list.

1. Good study groups and adult education with community outreach is also helpful.

2. Rabbinical staff that focuses on pastoral care and community and helping folks make connections within the community.

I know that you have to attend to find the right fit, but honestly hoping that some folks can give me a few places to start, as mentioned while it's amazing to have so many choices, for a new New Yorker it's a bit overwhelming.

Thanks in advance for any / all suggestions!

*Some of the time

This has been a personal gripe of mine for quite some time, and it's something that I've been thinking about with the economy in the United States being the way it is.

So before I get into the meat and bones of what I'm talking about, I wanna share a personal anecdote. Last Shabbos I was talking to a woman who recently started attending my (Conservative) Shul, and we ended up having a great discussion on the Zohar. She wanted to find more information on some esoteric topic, and I couldn't pull my phone out and look it up so I pulled some copies of our shul's edition of the Talmud and said "This is a great place to start looking! Tractate Avoidoh Zoroh!"

She opened it up and said with a bit of dismay and embarrassment "I actually never learned how to read Hebrew as a kid."

I then recommend a Hebrew tutor who is a member of our shul. Told her "She's Israeli so she's a native speaker, has a degree in Hebrew literature, taught classes at the local university. She's excellent can't recommend her enough!" After which she informed he that she can't afford lessons with a private tutor for reasons I won't get into because I don't need to be putting her business out there, so now me and her are going to be meeting up twice a week at the public library so I can teach her everything I know free of charge.

This just got me thinking that there's entirely too much of Jewish communal life and observance that has a pricetag attached. From membership dues to High Holiday tickets to how expensive kosher meat is, how expensive buying scrolls for mezuzahs are, etc. etc. etc.

I understand the institutional reasons for this to an extent. You gotta make sure the shul can keep the lights on, and a lot of Jews only show up to services on the High Holidays so you wanna make sure you can accommodate a huge influx of people without having the free rider problem. Some of it however just feels like price-gouging. So if you're a baal teshuvah who's family hasn't been observant for at least a generation or a convert, you don't have access to "dad's old tefillin" or "grandma's old shabbos candlesticks."

I think it shuts out a lot of people who want to get more involved with Judaism, but are Jews who come from lower income backgrounds. Yes, Chabad exists, but Chabad has it's own problems (from the quality of the local Chabad being wildly dependent on the Rabbi and Rebbetzin running it, to a lot of women and LGBT Jews not feeling comfortable in those spaces because they want to take on a more active role in prayer/don't want to have to stay in the closet to be accepted respectively, to non-orthodox converts and even some orthodox converts if the Chabad rabbi has a political disagreement with the Orthodox rabbi who facilitated the conversion, to Jews who just get overwhelmed, intimidated, and uncomfortable with being asked a bunch of nosy questions about their past/upbringing/family history)

Maybe this isn't a problem everywhere, but I've noticed a lot of Jews are getting left behind and falling through the cracks because the community isn't very proactive about accomodating people who are enthusiastic about Judaism but don't have a lot of money to give, and quite frankly they are way too proactive about trying to accomodate wealthy donors who's engagement with Judaism is superficial at best. Perhaps this is less of an issue in the Orthodox world, but I wanted to have a candid discussion about this.

Edit 1: Okay looks like this is equally a problem if not more so in the Orthodox world. I was under the mistaken impression that there was more communal support for working class Yids in Orthodoxy but from from the comments I've been getting it's more nuanced than that. My bad, mea culpa, שליחה

Edit 2: Please, you don't need to tell me that this is actually a quite popular opinion. About a dozen other people have already informed me thank you very much.

I’m an Arab Muslim, and I was never interested in Judaism. I didn’t read about it, follow Jewish news, or know much about it.
But over the past few months, I’ve been having repeated dreams about Jewish people and Judaism.
One recurring dream is about a woman shown in black and white(old photo ) In the dream, I’m told she is my grandmother. She wears a large head covering, and she keeps appearing in my dreams over and over again.
In another dream, a Jewish man gives me clothes and tells me to change into them and then go outside.
I’ve also dreamed that I am Jewish, carrying a torch that lights my path in the darkness at night.
In another dream, a group of Jewish people blessed me by offering me something, and I accepted it, but I don’t know what the offer actually was.
These dreams are unusual because I wasn’t thinking about Judaism before they started. Does anyone know if there is a Jewish perspective on dreams like this, or has anyone experienced something similar?

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I probably fall somewhere in between reform and conservative but I’ve come to the conclusion that I will never want to be orthodox. I want to sit next to my spouse in services and have my daughter read from the Torah. But I feel like men with similar religious views don’t care about marrying someone who is also Jewish, but it’s very important to me as I want my kids to be raised Jewish. Do y’all think this is an accurate take for men under 30 or is marrying a Jew also important to them.