On the Shabbat before the 9th of Av, we always begin the book of Devarim. The book as a whole is structured around Moses’ parting words to the people who are going to enter the promised land. A lot of the material feels like a review of events and laws already made known in previous Torah readings, hence the name for the book in rabbinic literature: mishneh torah, "repetition of Torah,” which is equivalent to the English name (from the Greek), Deuteronomy.
In 1:9-15, Moses recounts that back at Sinai he set up a system of judges, from lower magistrates leading up to Moses himself because adjudicating all the people’s cases would be too much for one man by himself (Deut. 1:12).
Deuteronomy’s retelling of an episode known from Exodus 18 is different. In Exodus, the reason for creating a judicial system is procedural. In Deuteronomy the procedural reasoning is also explained as judicial morality: "I charged your magistrates at that time as follows, Hear out your fellow Israelites, and decide justly between one party and the other—be it a fellow Israelite or a stranger.You shall not be partial in judgment: hear out low and high alike. Fear no one, for judgment is God’s. And any matter that is too difficult for you, you shall bring to me and I will hear it." (Deuteronomy 1:16-17)
The language here suggests that the concern for the vulnerable in the adjudication of cases is driven by the Torah’s admonition to the emerging nation about their shaping of a just society: You were once slaves yourselves in Egypt.
When the Torah speaks of morality and justice, it teaches the lesson in theological terms. Like here in Deuteronomy 1 the admonition to protect the vulnerable is: “Fear no one, for judgment is God’s.” `The Reform Movement’s Chumash explains: “Fear no one when truth is at stake.” This comment, in my opinion, doesn’t sufficiently address this as a religious command.
The command, lo taguru, translated as “ don’t fear” comes from the root gur or yagar, which is often paired or compared with the more common synonymous root pachad. An examination of the verb gur/yagar suggests that it expresses a great fear or dread of someone who is perceived to have more power, which could even be God. So Deuteronony 1:17 could be saying: “the judge ought to fear offending God more than he fears offending any human” (Jeffrey Tigay, JPS Torah Commentary: Deuteronomy).
Rabbi Hanan in the Talmud says that don’t be afraid means: “don’t hold back [literally, gather your words] because God is the ultimate judge (Bavli Sanhedrin 8a). Rashi on the Torah (Deut. 1:17) explains that Rabbi Hanan may have understood taguru as coming from the root agar, which means to gather. Rabbi Hanan paints a picture of how the abuse of power has a silencing effect.
Rebbe Nachman of Bratzlav offers the most theological appreciation of this warning in his application of the command outside its original context. I think his theological insight can be read back onto the situation of courts:
"It is then possible to implement Rosh HaShanah. When a person sits down to talk about another person, it is “Rosh HaShanah,” which is the Day of Judgment—for he sits in judgment of his fellow man. A person must be very careful about this. He has to take a good look at himself and ask if he is fit to pass judgment on his fellow man. “For judgment belongs to God” (Deuteronomy 1:17). The Blessed One alone is fit to judge a person, as our Sages, of blessed memory, taught: Do not judge your fellow man until you have reached his place (Avot 2:4)". (Likkutei Moharan II, 1:14)
Rebbe Nachman says that anytime a person sits and talks to another, they might lapse into judging each other and this becomes a personal “Rosh Hashanah moment” for them. Throughout his teachings, Rebbe Nachman returns to the idea that we must always approach another human being with the utmost of empathy. By citing Deuteronomy 1:17, Rebbe Nachman teaches that one should approach judging others with caution, humility and empathy because we don’t see everything like God does.
If we read this theology back onto judges in courts, we would want judges who sit above in court rooms, to remember their humanity, to self-check that they are approaching the task of sitting in judgment with the utmost care to get it right and to use their capacity for empathy to understand the person behind the facts of the case.
There is a movement of judges that have such a mindfulness practice when they put on their robes each day. From a Jewish perspective, it is more than about the stakes of getting things right. Humanity, compassion and empathy in judicial proceedings are the ways we keep open the possibility for teshuvah as a restorative way to hold people accountable for their actions.
Rabbi Reuven Greenvald is the director of the Year-in-Israel program at Hebrew Union College, a first-year program held in Jerusalem for rabbinical and cantorial students who will be ordained in the United States after five years of study. Reuven became an Israeli citizen five years ago in order to lead this program. Prior to this, Reuven worked in Israel engagement at the URJ (Union for Reform Judaism) and the Jewish Agency for Israel. Before that, he served as the director of two leading Jewish day schools. Reuven received his rabbinic ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS) and was a Jerusalem Fellow at the Mandel Leadership Institute here in Jerusalem. Since moving to Israel, Reuven has been involved with organizations such as Rabbis for Human Rights, Bnei Avraham, and the Faithful Left (HaSmol HaEmuni), and is a member of two congregations: Sod Siach and Kol HaNeshama.
In 1:9-15, Moses recounts that back at Sinai he set up a system of judges, from lower magistrates leading up to Moses himself because adjudicating all the people’s cases would be too much for one man by himself (Deut. 1:12).
Deuteronomy’s retelling of an episode known from Exodus 18 is different. In Exodus, the reason for creating a judicial system is procedural. In Deuteronomy the procedural reasoning is also explained as judicial morality: "I charged your magistrates at that time as follows, Hear out your fellow Israelites, and decide justly between one party and the other—be it a fellow Israelite or a stranger.You shall not be partial in judgment: hear out low and high alike. Fear no one, for judgment is God’s. And any matter that is too difficult for you, you shall bring to me and I will hear it." (Deuteronomy 1:16-17)
The language here suggests that the concern for the vulnerable in the adjudication of cases is driven by the Torah’s admonition to the emerging nation about their shaping of a just society: You were once slaves yourselves in Egypt.
When the Torah speaks of morality and justice, it teaches the lesson in theological terms. Like here in Deuteronomy 1 the admonition to protect the vulnerable is: “Fear no one, for judgment is God’s.” `The Reform Movement’s Chumash explains: “Fear no one when truth is at stake.” This comment, in my opinion, doesn’t sufficiently address this as a religious command.
The command, lo taguru, translated as “ don’t fear” comes from the root gur or yagar, which is often paired or compared with the more common synonymous root pachad. An examination of the verb gur/yagar suggests that it expresses a great fear or dread of someone who is perceived to have more power, which could even be God. So Deuteronony 1:17 could be saying: “the judge ought to fear offending God more than he fears offending any human” (Jeffrey Tigay, JPS Torah Commentary: Deuteronomy).
Rabbi Hanan in the Talmud says that don’t be afraid means: “don’t hold back [literally, gather your words] because God is the ultimate judge (Bavli Sanhedrin 8a). Rashi on the Torah (Deut. 1:17) explains that Rabbi Hanan may have understood taguru as coming from the root agar, which means to gather. Rabbi Hanan paints a picture of how the abuse of power has a silencing effect.
Rebbe Nachman of Bratzlav offers the most theological appreciation of this warning in his application of the command outside its original context. I think his theological insight can be read back onto the situation of courts:
"It is then possible to implement Rosh HaShanah. When a person sits down to talk about another person, it is “Rosh HaShanah,” which is the Day of Judgment—for he sits in judgment of his fellow man. A person must be very careful about this. He has to take a good look at himself and ask if he is fit to pass judgment on his fellow man. “For judgment belongs to God” (Deuteronomy 1:17). The Blessed One alone is fit to judge a person, as our Sages, of blessed memory, taught: Do not judge your fellow man until you have reached his place (Avot 2:4)". (Likkutei Moharan II, 1:14)
Rebbe Nachman says that anytime a person sits and talks to another, they might lapse into judging each other and this becomes a personal “Rosh Hashanah moment” for them. Throughout his teachings, Rebbe Nachman returns to the idea that we must always approach another human being with the utmost of empathy. By citing Deuteronomy 1:17, Rebbe Nachman teaches that one should approach judging others with caution, humility and empathy because we don’t see everything like God does.
If we read this theology back onto judges in courts, we would want judges who sit above in court rooms, to remember their humanity, to self-check that they are approaching the task of sitting in judgment with the utmost care to get it right and to use their capacity for empathy to understand the person behind the facts of the case.
There is a movement of judges that have such a mindfulness practice when they put on their robes each day. From a Jewish perspective, it is more than about the stakes of getting things right. Humanity, compassion and empathy in judicial proceedings are the ways we keep open the possibility for teshuvah as a restorative way to hold people accountable for their actions.
Rabbi Reuven Greenvald is the director of the Year-in-Israel program at Hebrew Union College, a first-year program held in Jerusalem for rabbinical and cantorial students who will be ordained in the United States after five years of study. Reuven became an Israeli citizen five years ago in order to lead this program. Prior to this, Reuven worked in Israel engagement at the URJ (Union for Reform Judaism) and the Jewish Agency for Israel. Before that, he served as the director of two leading Jewish day schools. Reuven received his rabbinic ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS) and was a Jerusalem Fellow at the Mandel Leadership Institute here in Jerusalem. Since moving to Israel, Reuven has been involved with organizations such as Rabbis for Human Rights, Bnei Avraham, and the Faithful Left (HaSmol HaEmuni), and is a member of two congregations: Sod Siach and Kol HaNeshama.