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Dr Maurice M. Mizrahi B"H D'var Torah on Ki Tetze
The curious case of the apostate rabbi
In this week's Torah portion, Ki Tetze, we learn about Shiluach haKen, the law of the
mother bird: If a bird's nest happens to be before you...and
the mother is sitting upon the young..., you shall not take the mother with the young.
But you shall let the mother go, and take the young for yourself, that it may be well
with you, and that you may prolong your days. [Deut. 22:6-7]
This commandment is prominent in the story of Elisha ben Avuyah, the apostate rabbi of
the early second century. The Talmud and the Midrash tell us that he abandoned Judaism
when he saw a man break that commandment without coming to harm, and saw another man observe
that commandment and get killed, in spite of the biblical promise of a long life. [Ecclesiastes
Rabbah 7:16]
Actually, this is not the only reason advanced for his defection. Let us review his story,
and the speculation on his motives, in some detail. Also, let us try to find out what
he left Judaism for, if anything, and what he did after his apostasy, as that is also
unclear. A well-written novelized account of his life is Milton Steinberg's As a driven
leaf, written in 1939.
Elisha ben Avuyah came from a rich family. He was one of the great sages of his day,
known for deep insights into Torah. Because of his apostasy, he is usually not referred
to by name in the Talmud. They call him "Acher", which means "the other one". Sometimes his
teachings are also credited to his student, Rabbi Meir, another great sage, who never
gave up on him. Evidently, his teachings were too insightful to be ignored, in spite of
his later apostasy.
What triggered his apostasy? We mentioned his experiences of seeing promises made in
the Torah apparently go unfulfilled. Rabbi Akiva explained to him that sometimes reward
and punishment are only in the World to Come, not on this earth, but he did not accept that.
There is also his brush with mysticism. The Talmud recounts this story:
Four men entered the "orchard": Ben Azzai, Ben Zoma, Acher, and Rabbi Akiva. Ben Azzai
gazed and died. Ben Zoma became demented. Acher mutilated the plants [that is, left
Judaism]. Rabbi Akiva departed unhurt. [Hagigah 14b]
So, whatever the four rabbis saw in their mystic vision caused one of them to die, another
to become insane, and a third to leave Judaism. Only the oldest, Rabbi Akiva, was sufficiently
mature and secure in his faith to accept it. We don't know exactly what they saw. Because
of this incident, the rabbis of the Talmud hesitated to teach esoteric matters.
Also, Acher saw that Jews were persecuted and killed because of their observance, and
he could not reconcile himself to that. The Midrash and Talmud recount:
-During the Roman persecutions under Hadrian, [Acher] saw the tongue of Rabbi Yehudah the
Baker in the mouth of a dog. That great scholar had been martyred. He said, "Is this the Torah
and is this its reward?... If this is so, there is no reward for the righteous and no
resurrection of the dead." [Ecclesiastes Rabbah 7:16, Y Hagigah 2:1 (77a-c)].
-[Acher] saw the tongue of Rabbi Huzpith the Interpreter lying on a dung-heap [after he
was martyred], then dragged along by a pig, and exclaimed, "Shall the mouth that pronounced
pearls of wisdom lick the dust!" [Chullin 142a, Kiddushin 39b]
The Midrash even suggests that both his parents are to blame:
-Acher said, My father Avuyah said at my circumcision, "Since the Torah is so powerful, should this
child survive me. I will dedicate him to the Torah." Because his intention was not for
the sake of Heaven, my study of the Torah did not endure with me. [Ecclesiastes Rabbah
7:16)
-[Some say that] when his mother was pregnant with him, she passed by idolatrous temples
and smelled [the food offerings to the idols and desired to eat it]. They gave her some
of that [food] and she ate it, and it burned in her stomach like the venom of a serpent
[and it affected her unborn son]. [Ecclesiastes Rabbah 7:16]
Another factor may have been his exposure to ideas outside Torah:
-The Talmud says that Greek song did not leave Acher's mouth. It is told that when he used
to get up [to leave] the schoolhouse [before his apostasy], many heretical books used to
fall from his lap. [Hagigah 15b] -Rashi interprets that to mean that he violated
the rule against music during services after the destruction of the Temple [Git. 7a on
Isa. 24:9]. -The Maharsha counters that this does not
explain the word "Greek". The Gemara could have simply stated that "song" (not "Greek"
song) did not leave his mouth. He suggests, therefore, that the Greek songs included heresy.
-Others say that Greek literature led him to accept ideas that are contrary to Jewish
teaching.
And what did Acher actually do when he left Judaism? It is nor clear. There were many
sects in Israel at that time. He may have joined one of them.
-Some speculate that he became a dualist. The phrase "He mutilated the plants", which
the Talmud applied to Acher, was a codeword for dualism or Gnosticism, which taught that
there are two gods. In the Talmud, upon seeing the archangel Metatron sitting in heaven before
God when he was supposed to be standing, Acher says, "Perhaps, God forbid! there are two
divinities!" But he did not know that Metatron was allowed to sit because he was a scribe,
writing down the deeds of Israel. [Hagigah 15a]
-Some speculate that he simply became non-religious: Perhaps an atheist, or a "follower of Philo",
or a lover of Greek philosophy, or a philanderer, or a "secular humanist", or "an epicurean",
enjoying the pleasures of this life to the utmost. He was known to visit prostitutes.
In fact, it was one of them that gave him the name "Acher". But all that does not seem
to be enough to justify the high level of disapproval he generated.
-Some speculate that he became a Sadducee. This sect did not believe in the Oral Law
and the resurrection of the dead. (And that's why they were sad, you see!) The Talmud [Y.
Hag. 2:1] asserts that in that capacity Acher killed Torah scholars, enticed the young away
from studying rabbinic Judaism and into more practical pursuits, and informed to the Romans
against the Jews who remained observant when the Romans banned the teaching of Torah.
-Some also speculate that he became a Christian, but there is nothing in the ancient sources
to corroborate that.
The Midrash adds that he publicly violated laws for spite, such as when he rode a horse
near the Temple on a Yom Kippur that was also Shabbat, beyond the travel limits. His former
student Rabbi Meir walked behind him to learn Torah from him and urge him to repent [Hagigah
15a]. But Acher was convinced that no atonement was possible for him. At that point, he heard
a heavenly voice crying out, "Return, O backsliding children! [Jer. 3:22]
Return to Me, and I will return to you! [Mal. 3:7], with the exception of Elisha ben Avuyah
who knows My might and yet rebelled against Me!" [Ecclesiastes Rabbah 7:16]
The teaching here is that if you studied the Torah in depth and know what you must do,
forgiveness for lapses is that much more difficult to obtain. [Deuteronomy Rabbah 7:4]
The Midrash tells us that when Acher was on his deathbed, Rabbi Meir said to him, "Return
in penitence.'" Acher replied, "Will they accept me after
all this?" At that, Acher burst into tears and died.
And Rabbi Meir rejoiced and said, "It appears that my master passed away in the midst of
repentance... Elisha will be saved... by the merits of his Torah." [Ruth Rabbah 6:2]
The Talmud tells us that Acher's impoverished daughter came before Rabbi [Yehuda HaNasi]
and said: O master, support me! He asked her: Whose daughter are you?
She replied: I am Acher's daughter. He said: Are any of his children left in the
world? Behold, it is written [in the Book of Job]: "He shall have neither son nor grandson
among his people, nor any remaining in his dwellings" [Job 18:19].
She answered: Remember his Torah and not his deeds.
At that point, a fire came down and enveloped Rabbi's bench.
[At that point] Rabbi wept and said: If it is so on account of those who dishonor [the
Torah], how much more so on account of those who honor her! [Hagigah 15b]
So Rabbi gave her charity, and her son, Acher's grandson, became a great rabbi in the Talmud,
Rabbi Ya'akov ben Korshai [Chullin 142a]. He said, in Pirkei Avot:
This world is like an antechamber before the World to Come. Prepare yourself in the antechamber
so that you may enter the banquet hall... One hour spent in repentance and good deeds
in this world is more beautiful than the entire life in the World to Come, and one hour of
the even-tempered spirit in the World to Come is more beautiful than the entire life of
this world. [Pirkei Avot 4:16]
Commenting on this, Rabbi Yosef, a prominent Babylonian rabbi, remarked in the Talmud:
If Acher had interpreted the biblical promises as did his daughter's son, he would not have
become a sinner. [Chullin 142a , Eccl. R. 7:8].
So the story has a happy ending: Acher's descendants did not follow their grandfather's footsteps
and became great rabbis in Israel. This is not the only time when less-than-virtuous
people count great rabbis among their descendants. For example, the sons of Korach wrote eleven
of the 150 psalms. The Talmud [Sanhedrin 96b] also tells us that:
-Nebuzaradan, the Babylonian commander who destroyed Jerusalem and the First Temple and
deported the Jews of Judah, [2Kings 25:8] became a righteous convert to Judaism.
-Sisera, the Canaanite general who oppressed the Israelites for twenty years [Judges 4:2],
had descendants who studied Torah and taught children [Gittin 57b] in Jerusalem. The great
Rabbi Akiva was his descendant.
-Sennacherib (Sancheriv), the Assyrian king who waged war against the Kingdom of Judah
[2Kings 18:13], had descendants who taught Torah to the multitudes. Some of them were
Shema'iah and Avtalion, the lead rabbis who preceded Hillel and Shammai.
-Haman, the wicked Persian minister who tried to destroy the Jews in the story of Purim
[Esther 3:1], had descendants who studied Torah in Bnai Brak.
There is no telling where and when the flame of Judaism will erupt. It erupts in the most
unexpected places. As the story of Acher testifies, it is not easy to pull your roots out of Judaism,
try as you may. Your descendants may have different ideas.
Shabbat shalom.