Likrat Tisha b'Av

I would like to revive this blog, not to say that it ever started, and the thinking behind it. I did do a reasonable job learning last week - got back on the OU Nach Yomi wagon to keep slogging through Kohelet. What a difficult sefer! Language is hard, concepts are hard, unclear what he's trying to get at, other than the transitory nature of this world. I asked my DH about it, he said that he heard some excellent shiurim from his Rosh Yeshiva, Rabbi Chait's brother, the other Rabbi Chait. He is in a work crisis, so at the moment I can't ask him to download them. Then I asked some local Torah scholars, Avigayil Rock (Dr.) and Jon Duker (Rabbi). Avigayil said that she taught it once, and then gave up, concluding that she didn't understand it. This was a little reassuring. Jon Duker attempted to give me a couple of pshatim he found, but because my little SaraB was in the middle of an epic temper tantrum, I found it difficult to concentrate. Also, he started by explaining the sefer's popularity amongst secular Israelis, which is a worthwhile topic, but not really my question. Oh right, so he said that the pattern in the sefer is that Kohelet searches, gets frustrated, and then accepts (maybe I have the order wrong). Jon also shocked me somewhat by giving over the Rashbam's opinion that the opening and closing passukim were added later.

Now, I don't have Rashbam on Kohelet, and never heard of it. Maybe he meant the Ibn Ezra. Then he changed topic to other aspects of the intersection of apikorsis and Torah, and Sara was still screaming, so I missed the whole conversation about David Tzvi Hoffman.

It seems to me that the operative phrase is "tachat hashemesh," which is repeated umpteen times, which seems to be the general title for the things of this world, as opposed to the next. Jon said that the kofrim (please don't take the personally, anyone, I'm just using it descriptively for this position at the moment) see the book as davka denying the next world, but I got the opposite when I read it, that it's one of the few places in Tanakh where the next world is alluded to more directly. See 12:5. I'm guessing that that whole apocalyptic section is referring to death. But this is just a guess.

Then there's the parasha. I started reading the Gush email about it, but didn't finish. Somehow I feel that those Gush emails always ask the right questions, but the answers rarely sit right with me. R. Kahn observes the differences in the original story of the spies with Moshe Rabbenu's retelling, but he concludes that the shifts are to stress the message that military victory is ultimately in G-d's hands. I, however, think that Moshe Rabbenu's omission of Yehoshua's and Kalev's defense of E.Y. is rather to stress to the people, You messed that one up - DON'T DO IT AGAIN.

Dvarya Katz and I learned the first perek of Hilchos Talmud Torah, which was mostly pretty straightforward, although there were a few words we weren't positive about. The difficult halacha and statements of chazal about teaching girls Torah came up - neither of us were too bent out of shape by them. Although I was surprised to see that lehatchila, the Rambam says you shouldn't teach your daughter Torah she'biktav - what is up with that. Dvarya and I, I think, feel the same way, that although we don't have a chiuv of Talmud Torah, both of us see it as central to our individual avodas H', and wish we did more of it. This is an excellent chavrusa, we are making steady progress.

Adina is in the US visiting my parents, so we didn't have our Ramban learning this Shabbas. I in general am feeling like I'd like to take a deeper look at Devarim. I also am wondering, What else is out there? in terms of perushim that would be good for me. I remember once in Cochav haShachar preparing some shiur, don't remember what, and discovered a completely different perspective on the issue than the standard Torah that floats around. Feeling like I'd want some more of that.

In the Ahavas HaShem department, I have learned the Latin names of the sections of the body, and revived my long-lost basic chemistry, based on an anatomy book that Shoshana Kleiman from Palo Alto handed down to me. There was an introduction to sugars that goes straight to DH's diabetes. I am happy that I'm doing this.