Arnold Eisen, Galut. Modern Jewish Reflection on Homelessness and Homecoming by Harvey E. Goldberg

Summary

Galut, which probes the topics of homelessness and homecoming in Jewish tradition, may also be read as an essay clearing the ground so as to enable fruitful discourse on contemporary and future meanings of Jewish peoplehood. The themes of homelessness or exile, which in Judaism are linked to conceptions of diaspora, return, redemption and messianism, are examined in terms of their roots in Judaic sources, the changes they have undergone in modern philosophies, and the place they hold in the writings of a wide range of present-day Jewish thinkers.

The examination of sources highlights the biblical books of Genesis and Deuteronomy, and the mishnaic tractate of Avoda Tsara (laws relating to idol worship), along with talmudic discussion based upon it. In Genesis, the experience of exile appears at the dawn of human history, with the banishment from Eden, and is a recurring feature in the lives of the Patriarchs. Abraham and his descendants, in their search for a spiritual and material home, are forced to fend off foreigners, implying the ever-present possibility of violent encounter, often expressed in the taking of women by force or the threat of force. The lessons of this depiction are manifold, both for humanity as a whole and for the Abrahamic family. It demonstrates that those who believe themselves safely at home may, in fact, through their actions, be alienated from other humans and from God, and establishes the expectation of Israel's eventual homecoming, permitting it to follow divine dictates and secure the concomitant blessing.

Deuteronomy, situated at the entrance to the Promised Land, outlines the law which is to guide the conduct of society and serve as a link between the people and the Almighty. The book, as a whole, however, contains a haunting irony. Even as it describes the blessing of life upon ‘the land’, and loudly proclaims the curses linked to disobedience, it is aware that the experiment of a people fully following the commandments will probably fail, and that the waited-for homecoming will be followed by exile. This ‘irony’ however, proves to be productive, rather than leading to despair, because it sets the stage for Israel's interpretation of exile, and its self-understanding for centuries to come.