The primary goal of this blog is to understand what prophecy is (if such a thing ever occurred).
I have my own understanding of the world and won't really be taking time to prove out all of the positions I have from scratch. But I will presume that there is a fundamental intelligence governing reality (which, for the sake of brevity, I will often refer to as G) and that there is historic evidence that at some point in human history some humans were able to "communicate" with this fundamental intelligence.
I was born Jewish (so we can be clear about my biases). I have tried to be honest in investigating these areas and have come to the conclusion that Judaism records at least one interaction between man and G. However, I have no conception of what this "communication" was like. Presumably it was not a physical interaction but rather some kind of direct mental communication such as telepathy.
I have consulted some of the works of Jewish philosophy which deal with this area but I am somewhat skeptical about them as many were written several centuries after the last book of prophecy was written. I have also studied the world and found little evidence of prophecies outside of Judaism.
So I will be updating with random half-thoughts and theories about what prophecy is and how we should understand the term/practice today. I will try to cite sources but I will be weaving together different ideas from different places so I may miss some attributions. I can't guarantee that my views are either reasonable or rooted in Torah Judaism. I am an orthodox Jew and try to steer clear of kfira (heresy) but in areas such as these maintaining certain positions often bristles against dangerous ideas which I hold to be detrimental to human development. That being said, I do not endorse any kfira or heresy and may adapt my views accordingly.
I would be happy to consider any alternative views/explanations which are shared over the course of this project.
P.S. The meaning of "Riddles & Dreams" is that the Torah records G specifically explaining to Aharon and Miriam that the prophecy of Moshe Rabbeinu was distinct from any other prophecy and that G only ever revealed Himself to other prophets in "riddles and dreams."
Have you ever wondered why prophecy disappeared at the same time the craving for idolatry disappeared? Ever wondered why Chazal say that in our times real prophecy is found only among children and the insane?
ReplyDeleteGet a copy of the book The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind, by the late Princeton prof Julian Jaynes. (Amazon has copies as cheap as $5.39.) And read it.
The author's larger perspective is, to be sure, כפירה. He was an atheist and didn't believe in actual, supernatural prophecy. But you'll be able to adapt his observations and reasoning to an Orthodox framework. (Some even see similarity between Jaynes' approach and concepts found in the writings of R. Tzadok Hacohen of Lublin.)
I promise you'll be glad you took the time to read the book. Trust me, I'm a stranger from the internet.
I've heard of the bi-cameral mind theory. Some of it resonates as true but I believe that having the atheistic perspective hampers a proper understanding of, well, understanding.
ReplyDeleteGod DOES communicate with man. The universe is an obviously beautiful design (at least until we can show a trillion failed universes and the rest of the multiverse theory).
At every level of studying its measure, we unlock unimaginable miracles. By studying terrifying lightning we can discover the foundation of all electrical advancement. By studying falling objects we can reverse-extrapolate the state of the universe shortly after its beginning. And by studying ourselves we can grow and change.
The mind is indeed the human aspect which registers these concepts - but it is God's world that we study - the messages come from Him.