Yoma 69 a, b

The rabbis cover a lot of ground today.  Some highlights:

• a discussion of whether the priestly vestments, in particular the belt, can be used outside of religious ceremony to benefit the priest.  Some questions include whether the belt is soft or hard, whether it might touch one's skin, whether and how it might be different from the belts of the other priests, whether a priest can leave the Temple in his priestly vestments, and of course, whether it is composed of diverse kinds (ie. wool and cotton or wool and linen).  

• Megilat Ta'anit, the book of dates, notes that Tevet 25 (the day of Mount Gezirim) is a day of celebration and thus no fasting or eulogizing can be done on that day (in times of the second Temple)

• On that date, King Alexander of Macedonia intended to destroy the Jewish people under the advisement of the Sameritans/Kutim (a non-rabbinic group of Jews who follow Torah instructions carefully).  

• King Alexander was then convinced by Shimon HaTzaddik - wearing his priestly clothing - to instead allow the Jews to stab the Kutim in their ankles, drag them through the thorns tied to the tails of their horses, and plough their idol-site with leeks (a sign of ravaging).  All of this to teach us that the priestly clothing can be worn in non-sacred contexts

• flexibility around whether a student can be honoured by his teacher

• was the High Priest sitting during part of the service?

• The rabbis discuss a fascinating tangential idea following a commentary on the High Priest's reading from a Torah scroll

• Why did Nechamia state that G-d is "Great"? or in many places that G-d is "mighty" or "awesome"?  In fact, some rabbis refused to use these adjectives to describe G-d.  Is not this the same G-d who watched and allowed the Temple to be destroyed?  Did he not allow groups of Gentiles to murder righteous Jews?

• Complicated answers will follow; the simple answer is that G-d demonstrates G-d's greatness, might and awesomeness when He restrains Himself from destroying those Gentiles who kill His chosen people.  Proof that G-d loves us is that we still exist even after these efforts to wipe us out (written 2000 years ago)

• We are told Zachariah's bizarre tale of a fiery lion cub representing the evil inclination. I know that I am not learned enough to understand the many-layered meanings of this tale

• We end with a discussion about reading the Torah.  Should it be translated?  If so, in what way?  We are allowed to skip passages in the Prophets because of the ongoing themes of "rebuke and consolation", and so we can skip within the 12 books which are functionally one book

• we are not allowed to skip passages in the Torah because of the detail regarding mitzvot that might be missed.  But we are allowed to skip passages in the Torah as long as we stay within one topic and we always move forward, in the intended 'order'

What stands out for me in today's daf is the fascination with cruelty and the questions about G-d's current 'absence'  that could have been written today.  Why do we need the gruesome details of the Kutim's treatement?  Was it necessary to torture these people and then keep the memory of torture alive?  What purposes are served by this recounting?  

At the same time, we continue to wonder how G-d could just watch his people without intervening.  Whether we are being slaughtered in the Holocaust or whether we are behaving badly ourselves, how can G-d be called great or mighty or awesome when G-d does not intervene?  Our rabbis discuss these issues noting that some leaders refused to glorify G-d with these words.   We will continue to ask these questions.  We will continue to search for G-d's intervention and grasp at understandings when G-d does not end the violence.