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troubling, especially to children, than
Rather than censor such difficult
"The Binding of Isaac," which we read
material, as has been done for centu-
every Rosh Hashanah in synagogue.
ries in children's Bibles, I hope that
This brief story, recounted in 19 verses parents, teachers and rabbis will talk
totaling 270 Hebrew words, has gener-
with young readers about these stories
ated endless debate and commentary.
and encourage them to continue wres-
My own version is not that different
ding with these difficult texts through-
from the JPS translation, with a few
out their lives — with the help of clas-
key exceptions.
sical rabbinic commentaries, modern
The language has been slightly sim-
scholarship, members of their com-
plified. More importantly, I've replaced munities and their own conscience.
the term "burnt offering:' repeated
six times, with the less visceral
"sacrifice." (However, I don't use this
word in the title because Jews have
always known this story as "akedat
Yitzhak," the binding of Isaac, not
the sacrifice.)
Similarly, Avi Katz replaced his
original sketch for this story, depict-
ing Abraham with knife upraised
above his bound son with a less
An Avi Katz illustration from the JPS
disturbing image: Abraham and
Illustrated Children's Bible.
Isaac ascending the mountain, the
father with his head bowed and
knife still sheathed and the son follow-
To this day, the Bible remains the
ing behind.
cornerstone of Jewish culture, the
Although the story and several oth-
home to which Jews return in every
ers will no doubt challenge a young
generation to connect to their past,
person's sensibilities and sense of
their collective unconscious and their
justice, I believe it's good for children
shared traditions. In the English lan-
to begin struggling with these moral
guage, too, the Bible remains an essen-
tensions, so vividly dramatized in our
tial source for literature and the per-
holiest book.
forming arts, politics and protest. To
The Torah emerged from a culture
understand Shakespeare, Robert Frost,
radically different from our own, so in
popular music and today's newspaper,
fairness we cannot impose upon it our you have to know the Bible.
contemporary values. But to be fair
It is, quite simply, the greatest story
to ourselves, we cannot simply sweep
ever told.
aside the contradictions between the
Bible's world and our own.

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November 26 • 2009

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