#  Ki Tetze (Deuteronomy 21:10-25:19; Isaiah 54:1-9) What If..? 

 





September 05, 2014

 

 

The *“ki”* – ‘when’ or ‘if’ – of *“Ki Tetze”* – “When you go out to war against your enemies” – suggests not just situation but consequence. In view of the chain of unfortunate circumstances addressed by the troubling laws we read here – captive brides, despised wives, rebellious sons – our Sages suggest (as our Torah itself did regarding war last week) avoiding the start of a bad path to begin with. On the other hand, life is messy and contingent; we find ourselves in all kinds of pickles.The prophetic reading this week harks all the way back to the waters of Noah’s flood and the subsequent promise never again to destroy the world to indicate how steadfast is God’s covenant with Israel. The flood, though, is a story of divine regret, God ruing the day of humankind’s creation. Should one, perhaps, avoid risk altogether? Rabbinic lore teaches there never was a ‘rebellious son’ to fit the horrible punishment we read this week. Perhaps redemption begins with refusing to deem a situation intractable. If we can see our way to different definitions of our circumstances, we may be able to avoid imposing upon them the most tragic of penalties – and we may be daring.



 

 

 



 

 

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