Holiness of Doubt

Rabbi Joshua Hoffman has studied and practiced as a pulpit Rabbi in the Southern California area for the past twenty-five years. He was recently appointed president and CEO of the Academy for Jewish Religion California, a seminary training twenty-first-century Jewish clergy to embrace twenty-first-century Jewish life. He served Congregation Valley Beth Shalom in Encino, California from 2003 to 2021. He publishes widely in blog posts and articles worldwide

• ContentsIntroductionPart 1: Introduction to GenesisGenesisB’reisheetNoachLech LechaVayeraChayei SarahToledotVayetzeiVayishlachVayeshevMiketzVayigashVayechiConclusion Part 2: Introduction to ExodusExodusShemotVaeraBoBeshalachYitroMishpatimTerumahTetzavehKi TissaVayakhel and PekudeiConclusionPart 3: Introduction to LeviticusLeviticusVayikra and TzavSheminiTazria, Metzora and Acharei MotKedoshimEmorBeharBechukotaiConclusion Part 4: Introduction to NumbersNumbersBamidbar and NasoB'ha’alotechaShlach LechaKorachHukkatBalakPinchasMattotMaseiConclusionPart 4: DeuteronomyDevarimVa'EtchananEkevRe'ehShoftimKi Tetzei and Ki TavoNitzavimVayelechHa'azinuVe'Zo’t Ha’BerakhaConclusion ConclusionStudy Guide NotesIndexAbout the Author

In this enlightening debut, rabbi Hoffman argues that the Torah can be better understood through questions the text itself poses, starting in Genesis with the snake’s provocation of Eve. The Torah’s questions are “more than literary devices,” Hoffman explains, and asking them is “as sacred... as expressing absolute faith.” God’s first question of Adam and Eve in the garden “Where are you?”—might seem odd coming from an “all-knowing” being, but his intention, Hoffman writes, was to inspire self-reflection and compel Adam and Eve to “take responsibility for [their] actions”; eventually their fear of God “will be transformed into confidence and loyalty.” Before God destroys Sodom and Gomorrah, his query “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?” demonstrated he was “grappling with the potential for goodness in the face of total wickedness,” and, as such, implicitly grants humans “permission to ask questions of God... because God models that behavior.” Ideal for synagogue study groups and curious believers, this offering advances an attitude toward doubt that’s freeing but purposeful textual questions exist in order to help readers “confront... uncertainty” and enrich their faith. Jewish readers eager to take their Torah study a step further should have a look.