When was the last time you went on a hunger strike for justice?
That may have been, on some level, the original purpose of ritual fasting in the ancient world, including the Jewish day of Yom Kippur. As a spiritual method for renewal of faith and conduct it’s still popular today, with Ramadan as one known example.
Yom Kippur, The annual atonement day still meaningful for Jews worldwide, is also called the Sabbath of Sabbaths. It’s a curious name - the super-sabbath of the year is the one day on which we do the opposite of what the weekly holy day requires - we do not feast or rest in pleasure - we fast and gather to reflect, atone and repair our ways. The link between these two important sacred times on the Jewish calendar is made explicit in today’s chapter of Isaiah, chosen to be part of the Yom Kippur liturgy. What’s Isaiah trying to teach us here?
He starts off by rebuking religious hypocrisy, a favorite familiar and timeless theme - pointing a finger at those of us who fake the fast or other rituals, dial it in, pretend to be pious when in truth we shut our eyes and hearts to what our human duty is about: Justice and care for those in need.
We who fast one day a year while others starve each day around us and we do nothing about it - what’s the point of our righteous religious ways? Isaiah mocks those who fake their fast and seek salvation, and gives voice to the disappointment of the divine:
הֲל֣וֹא זֶה֮ צ֣וֹם אֶבְחָרֵ֒הוּ֒ פַּתֵּ֙חַ֙ חַרְצֻבּ֣וֹת רֶ֔שַׁע הַתֵּ֖ר אֲגֻדּ֣וֹת מוֹטָ֑ה וְשַׁלַּ֤ח רְצוּצִים֙ חׇפְשִׁ֔ים וְכׇל־מוֹטָ֖ה תְּנַתֵּֽקוּ׃
הֲל֨וֹא פָרֹ֤ס לָרָעֵב֙ לַחְמֶ֔ךָ וַעֲנִיִּ֥ים מְרוּדִ֖ים תָּ֣בִיא בָ֑יִת כִּֽי־תִרְאֶ֤ה עָרֹם֙ וְכִסִּית֔וֹ וּמִבְּשָׂרְךָ֖ לֹ֥א תִתְעַלָּֽם׃
“No, not this -- but this is the fast I desire:
To unlock fetters of wickedness,
And untie the cords of the yoke
To let the oppressed go free;
To break off every yoke.
It is to share your bread with the hungry,
And to take the wretched poor into your home;
When you see the naked, to clothe them,
And not to ignore your own kin.”
Isaiah 58:6-7
Fasting was a familiar mode of repentance in the ancient world - not just on special days but also during times of famine or war. Isaiah’s words here echo those of other prophets who despise deceit and want the people to take their decisions seriously - beyond times of need and into every day and every way with which we lead our lives. This is the direction of redemption for the individual and the nation.
That’s why the Sabbath is the main ritual demand that completes this chapter. The purpose of keeping the Sabbath, as Isaiah here reiterates, is to give us pleasure - to indulge in our being. But not just us - but everybody we work with, even those who work for us. Sabbath as a radical social vision of rest and renewal is the antidote to capitalistic greed, to abuse of people and to industrial waste. If you observe the Sabbath, says the prophet - and his words leave the how that’s done a bit ambiguous -- then you will delight and uplift your lift, with justice and pleasure, for good. The fasts and feasts, when taken seriously, are the recipe for our renewal. The reward is worth it, says Isaiah, for when we take religious life seriously and for the right reasons of justice and love - “your light will burst through like the dawn, and your healing springs up quickly.”
What will be the pleasure of our weekly sabbath? How will we practice the atonement fast/hunger strike with more care and intention this coming year?
NEXT BELOW THE BIBLE BELT ZOOM TALK:
Goodbye Isaiah, Hello Jeremiah
Please join me on Zoom for our next Monthly Conversation, as we wrap up the Book of Isaiah, venture into Jeremiah’s world and explore what these ancient prophets have to offer our inner and political lives - just in time for a new Jewish year and continued political challenges - everywhere.
Join us on Thursday, August 17th 2023, at 1pm ET.
Please note: This monthly zoom conversation welcomes paid subscribers of Below the Bible Belt, with gratitude for the generous enabling of his blog to be free daily for all, with support this marathon of biblical proportions in the making!
Please consider becoming a paid subscriber today at the level that works best for you. details here. Sign up: Here
Zoom link will be sent a few days before the 8/17 conversation.
A recording will be shared with all readers.
Thank you for the continued support in so many ways.
Below the Bible Belt: 929 chapters, 42 months, daily reflections.
Become a free or paid subscriber and join Rabbi Amichai’s 3+ years interactive online quest to question, queer + re-read between the lines of the entire Hebrew Bible. Enjoy daily posts, weekly videos and monthly learning sessions. 2022-2025.
#Isaiah #Isaiah58 #ProphetIsaiah #ישעיהו #BookofIsaiah #Prophets #Neviim #Hebrewbible #Tanach #929 #labshul #belowthebiblebelt929 #hungerstrike #fasting #whywefast #fanatics #religioushypocracy #ramadan #purusejustice #feedthepoor #repent #yomkippur #atonement #haftara #Isaiahthethird #sabbath #sabbathpleasure #shabbat #sabbathofsabbaths