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Top Document: soc.culture.jewish FAQ: Jewish Thought (6/12) Previous Document: Question 12.21: What is the Jewish position on Capital Punishment? Next Document: Question 12.23: What is the significance and importance of suffering and punishment in Judaism? See reader questions & answers on this topic! - Help others by sharing your knowledge
Answer:
Judaism has a strong prohibition against sorcery and divination. Deut.
18:10 says "There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his
son or his daughter to pass through the fire, one that useth
divination, a soothsayer, or an enchanter, or a sorcerer, or a
charmer, or one that consulteth a ghost or familiar spirit, or a
necromancer. For whosoever doeth these things is an abomination unto
the Lord".
The Hertz commentaries note that in Judaism the spritual part of man
was not conceived as ghostly, but under the attribute of holy. It
notes that stories of ghosts or apparitions are almost absent from the
Torah, and necromancy is considered especially abhorrent.
There is one instance in the Torah where communication with the dead
is mentioned. In the first Book of Samuel, (Chapter 28, we read about
Saul the first monarch of Israel seeking out the witch of Endor
(Baalat Ov at Ein Dor) to perform a "seance" and call up the dead
prophet Samuel on the eve of a battle with the Philistines. The witch
seemingly succeeds but the blistering message supposedly imparted by
Samuel can hardly bring comfort to Saul: "..For G-d has rent the
kingdom out of your hand, and given it to your neighbor, to David." [1
Samuel 28:17]
Does this incident imply that consultation with the dead is acceptable
in some situations? No. Rabbenu Samuel Ben Chafni Gaon (in the
Responsa of the Gaonim, Ginzai Shechter, part 1, pages 299-30) writes
as follows: "In actuality (the witch) did not raise up Samuel from the
dead, but the BAALAT OV deceived Saul; it is impossible that G-d would
bring Samuel back to life with the strength of witchcraft, because
this is against nature, and the only ones who have mystical powers are
prophets, and she was not a prophet. She deceived him [Saul] into
believing that she had that power."
Further, the incident did not leave Saul in good standing. Regarding
Saul it is written, "Wherever he turned, he did badly" (Samuel I
14:47) [i.e., he did not merit rendering decisions in accordance with
the Halachah --Rashi] (Eruvin 53a)
Judaism has no need to communicate with the dead; G-d has given us
prophets instead. This is confirmed in Rashi, 18:14: He has not
permitted you to hearken to diviners and enchanters, since He has
caused the divine presence to rest upon the prophets and the Urim
v'Tumim.
The above is the traditional view. There appear to be no specific
Reform Responsa on the subject; it appears that in this area Reform
Judaism does not differ from traditional Judaism.
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Last Update March 27 2014 @ 02:11 PM
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