Beth Midrash of Avraham Avinu

There are two kinds of schools within Judaism, two types of Beth Midrash: The Beth Midrash of Moshe Rabenu and the Beth Midrash of Avraham Avinu. Although both of them are an integral part of Judaism, the difference between them is critical.

Rambam, in Hilchoth Avodath Kochavim (1:1-3), states that Avraham Avinu started a movement of “emunah” (religious faith). While Rambam sees Avraham’s discovery of God as the result of philosophical contemplation, other interpretations do not believe that this was a purely intellectual discovery, but rather the result of an existential encounter with God. What Avraham discovered is not so much that God exists but that “God is of no importance, unless He is of supreme importance.” (Abraham Joshua Heschel)

This discovery touched Avraham’s entire personality and transformed him into a different human being. It infused him with a great amount of wonder for all existence and deep concern for the wellbeing of mankind. This was not just a matter of the mind but of the heart. As such he became the driving force behind a movement which turned the world on its head. An irresistible movement in which “emunah” (in this instance, deep religious faith), and “chesed” (kindness), became the central pillars. “Emunah” filtered through his very personality and initiated him into an, until then, unknown world. The far-reaching effect of this transformation becomes clear when we remind ourselves of Rashi’s comment that Avraham was able to “convert” many of his contemporaries. Why was he so successful in doing so? Was it because of his great intellect? Surely this must have played a role, but there is little doubt that it was mainly due to the kind of personality he had become. Those who are touched by God do not just add another dimension to their personality but are completely transformed into different people, whilst maintaining their own individuality. Consequently such people are able to connect with others in ways that are not available to those who do not share that experience of God.

To illustrate this transformation, we are reminded of a comment made by Rabbi Yisrael Salanter, the founder of the Mussar movement in the nineteenth century, and a man of tremendous spiritual stature, who was once asked, which teacher had influenced him the most, turning his life around. After he answered that the famous tzaddik Rabbi Zundel of Salant was his teacher, he was asked how many years he studied under him, to which Rabbi Yisrael Salanter surprisingly replied that he had never learned under him, but “Ich hobe ihm a mohl gesehen..” (I just saw him once.) That one encounter was enough to set Rabbi Yisrael Salanter on a spiritual path, which led to a movement that inspired tens of thousands of Jews. The personality of Rabbi Zundel of Salant was so deeply affected by his ongoing experience with the reality of God that His presence was ingrained in every aspect of his being. Once Rabbi Salanter discovered this, he became Rabbi Zundel of Salant’s most committed student without a word having been spoken.

This may illustrate Avraham's impact on his surroundings. Confronted by the kind of personality he was, the world around him stood re-created, trembling in a new light, radiating a new spectrum of colors.

Abraham Joshua Heschel’s once observed that we do not need more text books but rather more “text people.” The difference between a student and a disciple is that the student studies the text while a disciple studies the teacher. It is the “middoth tovoth” (the exalted characteristics), the integrity and sensitivity that are the central components to teaching a religious tradition. This is the “grundnorm”, the foundation, on which the Beth Midrash of Avraham Avinu stands, to teach so as to transform and inspire an upheaval in the soul. It is here that we find the roots of Judaism in their most essential form. What we have to understand is that Judaism started as an existential movement in which all that man does, thinks, feels and says is touched by the spirit of God.

We must therefore realize that Judaism did not start as a halachic tradition, as we know it today. It took hundreds of years before the Sinai revelation, with all its halachic implications, became possible. Much had to happen prior to such an exalted moment. Halacha had to grow out of the Abrahamic experience. It is only then that the Beth Midrash of Moshe Rabenu became possible. It is the Beth Midrash of halachic discussion and halachic decision- making. But such a Beth Midrash must first of all be grounded in the existential “emunah” orientated Beth Midrash of Avraham Avinu.

It took hundreds of years before there was a possibility for the Sinai revelation to make any impact. There had to be an incubation time in which concepts of “emunah” took shape and in which the spiritual foundations of Judaism could grow. The grandeur of the Jewish traditional “weltanschauung” had to first grow into maturity and find its way through actual faith experiences before it could transform into a halachic way of living. The Sinai revelation can therefore only be seen as the result of the Beth Midrash of Avraham Avinu, which found its solidification in the halachic foundation of Sinai. It is here that the faith experiences of the generations before Sinai, starting with Avraham were transposed into a practical spiritual way of living.