Got Midrash?

Tell Me A Story:  Everyone loves a good story, and the Holy One, Blessed Be He - and the other writers of the number one storybook of all time, the Bible - are certainly no exception.  The Sacrifice of Isaac, Joseph and his Brothers, the Exodus from Egypt, the Rebellion of Korach - any and all of these stories could easily go 13 weeks on TV.

And then there's the famous story of Abraham Breaking the Idols, which all of us learned in Hebrew School.  What a great Biblical story!  Except for one slight thing - it's not in the Bible.  You can look, as the great Biblical scholar Nehama Leibowitz, of blessed memory, used to ask of her students.  But you will not find it, because it's not there.

In fact, there are an awful lot of Biblical stories that aren't in the Bible.  How did Adam feel when the sun set on Day One?  Whatever happened to Haran, Abraham's brother?  For that matter - whatever happened to Isaac, who - according to the Biblical text! - did not return from Mount Moriah with Abraham?  And - perhaps the most important question in the history of Biblical exegesis - why did Rebecca fall off her camel?

You will not find answers to these questions in the Bible - but you will find them in the Midrash.

Want to learn more?  On Tuesday June 14th @ 7:00 pm,  Abq Jew will be presenting A Special Midrash - about stories that you thought were in the Bible, but aren't ... but maybe they should be.  It will be the fourth of seven presentations in Congregation B'nai Israel's Making Connections to Judaism series.  If you missed the first three - well, you missed the first three!  But don't miss this one (or any that follow).  Yes, Abq Jew is tooting his own horn!