For our our second tiyul together, we started off in the classroom, learning about the biblical and historical stories of Sara, Abraham and their children. About halfway through class we went on a short, 15 minute hike through Tzuba to see an ancient burial cave similar to the one Abraham bought for his wife Sara when she died of sadness, after discovering Abraham had attempted to sacrifice Isaac. We climbed down the side of the hill and crawled into the caves which were comprised of a few burial chambers. We learned about how the ancient inhabitants used to lay their dead on the burial beds until they decomposed. They would then gather the bones and lay them in a pit with their ancestors bones so they could forever "be gathered" with their family members. (Genesis 23) There are several similar caves located all over the Kibbutz, some discovered and some not. Kibbutz Tzuba is actually a fascinating place to learn Jewish History at, because several parts of the Tanakh actually take place in ancient Tzuba. I thought the entire experience explained the biblical and historical sides of the story extremely well. I also thought the transition between learning the dry material in the classroom and seeing it in real life helped me and my classmates understand the story and remember it better. Finally, at least in my opinion, seeing the caves led me to believe this part of history was less biblical and more historical, allowing me to feel the Tanakh is a factual source. So what do you guys think? Is the Tanakh a factual and reliable source, or just stories?
In some ways, the tanakh presents factual information, such as the things about the city of David. It also acknowledges historical traditions that we can tell are accurate. However, I think most of the tanakh seems to provide theological evidence and reasoning. This doesn’t make it any less valuable but may bring up doubts and questions.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Bailey. The tanakh has been helpful in locating ruins, so there is definitely a practical use for it. It can indicate what life was like at that time (like how we talked about how child sacrifice was probably going on if it was written about). Most of it is useful for religious and philosophical ideas that form the foundation for Judaism.
ReplyDeleteI dontd think the tanakh is necessarily a factual source but I do believe that it is rooted in some facts and is therefore a good tool for finding other sources that can help add historicity to the biblical stories.
ReplyDeleteI think that the Tanakh was definitely influenced by historical vents and practices. Some of the stories passed down may have been historically real and other might just be stories to teach values. It definitely has the potential to be used as a factual source when trying to learn about the past.
ReplyDeleteI love when archeological discoveries like this are made. I've always looked at the Tanach as a folk tale, that is the root of our tradition, but to physically stand in evidence that at least some of what it says actually happened, makes the science-y need-to-see-it-to-believe-it side of me amazed.
ReplyDeleteFor me, the stories in the Tanach seem fabricated and exaggerated, so I think most of them are in the Torah for the sole purpose of their lessons. However, I think the fundamental and basic information in the Tanach,like the settings, the way people lived, etc., is factual, as is proved by archaeology.
ReplyDeleteI definitely believe that the Tanakh can be a reliable source to corroborate certain archeological findings and to give a general insight to life in ancient times. However, I do think that not everything in the Tanakh can be proved true due to the lack of archaeological evidence.
ReplyDeletei believe that the majority of the tanakh is a reliable source. some of the tanakh may be stories but i still think that they relate to what actually happened in the past.
ReplyDeletei believe that the majority of the tanakh is a reliable source. some of the tanakh may be stories but i still think that they relate to what actually happened in the past.
ReplyDeleteI think the Tanakh is both reliable and unreliable. Some parts of the Tanakh are so unrealistic and clearly didn't and couldn't happen but there are other parts of it that there is evidence to back up. I think it is especially interesting when the Tanakh brings up specific theories and stories that is evident in archaeology research.
ReplyDeleteIt's Talia
DeleteI think the tanakh is both reliable and unreliable due to the nature of the stories told in the torah. A lot of the stories seem to be unrealistic and splitting the water to cross the sea is an example of an unrealistic theory. On the other hand with guiding and speaking of the graves of people and where they are buried the tanakh almost serves as a map to find real places. This is a huge reason as to why it may be a realistic method of everything.
ReplyDeleteThe Tanakh is not a reliable source of fact but that does not take away from its significant theological values. The Tanaka (for the most) interprets how to live a just and moral life.
ReplyDeleteI believe the Tanakh is a collection of fables passed down from l’dor v’dor written down by philosophers. Devout jews and rabbinical scholars dug deeper into the morals of these traditional stories giving modern day judaism the ethics to abide by today.
ReplyDeleteI believe that certain parts of the Tanakh are factual, while others may not be. We know that there is archaeological evidence to support many events described in the Tanakh, but there is little to no concrete evidence which supports the story of the birth of our people outlined in the Torah. However, this does not necessarily make the Tanakh any less important, as our religion is one founded upon faith and theology.
ReplyDelete- Maya Schloss
The Tanakh is important source for learning Jewish history. Because even it’s not completely 100% accurate, it has stories that may be accurate at its core but it turns into stories over time that may not be completely accurate.
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