Torah and Jewish Idea > Torah and Jewish Idea
the "holy spirit"
Zenith:
how do you understand the Holy Spirit (or, the Spirit of God)?
do you believe the Spirit of God is a spirit?
Also it seems that sometimes "the Spirit of God" is used as if it was written "God" (Psalm 139.7).
muman613:
Do you mean Ruach HaKodesh?
http://www.ou.org/about/judaism/r.htm
--- Quote ---"Ruach HaKodesh" - (f.); the Divine Spirit; as in "Sefer Tehilim nichtav beRuach HaKodesh," "The Book of Psalms was written with the inspiration of the Divine Spirit"
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http://ilovetorah.com/blog/?p=754
--- Quote ---The Ten steps to Ruach HaKodesh, Devine Inspiration are mentioned in the Talmud. They are, Study, Carefulness, Diligence, Cleanliness, Abstention, Purity, Piety, Humility, Fear of Sin, and Holiness. It is interesting that the Ramchal also uses these 10 in his teachings of character correction. It is known in Kabbalah that these steps correspond to the 10 Sefiros, ladders to spiritual revelations. The Baal Shem Tov said that most of his Ruach HaKodesh was attained through mikvah immersion. It could be that the mikvah accelerates the cleaning process of the above ten concepts. According to the Nikolsburg Rebbe, Ruach HaKodesh is attained through avas Yisrael, love of Israel. In truth, love of Israel includes all ten and you can’t have real love of Israel without them.
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Or do you mean Shechinah?
http://www.uniteourheart.com/Foundation-Articles/Shekhinah.html
--- Quote ---The name Shekhinah is related to the word shochen / neighbor; it literally means that which dwells within. Through the centuries the sages of Yehudah tried to formulate the complex concept of the Shekhinah into succinct definitions. According to the Saadiah Gaon, (882-942), the Shekhinah is the intermediary between G-d and man. Maimonides, (1135-1204), taught that the Shekhinah is "the light of the glory of G-d." Some say the term Shekhinah signifies the perceivable majestic presence of G-d among mankind and expresses the principle of G-d’s indwelling omni-presence in all creation. Mystics have viewed her as the channel through which Divine light passes into the world. It is also associated with the agency of inspiration and prophecy. It is the inspiring power manifesting in one's conscience as the Bat Kol / Daughter Voice. Overall, the late Aggadata statement in the Midrash is the essential summary of all these points and of what we now need to note: “Come and see how beloved Israel is before G-d, for wherever Israel went into exile, the Shekhinah went with them.” Ezekiel witnessed this departure of the Glory / Kavod of the Lord from the holy Temple as she shared our mutual exile. The Midrash’s romantic-sounding statement tells us that the Divine Guidance, with all its aforementioned attributes always was and even now is available to Israel. The Shekhinah has also been defined as the "hidden Divine Providence." Early sages basing their conclusions on Lev 16:16, said the Shekhinah, though concealed or muted in its manifestation, was to dwell among the exiled children of Israel even in their impurity (Yoma 56b, Megillah 29a). Throughout their history, G-d’s hand, though hidden, was to shape Israel's fate and guide them to their destiny, (Amos 9:9).
Both rabbinic reflection and mystical literature agree that there is an intimate connection between the Shekhinah and the people of Israel. Though they are different perspectives, they both refer to G-d’s active presence being present everywhere in creation, (Bava Bathra 25a). In rabbinic conception, the Shekhinah is the manifestation of God’s presence, i.e. it is the holy Spirit of G-d by which man can feel G-d’s presence. Whenever the children of Israel gather for worship, where ever judges sit at court, even when one man studies the Torah, the Shekhinah is said to be present, (Berakhot 6a). Often the terms Shekhinah and Ruach haKodesh [holy Spirit] are used interchangeably to denote the Divine Presence in the form of revelation and inspiration. In the Zohar, the Shekhinah is defined dynamically as G-d’s face turned toward creation. It is that aspect of G-d's Light that dictates to everything of what form it is supposed to be in the physical universe. It is the life force that animates and underlies the laws of nature.
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Zenith:
I mean Ruach. I don't know where I can find Shechinah in the Tanakh, sorry - perhaps you know a verse.
It seems that Ruach is found in Gen 1.2, Psalm 139.7, Zech 4.6.
I guess I also have to ask you: what do you understand of "spirit"?
muman613:
--- Quote from: Zenith on April 09, 2011, 06:02:57 AM ---I mean Ruach. I don't know where I can find Shechinah in the Tanakh, sorry - perhaps you know a verse.
It seems that Ruach is found in Gen 1.2, Psalm 139.7, Zech 4.6.
I guess I also have to ask you: what do you understand of "spirit"?
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In the discussion of the Ruach HaKodesh, it is the spirit of inspiration which is granted to prophets and often accessible in dreams. Much Jewish scripture was written with Ruach HaChodesh.
Here is a discussion of where in Tanakh discussion of the Shekinah occurs:
http://ns1.noahidenations.com/noahide-community/torah-portion-talk?start=35
http://www.shemayisrael.com/publicat/hazon/tzedaka/universalshechinah.htm
--- Quote ---I was puzzled, however, by the phrase, “He created solely for His glory.” Does the Infinite and Compassionate One need “glory”? The Creator is not a human being with “ego” needs, so what does it mean when it states that the world was created for His glory?
I found one possible answer when I began to study Torah teachings about the Shechinah, for I discovered that in biblical literature, the Shechinah is known as “kavod Hashem” - the glory of the Compassionate One. For example, the term “glory of Hashem” appears in the story of the Sanctuary which was built by Moses and the Children of Israel in the desert. The Sanctuary was called the “Mishkan” - a term which literally means “dwelling place” - for the Mishkan was to serve as the dwelling place of the Shechinah. When the Shechinah descended to the Mishkan, the Torah states:
“The cloud covered the Tent of the Meeting, and the glory of Hashem filled the Mishkan.” (Exodus 40:34) – “The cloud covered and the Shechinah dwelled therein.” (Commentary of the Sforno)
The ancient Aramaic translation and midrashic commentary known as Targum Yonasan translates "the glory of Hashem filled the Mishkan" as "the glory of the Shechinah filled the Mishkan."
According to Jewish tradition, the Mishkan represents this world, as this world was created to be a Sanctuary for the Shechinah. As the Midrash teaches, “The Mishkan corresponds to the world” (Numbers Rabbah 12:13.) The glory of the Compassionate One filling the Mishkan therefore represents the beginning of a process that is to eventually lead to the glory of the Compassionate One filling the entire world - a return to the spiritual state of the Garden of Eden, when the Shechinah was fully revealed. As King David proclaimed: "Let His glory fill all the earth, Amen and Amen!" (Psalm 72:19)
We can now understand a deeper meaning of the statement: "All that the Holy One, Blessed is He, created in His world, He created solely for His glory." Everything was created to serve as a sanctuary for His Shechinah.
Why, however, is this teaching about the Shechinah the concluding teaching of the sixth chapter of Pirkei Avos, the chapter which discusses the Torah? What is the relationship of the Shechinah to the Torah that we received at Mount Sinai?
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Kahane-Was-Right BT:
--- Quote from: muman613 on April 07, 2011, 06:03:57 PM ---Do you mean Ruach HaKodesh?
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My guess is, he probably didn't. There is a catholic doctrine that speaks about a "holy spirit" which is not something we believe in.
And the Jewish term ruach hakodesh is not translated as "holy spirit," for good reason. Our concept has nothing to do with theirs. Ruah hakodesh refers to a 'divine inspiration' of sorts. It is not a theological doctrine. (Although sometimes the concept is used in the context of theological doctrine).
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