A word of Torah:    
         The baseless challenge to the election results in Congress this week evoked for me an oft quoted Talmudic story. An abbreviated version is as follows: Rabbi Eliezer ben Hyrcanus and the other rabbis disagreed on a matter of Jewish law. R. Eliezer presented every possible argument in favor of his position, but they were all rejected. He then said: If I am right, let this carob tree uproot itself and move a hundred yards. It did and the rabbis said: we don’t pay attention to moving carob trees when deciding Jewish law. He then called upon a stream to flow backwards and got the same response. Then he called upon the walls of the house of study to fall. They started to fall and R. Joshua said to the walls: What is it your business, if scholars are contending (menatzhim) with each other matters of law? The walls stopped falling. Finally, R. Eliezer said: If I am right, let heaven support me. A heavenly voice said: Why do you trouble R. Eliezer? The law is always according to him. In response, R. Joshua quoted Dt. 30:12: “The Torah is no longer in heaven,” (that is, it was given to the Jewish people at Sinai), and we ultimately decide the law by majority rule.
        What is going on here? The rabbis are engaged in the process of deciding Jewish law. Such decisions are based on tradition, on logic, and on argument. Neither miracles or untruths based on conspiracy theories carry any weight. There are rules for procedure and they cannot be changed. If you don’t accept the rules then you put yourself outside the enterprise. The rabbis actually excommunicate R. Eliezer, making it clear that you can’t change the rules because you don’t like the results. R. Eliezer had a fair chance to make his case. His refusal to concede leads to destruction and death as the story unfolds.
        The most important teaching of the story is that the words of the heavenly voice are absolutely incorrect. The law can’t always be according to R. Eliezer. If so, the whole rabbinic system of study and debate would be superfluous. The rabbis maintain that the law is discovered through the process of engaging different viewpoints. It is the best way to find or get close to the truth. Neither R. Eliezer nor anyone else is right all the time. It is not humanly possible.
        In the story, the prophet Elijah is asked what God’s response was when R. Joshua proclaimed that the Torah was no longer in heaven. Elijah reported God smiling and saying, “Nitzkhuni banai,” which is usually translated “my children have defeated me.” Yet, God uses the same verb that R. Joshua uses--contending/debating--minatzkhim. I think God is not admitting defeat but joining in the give and take that is essential in the search for truth. God is happy that the rabbis have come to understand that law comes from a democratic engagement with others, not by fiat.