[Avodah] Local, Non-Global or Global Flood

[Arie Folger]

On Tue, Nov 30, 2010 at 7:53 PM, Zvi Lampel <zvilampel at gmail.com> wrote:
> Please consider the implications of what you are saying in regards to, say,
> blanket interpretation of the entire Torah as allegory, both in its
> narratives and its halachos.

I am quite conscious of what I wrote. I did not suggest allowing for
"blanket interpretation of the entire Torah as allegory" either "in
its narratives" or "its halachos." What I did suggest is that just
because we reject blanket interpretation of Torah as allegory does not
therefore imply that there is neither allegory nor metaphor in Torah.
Likewise, I consider the preference for primary meanings of words to
be an a priori tendency, not an absolute rule, because while it is
convincing that we must err on the side of caution and be hesitant to
suggest what may be a reinterpretation, rather than a correct
interpretation, it is however not convincing to assume that words
always mean their primary meaning, except in the most extreme
circumstances.

Again, if you ask me "can one reinterpret," my answer is no. If the
question, however, is whether the Torah may utilize secondary meanings
of words, allegory and metaphor, the answer is a clear yes, and in a
manner of illustration, I just refer to the gemara in 'Hullin, dibru
hakhtuvim belashon havai. I agree that doesn't give me or you licence
to just redefine things as lashon havai at will, but the presence of
lashon havai is an established fact, in 'Humash, no less.

-- 
Arie Folger,
Recent blog posts on http://ariefolger.wordpress.com/
* Basler Gymnasium experimentiert mit Chawrutá-Lernen
* Where Will We Find Refuge ... from technology overload
* Video-Vortrag: Psalm 34
* We May Have Free Will, After All
* Equal Justice for All
* Brutal Women of Nazi Germany
* Gibt es in der Unterhaltungsliteratur eine Rolle für G"tt?