[Avodah] Kivrey Avos

[Eliyahu Grossman]

: From: "Rich, Joel" <JRich at sibson.com>
<<<>>>RJR: How does that square with "kol beramah nishma, Rochel mevaka al
baneha"?

:From: Micha Berger <micha at aishdas.org>
<<<>>>RMB: Perhaps Yirmiyahu asking her to daven bridged the gap, and the
gemara and Tosafos are talking about when you don't have nevi'im who can
converse on both planes of reality bridging the gap.

:From: Eliyahu Grossman
Or perhaps Yirmuyahu, who was reporting on a prophetic dream that he had,
where he saw and heard G-d telling him of the Jewish redemption, and using
the name of the matriarch who was beloved and when dead, was cast by the
side of the road (the message to the Jewish people) is a perfect
metaphorical fit. Perhaps these are images that he dreamt that provided the
idea of redemption, and should not be taken anthropomorphically any more
than believing that the body of the Creator appeared to the prophet - it was
only one of many symbols. Just as the name of Ephriam, who is spoken of
next, clearly seems to be the term relating to the segment of the Northern
Israeli population that went into exile first, which was called "Ephriam"
(by assorted prophets), Ephriam who was cast away, and not the singular son
of Yosef. In keeping with that style, titles are being given a voice, but
the voice is not the thing itself.

Yirmiyahu also uses a similar style in the beginning of Eicha, where the
city is a woman, crying, and inconsolable. But the image of a woman as
applied to a city, which is being given a voice, and should not be taken
literally, but was a representation of the message. 

If we cannot have a conversation with the dead who reside in some
unreachable place, what about the dead conversing with the Creator, whose
"place" is even "higher"? After all, that seems to be the basis for people
who are inclined to go to grave and pray - that there is some special
connection between the dead and the Creator. Does this connection even exist
for the dead? Tehillim 6:6, which we say during Tachanun (several times a
week, so it should be known) seems to indicate that King David believed that
the dead could not speak to G-d at all. (See Rashi there who quotes
Yeshiyahu 38:18 "For sheol (the dark "place" of the dead) shall not thank
You, nor will death praise you."). 

All the best,

Eliyahu Grossman