R. Aviva Richman on Parashat Devarim: Moshe's Second Song
In Parashat Devarim, Moshe gives an account of Torah, reframing the journey in the desert for the next generation that will enter the land. Some commentaries find not so subtle subtexts in Moshe’s introductory remarks that create a bleak picture of Israel’s propensity to sin. Parashat Devarim always falls before Tisha b’Av, and this motif of rebuke aligns with a day that brings failures and destruction to the forefront of our minds. But taken in context, as the beginning of Moshe’s final speech to the people, an emphasis on sin is a depressing frame for a recapitulation of Torah. Perhaps the…
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