Rationalist Judaism

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Night Terrors

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Exploring the legacy of the rationalist Rishonim (medieval sages), and various other notes, by Rabbi Dr. Natan Slifkin, director of The Biblical Museum of Natural History in Beit Shemesh. The views are those of the author, not the institution.
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Night Terrors

Natan Slifkin
Jul 8, 2014
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Night Terrors

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My flight out to the bush was very memorable. The tiny single-propellor airplane had no copilot - instead, I sat next to the pilot.


And the airport out in the bush was nothing more than a strip of tarmac:


On the game drive, we saw some great stuff - wildebeest, buffalo, impala, hornbill, giraffe, zebra, jackal, brown hyena, rhino, and a pair of male lions. We also heard the latter roaring during dinner.


A thought struck me. Here we were hearing sounds that would have struck terror in the hearts of our ancestors in Biblical Israel. Yet modern society meant that we were absolutely safe, in a lodge surrounded by electric fences and with armed rangers. But at that exact moment, my poor wife and children were huddled terrified in our safe room at home, fearful of long-range missiles that did not exist in Biblical Israel. Different night terrors for a different age.

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Night Terrors

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