He was not just a scholar, he was a phenomenon
Extraordinary in his being and mind, Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz was a legend by the time he was 26. A gentle soul, a mental powerhouse, a workhorse, and ever so relaxed, this one man has left behind the work of an institution. And indeed, it has taken institutions to fashion his productivity into a form accessible to the masses.
So many sides: The man who translated the Talmud into modern Hebrew, realizing a vision first articulated by Rabbi Israel Salanter 100 years earlier; the man who captivated Israelis, including very secular Israelis, on regular radio programs; the man invited to the most prestigious lectureships in the world; the man who founded educational institutions in Israel and Russia; the man who kept up with his friends; the man who was entirely without pretense; the man who delved into Jewish mysticism as much as he delved into Jewish law; the man who was not defensive in the face of learned criticism of his life’s work, the Talmud translation.
Was this one single person?
A family man, a man who loved his pipe, his flora and fauna; a man who illustrated his Talmud with the relevant flora and fauna and all manner of other realia spoken about in the Talmud; a man who hailed from a secular background and never lost the ability to speak to people of the same background, even as he opened the classics of Jewish tradition to countless hundreds of thousands of people of religious backgrounds.
A man who was a prism into which the white light of G-d and Torah opened into a magnificent spectrum of color, the more shades the better, from his point of view.
A man who indeed required institutions. Look at the title page of his Hebrew Bible translations, for example. Tens of people — translators, designers, formulators, typographers, fundraisers, supervisors — it took all this to produce this one volume. All the more so for his tens of volumes of Talmud.
The point is not the quantity or the quality. The point is the inspiration. This single, understated, modest, enormously talented man inspired untold numbers of people around him to dedicate their lives to making his work available to the masses. In fact, they considered it an honor.
They were very busy. Rabbi Adin produced not only a Talmud but some 60 other volumes! It would be difficult to classify them under standard headings of Jewish philosophy, commentary or mysticism. Some of what he produced did fit in these categories, but so much else was unique. He laid down new paths. It will take generations to explore them all.
Even when they are explored and his thought is unfolded in its fullness, this will not be able to capture the author, the person. Some people are smaller than their books and some are larger. Rabbi Adin was one of those who, overwhelmingly large though his output was, was larger than his work. It is this that his countless students, friends and colleagues, not to mention his family, will miss the most.
The very term “Steinsaltz” conjured more than a Talmud, more than a scholar, more than an influencer. It captured a phenomenon, no less than “Baal Shem Tov” captured something so much larger than a mode of thought or piety.
We who were privileged to live in the same era as Adin Steinsaltz, and particularly those who knew him, will, along with their sadness over his passing, be able to carry with them this phenomenon, this spiritual creation, this brilliant insight called “Adin Steinsaltz.”
Copyright © 2020 by the Intermountain Jewish News
