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January 11, 2002
Lessons from the life of King David
Ancient tales are important today, says Seattle educator.
PAT JOHNSON REPORTER
The Torah is filled with stories that, although ancient, are entirely
relevant today. One of Rivy Kletenik's favorites is the life of
King David.
Kletenik, a Seattle educator, will be in the Vancouver area for
two presentations this month as part of the Chicken Soup for the
Mind series. The two public lectures are titled The Passions of
King David. The first, on Jan. 13, deals with his relationship with
Michal. The second, on Jan. 27, studies the king's relationship
with Bat-Sheva.
"I chose them because I find them particularly engaging,"
said Kletenik, who is director of educational services for the Jewish
Education Council of the Jewish Federation of Seattle. "What
is true of these stories is actually true of many biblical stories
and that is that, though they are old, they definitely enlighten
our own present situation."
Kletenik said it is often helpful for us to view our own moral challenges
projected onto an objective historical or mythological figure. In
the case of King David, the wanton abandon of passion was a terribly
destructive force, a cautionary tale that could guide modern people
in our own lives.
"For David, his passionate relationship with Bat-Sheva is really
the beginning of the turmoil that will embrace the balance of his
kingship," said Kletenik, who also teaches a weekly Talmud
class, along with teaching adults and children at several Seattle-area
Jewish institutions.
"From a religious point of view, because of his actions, he
is going to suffer a great deal of consequences," she said.
The king's immoral actions come home to roost in his own family,
inciting violence between his children and, eventually, leading
his son to rebel against him and cast him out of Jerusalem.
King David's varied reactions to his plight can instruct our daily
reaction to troubling events, she said.
"On the one hand, he absorbs the pain of his punishment,"
Kletenik explained. "He says, 'I deserve this,' and he cries
and he mourns and he weeps. And he allows people to curse him and
treat him harshly. But in the next second, he sends a spy into Jerusalem
to see what's going on.
"It's very interesting how he reacts in, perhaps, a contradictory
fashion," she said. The king accepts his fate yet, at the same
time, plots his redemption. Kletenik points to this as an example
of the proper human response to disaster. One should consider the
causes of one's downfall, yet consider how to carry on living successfully.
This is still relevant to current events, she said. She did not
refer directly to Sept. 11 or to the situation in Israel, but suggested
the general concept could apply to either case.
"We as Jews - or we as Americans - need to think to ourselves,
on the one hand, why did this occur? Now, that doesn't mean that
we deserve what happened, but we need to think about what did we
do wrong to lead to this. That doesn't mean we just sit around doing
that. We also have to think, 'What can I do to make sure this doesn't
happen again? What can I do to punish those who brought this about?'
"
Another example, she said, is the death of David and Bat Sheva's
son.
"In this passage, something remarkable takes place," she
said. "While the boy is sick, David is fasting, mourning, crying,
sleeping on the ground, praying to God that the boy should live.
Then the boy dies and [David] gets up. He bathes himself. He puts
on clean clothes, he eats his meal, he offers a sacrifice to the
Tabernacle, and then he goes to Bat-Sheva and he lays with her.
"That's all about life; returning to life. I happen to have
taught that on the Shabbat after Sept. 11. Everyone was so taken
by it; that on one hand, you want to just sink into despair, but
life goes on. The greatness of David is that he picked himself up.
He ate, he bathed, he prayed, he goes to his wife. Life goes on.
What a powerful example to all of us."
In addition to the two public lectures, Kletenik will also speak
to Jewish educators in the Lower Mainland about texts in the Talmud
that discuss education. She said there are plenty of lessons in
that ancient work from which present-day teachers can learn.
"It's revolutionary how relevant their approach is," she
said. "One of the repeating metaphors or repeating themes through
the texts about teaching and study is this idea about light - that
when you learn something new your face lights up. I find that a
really engaging picture.... I think that teachers know the look.
I think we've seen our students' faces light up. And the question
is, when we teach our lessons, how do we make sure they are lessons
that light up the face?"
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