Ożywienie kości a historia Izraela

Abstract

When we are looking at the Menorah in front of the building of Israeli Parliament, Knesset, in Jerusalem we are struck by the central piece of the bas-reliefs with the scenes from the history of Israel – the fourth from the top and the fourth from the bottom on the main post of the Menorah. The relief presents in a suggestive, dynamic way the prophet Ezekiel, his robe blowing through as he is running across a field covered with dry bones. This is an illustration of a vision described in Ezek 37, 1-14. The vision refers to Babylonian Captivity, which was the result of a series of historical events. The seizure and abduction was a hard experience for the population of Judah. Yet the activity of Ezekiel saved the nation from losing faith and identity. The nation returned to its traditions; writing flourished, the works of the past were compiled. The captivity became a tool for purifying and strengthening the nation, which was brought back to life in a similar way to the dry bones from Ezekiel's vision. This is one of the more powerful visions which characterise The Book of Ezekiel. The entire pericope consists of two parts. The first part (lines 1-10) describes the valley of dry bones, which makes the proper vision, the second speaks of open graves; this part has an explanatory character. A certain period in history is closed but bones have not yet turned into ashes. The prophet's call and the breath of power of the Spirit will make a new nation. The old history of Israel is closed and a new period is bom; the period which we agreed to name Judaism. This is the moment of a thorough transformation; it is the basic and perhaps the most important turn in the history of Israel. The vision of bringing dry bones back to life through the prophecy of Ezekiel and the call to the Spirit in the whole history of Israel is materialised in an extreme effort of Jewish religious thought (to be specified in the Talmud and the Cabal), which is the fulfilment of a prophecy of a great army originating despite – what it seemed – a total defeat of Israel.