Q&A: Abraham Our Patriarch
Abraham Our Patriarch
Question
I know you’re not all that interested in the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh).
But my question isn’t about details, but about the principle.
Do you believe in the stories of the Patriarchs in the Book of Genesis?
How did they reach us? Presumably they were not given at Mount Sinai (but only the Ten Commandments)
and what is the reason to believe in them?
Answer
Where did you get the idea that only the Ten Commandments were given at Sinai? Of course, that still doesn’t mean that the stories of the Patriarchs are a historical account. That’s a different question, and in my view it’s also not really important/interesting.
Discussion on Answer
That is not written in the Torah. Definitely not. And even if there are sections that were said later (how do you know?), why did you decide those are the stories of the Patriarchs? In short, as far as I’m concerned, the discussion is exhausted.
That’s what is written explicitly in the Torah, isn’t it? The Sages say that they were given together with all their explanations. And it seems very likely that during the forty days Moses received additional commandments or explanations.
But there are sections that were certainly said later, or events that happened later, and it doesn’t say that the stories of the Patriarchs were received at Sinai.
Am I mistaken about something here?