The rabbis of the Talmud could not have possibly imagined an assassination attempt by a man with a high-powered rifle, but there is language in the page of the Talmud studied around the world four days after the assassination attempt that sure seems contemporary.
The Talmud in Bava Batra 22b refers to a wall close to his neighbor’s wall. A few moments after the recent attempted assassination, everyone was focused on the structure that seemed too close to the podium at the Trump rally – too close for comfort or safety, without adequate precautions.
The Talmud discusses the effects of the ground between the walls strengthened by people walking on the land between the walls. Although the meaning appears to be literal here, at the time of the assassination the ground was filled with people and potential witnesses to wrongdoing as well as people who could and did alert the Secret Service to the presence of the active would-be assassin on the roof of the structure. The presence of such people strengthened the ground, so to speak, to enable those on the ground to warn those on the roof to warn the Secret Service counter sharpshooters to do their job, even if the would-be assassin was “neutralized” only after getting off his first shots – but he was prevented from getting off additional shots (which we now know wouldn’t have hurt the former president but were likely to have injured or killed other people who did not have a podium to drop down behind or a special detail of Secret Service agents to protect them directly).
The Talmud notes when a wall must be high enough so that one cannot peer into the window and see into the window of his neighbor. Imagine how different things would have been earlier this week had the walls supporting the roof of the structure on which the assassin was perched not have been at a height from which the assassin could have peered into the area around the podium where former President Trump was standing.
The Talmud portrays a wall being so low so that a person won’t be able to stand on top of it and see into a nearby window. The would-be assassin took advantage of a window of opportunity presented by a structure located within his direct field of vision across a field and onto the “window” of space occupied by Trump’s face right behind the podium.
The Talmud depicts a person who slopes his wall – on the upper surface – so he will not be able to stand on top of it. The would-be assassin didn’t have to stand. He was able to crawl and shoot from a crouched position.
Until this point, the Talmud just deals with people looking from one location to another. But then the Talmud proceeds to chronicle actions that took place and damages that were incurred because a ladder was close to a “dovecote” or chicken coop, though the Talmud discusses a mongoose or a weasel getting close enough to devour chickens or birds. Taking the imagery into what just happened a few days ago, former President Trump was more like a sitting duck.
The Talmud ad loc refers to Rav Yossi making a concession regarding, metaphorically, geeray deeday, his arrows, just about as close as it came in those days to bullets.
If we are to take the politicians of good will and of both political parties at their words, they are all relieved – though perhaps in varying degrees – that the bloodshed was not as bad as it could easily have been, at least because there is a recognition that the repercussions for both parties – and all Americans – might have been worse had more blood been shed, triggering reflexive rounds of recriminations and retaliations.
We pray that the would-be assassin’s shots will backfire and lead to less violent rhetoric, more civility, and the constructive and reasoned exchange of ideas that will benefit us all.
