In every generation, some people are so certain that their view of what is right is absolutely right that they are ready not only to dedicate their own lives to their ideals, but they are also prepared to coerce others to follow in their footsteps. Not only religious leaders, but political activists of both the Left and the Right see their own viewpoint as objectively ordained and seem willing to banish those who dissent from their views beyond the pale of humanity itself. Religious or secular, these ideologues are so sure of themselves that they assume that their opinions reflect the structure of the cosmos itself. To disagree, then, is not only to differ, but to invite disaster and dire retribution.
No group is exempt from these dogmatists: organizations worthy and flaky, serious and trivial all suffer their share of implacable spokespeople. Certainty, while it provides real vigor and conviction, it has also been the cause of tremendous human suffering. Often, in retrospect, it also seems merely pig-headed. Far from bringing credit, erroneous certainty, or vicious certainty, it simply makes its proponents seem fanatical and harsh.
While Judaism also has its share of people who insist that they know exactly how all Jews should observe Judaism (and no denomination - or post-denomination - has a monopoly on such people, nor is any denomination - or post-denomination - lacking them), today's Torah portion offers an interesting insight into the kind of religious humility that a Jew ought to cultivate.
In the time of the First Temple, God's will was known absolutely. The tools which revealed God's perspective to the Jews was known as Urim and Thummim. According to the Talmud, Urim comes from the Hebrew for "light" and Thummim comes from the word for "complete." Illumination and wholeness were certainly the result of using the Urim and Thummim, as these devices allowed the Priest to inquire of God and receive specific answers that prevented even the possibility of error. The Kohen Gadol wore them inside his breastplate in order to be able to "carry the instrument of decision for the Israelites over his heart before Adonai at all times."
The Urim and Thummim were Israel's guarantee that they would always act in accord with God's desires. A later passage in the Torah specifies that the Kohen Gadol "shall present himself to Eliezer the kohen, who shall on his behalf seek the decision of the Urim before Adonai. By such instruction they shall go out and by such instruction they shall come in, he and all the Israelites, the whole community."
Imagine the security of knowing that you and your community were doing exactly what God wanted! No doubts, no reason to compromise or entertain any other viewpoints but the received one, life would be simple, clear, and a bit rigid.
The Urim and Thummim were used by King Saul, and were part of Israel's consciousness as late as the time of the return of the Israelites from Babylonian Exile under Ezra and Nehemiah around the year 500 B.C.E. We are told that several of the returnees were unable to verify their priestly lineage and that there were therefore barred from eating the priestly tithes "until a kohen with Urim and Thummim should appear."
Note that this passage from the Book of Ezra implies that the Urim and Thummim weren't available in the early Second Temple Period. The ancient historian Josephus (1rst Century, Israel and Rome) reports their demise during the time of the Hasmonean Kohen Gadol John Hyrcanus (around 135 B.C.E.), whereas the Mishnah Sotah reports, "with the death of the first prophets, the Urim and Thummim ceased." The Talmud, in Yoma, insists that they were present in the Second Temple but that they didn't function as they had earlier.
What is the religious implication of the loss of the Urim and Thummim (which coincided with the end of prophecy too)? Whereas biblical Israel could claim explicit verbal communication from God, thereby eliminating uncertainty and confusion, Jews of later ages can make no such claim. We don't have explicit divine words to tell us which path to follow and we don't have devices that can dope out God's will once and for all.
All we have is our inherited traditions, our sacred writings, the world around us, and the small, still voice that speaks within each one of us. Those four legs are the base on which we stand, the compass by which a Jew can chart a proper course in life. Our traditions, the mitzvot (commandments) and minhagim (customs) translate lofty imperative and profound insight into concrete deeds, providing constant access to holiness and morality. Our sacred writings record our ancestor's encounters with God and their insights of what it is God wanted from them (and wants from us). The world around us is also a source for understanding God, since the same God that speaks to us through Torah fashioned Creation as well. And finally, the God who created the world also made the human heart, giving us the ability to distinguish between good and evil. By learning to listen to our inner voice, we strengthen our ability to hear God speaking through our consciences too.
No one path alone can convey the full majesty and depth of God's will. All four together have provided the web that has secured our place in the will since the end of prophecy and the revocation of the Urim and Thummim. While they can't tell us exactly what it is God wants, and they will be understood differently by different Jews, those four paths are the only way available to us.
In utilizing the gifts of tradition, sacred writings, the cosmos, and conscience, we must also know that we filter these insights through the wisdom and experience of the entire Jewish people, the prism through which God's covenant is established in each age and in every generation.
Without the Urim and Thummim, we cannot disdain the viewpoints of other honest and well-intentioned Jews who may differ with us in their understanding of the covenant or the way they seek to embody God's will. Instead, we can learn from each other, even in our disagreements, and we can encourage each other, even though we may follow slightly different ways. For, in the end, it just may be that God removed the Urim and Thummim because we could not resist the temptation to be a little too sure, and bit too certain, and a little to smug.
At least, that's my opinion.
Shabbat Shalom!