The parashah of Ki Tavo is one of two Torah portions that contain the tokhehah (chastisement) passages. These verses articulate the dominant biblical theology of history, that Jewish exile and suffering is brought on by the sins of the people. This interpretation enabled the Jews to be steadfast in their faith during millennia of suffering, because God was punishing them out of love, and they had only to repent and be delivered. After the Holocaust, however, we must interpret theology and history anew.

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