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Are Psychic Mediums Kosher? In his quest to find out what Judaism has to say about the issue of consulting Mediums, Rabbi Elie Spitz writes the following in his book, Does The Soul Survive:
Perplexed, I asked a leading professor of Talmud in the Conservative movement if Jews are permitted to consult with mediums. Without pausing he replied, “Of course not. The Torah prohibition is clear.” I double checked the Torah’s command, which seemed pretty straightforward: “There shall not be found among you…a consulter with familiar spirits…or necromancer” (Deut.18:10-11). The next day the professor called and said, “I was wrong. Jewish law does permit calling on the dead in certain cases. You can go to a medium that is simply telling you what he or she is hearing. But, “he added, “Who would want to?” (Does the Soul Survive; p. 103-104) Though the Torah seems pretty clear, forbidding the practice of consulting with the dead, or engaging a Medium to consult the dead for you, the truth is that it is far more complicated than a simple, “yes” or “no.” Although the fundamentalist love to take the Torah and it’s many prohibitions out of context, usually to suit their particular, narrow agenda (but only, however, if it suits them. Hardly any of them give 10 percent of their income, observe the Sabbath or stone “the rebellious child” – funny how selective they can be). A careful reading of these texts, particularly within their larger contexts, quickly reveals that what we today call “a Medium” versus the “Mediums” in the Torah, have nothing to do with one another. Many of the great rabbis, leaders and scholars throughout Jewish history, spanning from the rationalists to the mystics, from the Ashkenazim to the Sephardim, not only qualified the Torah’s views on necromancy, not only allowed for modern day consultation of a Medium, but consulted a Medium themselves, if indeed, they didn’t speak to the dead on their own.
Clearly what the Torah forbids is the cultic practices that surrounded the consultation with the dead among a whole host of other disturbing, idolatrous practices. It was not, however, dealing with what most of us are do when consulting a Medium.
In the end, too many Jews espouse unequivocally that Judaism does not believe in life after death. Too many Orthodox Jews acknowledge life after death but believe that Judaism does not allow for communication with the dead or consulting those, like Mediums, who are conversant with the dead. In both cases these individuals are ill informed, if not outright ignorant on these subjects.
Though the Torah forbids consulting the dead and engaging a medium, the context of the Torah is radically different than what most of us mean by a “Psychic Medium” in this day and age. Speaking to dead spirits and employing the use of a Medium in our context is clearly different and clearly permitted across the Jewish spectrum of belief and practice.
Finally, anyone who thinks they know more than the greats of Judaism: Chaim Vital, the Vilna Gaon, Rabbi Akiva, Joseph Karo (and the list goes on) should probably think again and re-examine the tradition and the texts which is exactly what we are going to do.
JOIN US THIS SHABBAT 2/13/2010 as we study the Torah portion and how it relates to whether or not Psychic Mediums are kosher!
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