Urim and Thummim as a Metaphor for Science
By Alexander Poltorak Introduction In the first installment of this essay, “Collapsing the Wave Function of Urim and Thummim,”[1] we discussed the inherent duality of Urim and Thummim—the duality of human (High Priest) and the oracular device (Urim VeThummim). In this sequel, I want to step back and consider broader parallels between Urim and Thummim and science. The Urim and Thummim, embedded within the High Priest’s breastplate (ḥoshen), constitute the most enigmatic oracular tradition described in the Torah (Exodus 28:30; Numbers 27:21). While the Torah credits their use to Moses and Joshua in determining divine will in moments of crisis (Lev. 8:8; Num. 27:21; 1 Sam. 28:6), it never divulges the precise mechanism by which light (Urim) and perfection (Thummim) conveyed answers. Later Jewish sources—from the tannaitic Sifre Bamidbar (chap. 23) to medieval exegetes like Ibn Ezra—stress two points: first, Urim and [...]