Hope

Hope emerges for that which is left undone.  We do not, after all, hope for things which we possess.  It is a rare individual who even  can express thanks for the things we have.  For example, how many people do you you suppose wake  in the morning saying, “Thank You, God for not giving me cancer today?”  Most of us travel unexpressionless throughout life.  Except for uttering words of hope when we are needy.

We are the people of hope for at least two reasons,  We are hopeful because of all the abuse we have suffered throughout the millenia.  That suffering has made us look heavenward to gain succor in an often cruel world.  We are also hopeful because we are bidden to yearn and work for a better earth, a more whole world.  So much of our liturgy is consumed with improving life for others.  Also, think of the great emphasis Judaism places on tzedaka.

King Solomon began  and completed building the Holy Temple in Jerusalem.  Privy to God’s  confidence, Solomon understood that the future world  would bring destruction to Jerusalem, so he ordered his craftsmen to carve out a double cave beneath the city.  The double cave would house both the Ark and the original Tablets of God. 

On the day of the siege four hundred and ten years later, the Babylonians converged on Jerusalem.  The Jewish King Josiah  ordered the Ark and Tablets placed into the cave before sealing it.  There they remain today.

According to  the Masora ancient tradition, these sacred objects will be revealed when the Lord reveals the Ultimate Peace.

In the meanwhile, they remain hidden because of the fear that the Ark and the Tablets inscribed on Mt.  Sinai would be misused.  Only when humanity is ready to receive them again will the hidden location be divulged.

Hope keeps the dream alive.  It makes us believe in ideas as attainable possibilities.  Hope also demands work.  After all, if we hope, we must work for our goals.  That is the mystery and grandeur of life.

An Act for God

Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai, great sage of his generation, was walking with his disciple, Rabbi Joshua, in Jerusalem after the destruction of the Holy Temple. Rabbi Joshua looked at the Temple ruins and said, "Woe! The place which atoned for the sins of the people is in ruins." Then Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai comforted him, saying, "Do not grieve. There is another way of gaining atonement even though the temple is destroyed. We must now gain atonement through deeds of lovingkindness." As it is written by the prophet Hosea, "lovingkindness I desire, not sacrifice (6:6)."

Avot de Rebbe Natan 11a

The Temple was reduced to ruin in 70 C.E..  We live some seventy years after the great Destruction of our time.  Like Rabbi Joshua, we shook our heads afterward in a blank fog of silence.  Only when we began to recover our senses after this mass PTSD did we attempt to put words and meaning into the Holocaust.  

And like Rabban Yochanan we need to seek a new kind of atonement, one that effectively builds on the rubble of an obliterated continent.  The decades following the Destruction saw a vast rebuilding of Judaism in Israel.  At the same time, American Jewry found itself in a quiet downturn, which until now, has been largely ignored.

Where does the fault lie?  In Orthodoxy that grew progressively to the right, effectively cutting out those who disagreed?  In Conservatism that tried too hard to accommodate the masses?  Was it Reform, which was too eager to make Judaism agreeable with the zeitgeist? 

Perhaps all or none are correct.  But, what difference does it make?  The real question is as God posed to Adam and Eve long ago, “Where are you?”

If this is true, then atonement is not called for but we need a reassessment of where we are.

With the High Holy Days approaching I suggest that we open our hearts and minds to new possibilities.  Here are three.

Belief.  It is invaluable and a core tenet of Judaism to have a belief in God.  Isn’t this the essential meaning of our most holy prayer, Shma?  Yet, it is essential to think as an adult about what we believe.  A teacher in rabbinic school taught us, “A real intimate relationship is where you can freely talk about your beliefs in God.”  That is a good place to start.  Without any characterization, ask what others believe.  Ask questions about what they think about God in their lives.  And of course, you share your ideas.  But there is more.  Find readings about the Jewish ideas of God and expand your thought processes.

Belong.  It is vital that we belong to a caring community and weave ourselves into that fabric.  And reach out to others to not remain apart of the Jewish community.   An axiom stated millennia ago warned, “Do not separate yourselves from the community.”  The cost of separation is massive, eventual atrophy and death.  We must lose no one. 

We are builders.   Together, we strive to craft new doorways for entry into Beth Shalom.  Through music, song, creative programming, social action we seek to build the kind of congregation where everyone feels they can enter.  More opportunities are coming.  Be a part of it.

Behave Jewishly.  The traditions and laws of our people are binding.  They are binding because they cement us to God and people.  It can be overwhelming to make changes that dramatically disrupt our lives.  Anyway, makeovers don’t have longevity.  So, for the long run choose three new mitzvot, Jewish behaviors, (one for each of the three High Holy Days) and incorporate them into your life. 

The options are virtually endless.  A tzedaka box at the table, Shabbat candles on Friday night, helping voter registration, volunteering at the synagogue or help underwrite someone’s dues, reading to our children on Shabbat or Holy Days, devoting yourself to regular learning, learning lead a service, coming to services, visiting the infirmed…..

The question by God remains, “Where are you?”  Maybe God already knows where we are.  If that is so, the question means, “Do you know where you are?”

In incorporating “Belief,” “Belong,” and “Behave” into our lives “where we are” will no longer be in question.

Babble

Everyone on earth had the same language and the same words.  And as they migrated from the east, they came to a valley in the land of Shinar and settled….  They said one to another, “Come let us build a city and a tower with its top in the sky…”                  Genesis Chapter 11

What was the point in building the Tower of Babel?  Why was G-d so angry at their efforts?  Coming just after the episode of the Flood, the reader now sees a universe bent on the unified theme of building a massive tower.

Rashi asks: “The same language and the same words?”  Why is this such a problem?  Isn’t this what the Lord wants of us?  To be unified in mind and purpose?  Yes, the Master answers, but not now; in the messianic era.  We are not yet prepared for such goodness.  While we are still misguided and often debase human values and people we need dissenters.  We require those who provide differing views making us question the correctness of our attitudes. 

That is why the punishment for the people of Babel is proportionate to their wrongdoing.  As a result of the sin of the Tower, they were denied the ability to speak and be understood.  In this way, they were directed to question authority.  Perhaps, say the ancient sage, evil is when all people agree.

In our own families, businesses, and communities we need to continually learn and grow.  Leadership decisions need to be questioned and debated.  Have we done well?  Or have we been dealing with only portions of needed information?  Have we conducted our business fairly and honestly?  Or have we been fearful of disagreement and shunned alternative opinions?

All Things Considered

“A person is obligated to say a blessing for the bad things just as he is responsible to say it for the good.”  ~ Berachot 33b

Having an understanding of where we are in the world is important. When we know where we stand chaos is minimized; confusion is reduced.  In such a mind-set everything has a place and makes sense.  There is a purpose to all things.  Nothing is extraneous.  Nothing is lost.

The famous Rabbi Akiva is a prime example of someone who possessed a worldview that enabled him to lead a rich life.  Akiva’s life was far from ideal.  He was an impoverished and illiterate shepherd.  He had virtually no possessions, certainly nothing of real value.   Akiva fell in love with the daughter of a rich landowner.   Embarrassed by his ignorance Akiva spent years separated from her trying to make up his lack of learning.  His father-in-law had such a low opinion of him that he severed his relations with his daughter when she informed him of her love for the poor and ignorant shepherd. 

Akiva’s guiding principle in life was, “Everything God does is for our good.”  Now, that did not mean that Akiva joyfully embraced the painful and terrible things that happened to him, but he understood that even bitter medicine was still medicine.  Every event in his life had kernels of growth hidden inside.  It was his task to find it and grow from it.

We have heard people say, “It is God’s will,” when bad things happen.  Such a way of thinking is akin to making the best of every situation and accepting that we can grow and learn from any experience.  Railing against reality does us no good while asking what we can learn from a situation affords great opportunity.

“Blessed is God day by day.  He bears our burdens.  The Lord is our salvation.  Selah.”   ~ Psalm 68:17