Hearing about Charles Vacca, the firing range instructor in Arizona who put an uzzi into the hands of a nine year old girl (who had never held one before) and set it to automatic, with predictable results, I wonder what a nine year old was doing firing a gun in the first place. In some parts of our society, guns are approached as toys: and if you don’t get to fire one off you’ve missed out on one of life’s great experiences. Yes, gun safety is taken seriously (in general), but there really is no reason for a child to be firing a gun. The 2nd amendment, which gun rights advocates always quote, has to do with the necessity of having a militia: what is now the Reserves, or the equivalent of volunteer firefighters, especially when there isn’t much of a standing army.
The glorification of guns and violence also is in our movies and videogames. Is it really okay for children to play with toy guns? Are we sure that doesn’t send them a message about the acceptability of violence, and of using power to resolve conflicts? Why is it okay for a child, or even adult, to engage in the fantasy of killing and murdering, in a video game? How can this not be harmful to our neshamas, our souls?
The Talmud has a discussion about carrying swords on Shabbat. Apparently, at the time of the discussion, people liked to wear ceremonial swords. If they can be considered a garment or ornament, then you are wearing, not carrying, so you can go out with it on Shabbat. If it is something you carry, an implement that is not part of an outfit, then you can’t carry it oon Shabbat. The gemara concludes that it is not an ornament, but rather a disgraceful thing (Shabbat 63a).
We need to teach this distaste for guns and violence to our children. Yes, sometimes they are necessary, sometimes we do have to put on uniforms and defend ourselves, but even then we are saddened by being turned into killers. Guns are never glorious.
May Mr. Vacca's family, as well as the little girl who he gave the uzzi to, and the families of all those who have lost loved ones to gun violence, be comforted.
Friday, August 29, 2014
Friday, August 15, 2014
Jewish Wisdom and Depression
Robin Williams & depression
Shocked to learn of robin william’s death
Brought so much joy
I think of “mrs doubtfire,” a truly harmless character,
father who just wanted to see his children
he was a father, and also a giving person, who once spent the day with a girl dying of cancer
hard to believe he was depressed
turns out: manic depressive,
alcohol, which people often use to self-medicate mental illness
he was an overworker, which can also be a way of avoiding the perceived pain of one’s life
perhaps even comedy was a way of coping with depression—
comics often have mental illness
Robin Williams himself said comedy was a depress against fears.
reminiscent of the greek god Dionysus, who had 2 faces, one crying and one laughing
Dionysus was the god of wine, which can bring both laughter and tragedy
Reflects also the two extremes of human experience
It turns out: there are scientific studies claiming that religion can help with depression
Not talking about extreme depression, which may be a different ballgame
One study out of Columbia u followed a group for 10 years, and divided them between children of depressed and non-depressed parents. It turned out that the students who reported that “religion or spirituality was highly important to them had about one-fourth the risk of experiencing major depression between years 10 and 20 compared with other participants.” But [I have to be totally honest here] it Bible-thumping church goers who had this reduced risk. Neither the amount of attendance to religious services, nor the specific religious identity, predicted the outcome. The protection against depression was strongest in children of depressed parents.
Another study out of Wayne State University has demonstrated that even people suffering from traumatic brain injuries have been helped specifically by their faith. A definite correlation exists between those who are self-reported as having religious beliefs or seeing themselves as Spiritual (a connection to a Higher Power) and better emotional and physical rehabilitation outcomes!
A third study out of Columbia and published in JAMA Psychiatry claimed that regular spiritual practice thickens the brain cortex!
Admittedly, there are also studies claiming it does not help. A british study in “psychological medicine” actually claims that being religious predisposes people toward major depression!
Why might religion help?
Michael Govan has suggested:
God is seen as a power to get us out of depression when we can’t
Religion brings us into community, so we are no longer isolated
People are inspired by sacred texts about heroes overcoming obstacles
This morning: is there specific jewish wisdom that can help us when we’re depressed?
1. Positive sense of who I am, which the daily prayers are designed to reinforce
a. The belief that I am perfect exactly how god has made me, I am a pure soul
b. I have a mission
i. To face challenges I encounter. Every day is a spiritual test.
c. Gratitude for exactly what I have been given, belief I have been given the right things to accomplish that task, and a sense of pride in that task
Tanya ch 31: Paradoxically then, depression contains the key to its own demise. It can be fought in Kung Fu fashion, using its own power against it. Depression argues that you’re a worthless, hopeless scum in whom nobody would ever take interest. So agree with it. Tell it back, “You’re absolutely right. I’m even less than that. I was created with a purpose that I have not lived up to. I’ve messed up again and again. And yet, nevertheless, I have a G d who has put up with me despite all my failures, who continues to ask me to be His agent in His world, eagerly awaiting my mitzvahs, looking forward to me sharing my concerns with Him three times a day. My purpose still lies before me, and whatever of it I can fulfill, even for a moment, is worth more than all the pleasures of the Garden of Eden.”
There is a tale about the Chabad rebbe:
The Rebbe looked at the young man standing before him and said, “A Jew has to serve G d with happiness!”
The young man replied, “Rebbe, what is there for me to be celebrate?”
“Celebrate about the mitzvahs that you do!”
The young man paused. “Rebbe, I haven’t done any mitzvahs for a long time.”
“Then celebrate that you have a G d who waits every moment for your mitzvahs!”
Against such an argument, depression has nothing left to say. We call this “transforming darkness to light.” When light pushes away darkness, darkness only waits in the corners for its time to return. But when the darkness itself is transformed to light, it is a light that no darkness can oppose.
d. Daily prayer reinforces this identity
i. Elohai neshamah: my soul is pure, I can feel good about myself. I am beautiful and holy at my core
ii. Birkot hashachar: gratitude for everything I’ve been given
iii. Shema: reminds me that I work for god, and my task today is to find the opportunities to “love god when I walk on the way and when I sit at home”—i.e. to bring holiness and repair into every moment
iv. Amida & aleynu remind me that my mission is to bring repair to the world.
1. “rebuild Jerusalem”-may I be instrumental in bringing messianic repair
2. Aleynu: letaken olam
v. In the amida: we pray honen hada’at—may every encounter teach me how to serve you
vi. The very act of davenning is starting my day serving god, and feeling good about serving god
Conclusion: As a practice, always be enthusiastic.
1st line of shulchan aruch: yitgaber c’ari; value of zerizut-enthusiasm.
talmud: ein omdim- we can’t serve god out of sadness,
so we try to do every mitzvah with enthusiasm
from the moment we get up until we go to bed, we should be enthusiastic about fulfilling our mission for the day
I knew a shaliach tzibbur, who sometimes when there was no minyan would start davenning by saying “we have no choice, we must davven”.
What a depressing way to approach god!
Zerizut, enthusiasm, is to say, great, now we can commune with our maker!
Hasidim: depression is a bad yetzer taking me away from serving god—
Sefer Tanya ch 26: “ every mitzvah must be done with joy, every prayer with song and every word of Torah studied with enthusiasm—not just because without that joyful enthusiasm, you are simply not there within that mitzvah, but because without joy, the Jew lives in a precarious state. “Because you didn’t serve G d your G d with joy and a good heart…and so you will serve your enemies.” Meaning: When a Jew acts as a Jew but with a heavy heart, he is fair game for the enemy within—the urges and passions of his animal soul.”
We need to ignore it
Rebbe Nahman (who some claim was bipolar)): Mitzvah gedolah lihyot besimha tamid
use niggunim, jokes, anything, even pretending to be happy
so we have the energy to bring healing into the world and to serve those around us.
Shocked to learn of robin william’s death
Brought so much joy
I think of “mrs doubtfire,” a truly harmless character,
father who just wanted to see his children
he was a father, and also a giving person, who once spent the day with a girl dying of cancer
hard to believe he was depressed
turns out: manic depressive,
alcohol, which people often use to self-medicate mental illness
he was an overworker, which can also be a way of avoiding the perceived pain of one’s life
perhaps even comedy was a way of coping with depression—
comics often have mental illness
Robin Williams himself said comedy was a depress against fears.
reminiscent of the greek god Dionysus, who had 2 faces, one crying and one laughing
Dionysus was the god of wine, which can bring both laughter and tragedy
Reflects also the two extremes of human experience
It turns out: there are scientific studies claiming that religion can help with depression
Not talking about extreme depression, which may be a different ballgame
One study out of Columbia u followed a group for 10 years, and divided them between children of depressed and non-depressed parents. It turned out that the students who reported that “religion or spirituality was highly important to them had about one-fourth the risk of experiencing major depression between years 10 and 20 compared with other participants.” But [I have to be totally honest here] it Bible-thumping church goers who had this reduced risk. Neither the amount of attendance to religious services, nor the specific religious identity, predicted the outcome. The protection against depression was strongest in children of depressed parents.
Another study out of Wayne State University has demonstrated that even people suffering from traumatic brain injuries have been helped specifically by their faith. A definite correlation exists between those who are self-reported as having religious beliefs or seeing themselves as Spiritual (a connection to a Higher Power) and better emotional and physical rehabilitation outcomes!
A third study out of Columbia and published in JAMA Psychiatry claimed that regular spiritual practice thickens the brain cortex!
Admittedly, there are also studies claiming it does not help. A british study in “psychological medicine” actually claims that being religious predisposes people toward major depression!
Why might religion help?
Michael Govan has suggested:
God is seen as a power to get us out of depression when we can’t
Religion brings us into community, so we are no longer isolated
People are inspired by sacred texts about heroes overcoming obstacles
This morning: is there specific jewish wisdom that can help us when we’re depressed?
1. Positive sense of who I am, which the daily prayers are designed to reinforce
a. The belief that I am perfect exactly how god has made me, I am a pure soul
b. I have a mission
i. To face challenges I encounter. Every day is a spiritual test.
c. Gratitude for exactly what I have been given, belief I have been given the right things to accomplish that task, and a sense of pride in that task
Tanya ch 31: Paradoxically then, depression contains the key to its own demise. It can be fought in Kung Fu fashion, using its own power against it. Depression argues that you’re a worthless, hopeless scum in whom nobody would ever take interest. So agree with it. Tell it back, “You’re absolutely right. I’m even less than that. I was created with a purpose that I have not lived up to. I’ve messed up again and again. And yet, nevertheless, I have a G d who has put up with me despite all my failures, who continues to ask me to be His agent in His world, eagerly awaiting my mitzvahs, looking forward to me sharing my concerns with Him three times a day. My purpose still lies before me, and whatever of it I can fulfill, even for a moment, is worth more than all the pleasures of the Garden of Eden.”
There is a tale about the Chabad rebbe:
The Rebbe looked at the young man standing before him and said, “A Jew has to serve G d with happiness!”
The young man replied, “Rebbe, what is there for me to be celebrate?”
“Celebrate about the mitzvahs that you do!”
The young man paused. “Rebbe, I haven’t done any mitzvahs for a long time.”
“Then celebrate that you have a G d who waits every moment for your mitzvahs!”
Against such an argument, depression has nothing left to say. We call this “transforming darkness to light.” When light pushes away darkness, darkness only waits in the corners for its time to return. But when the darkness itself is transformed to light, it is a light that no darkness can oppose.
d. Daily prayer reinforces this identity
i. Elohai neshamah: my soul is pure, I can feel good about myself. I am beautiful and holy at my core
ii. Birkot hashachar: gratitude for everything I’ve been given
iii. Shema: reminds me that I work for god, and my task today is to find the opportunities to “love god when I walk on the way and when I sit at home”—i.e. to bring holiness and repair into every moment
iv. Amida & aleynu remind me that my mission is to bring repair to the world.
1. “rebuild Jerusalem”-may I be instrumental in bringing messianic repair
2. Aleynu: letaken olam
v. In the amida: we pray honen hada’at—may every encounter teach me how to serve you
vi. The very act of davenning is starting my day serving god, and feeling good about serving god
Conclusion: As a practice, always be enthusiastic.
1st line of shulchan aruch: yitgaber c’ari; value of zerizut-enthusiasm.
talmud: ein omdim- we can’t serve god out of sadness,
so we try to do every mitzvah with enthusiasm
from the moment we get up until we go to bed, we should be enthusiastic about fulfilling our mission for the day
I knew a shaliach tzibbur, who sometimes when there was no minyan would start davenning by saying “we have no choice, we must davven”.
What a depressing way to approach god!
Zerizut, enthusiasm, is to say, great, now we can commune with our maker!
Hasidim: depression is a bad yetzer taking me away from serving god—
Sefer Tanya ch 26: “ every mitzvah must be done with joy, every prayer with song and every word of Torah studied with enthusiasm—not just because without that joyful enthusiasm, you are simply not there within that mitzvah, but because without joy, the Jew lives in a precarious state. “Because you didn’t serve G d your G d with joy and a good heart…and so you will serve your enemies.” Meaning: When a Jew acts as a Jew but with a heavy heart, he is fair game for the enemy within—the urges and passions of his animal soul.”
We need to ignore it
Rebbe Nahman (who some claim was bipolar)): Mitzvah gedolah lihyot besimha tamid
use niggunim, jokes, anything, even pretending to be happy
so we have the energy to bring healing into the world and to serve those around us.
Thursday, August 7, 2014
Va'etchanan: Loving God in today's world
Everybody knows that the heilige Rav Levi Yitzhak of Berdichev and Rav Baruch of Medzhibozh were the very opposites of each other. Reb Baruch was very civilized. When he davened, he barely moved. When he sat with his family at the Shabbes table, he was so regal he was the king of the world.
But when Rav Levi Yitzhak prayed, he jumped from one end of the room to another. He would dance, turn around, fall to the ground. At his table, one had to be very careful. You never knew what to expect. In the middle of kiddush, he could go absolutely wild, take the wine bottle, pour it up, pour it down, throw the cup into the air.
Reb Levi Yitzhak wanted so much to spend a Shabbes with Rav Baruch, the Baal Shem Tov's grandson, that he finally invited himself.
Rav Baruch said: "You can come, but you have to behave my way. Especially at the table, with my family, you must be very proper."
Reb Levi Yitzhak of Berdichev thought about it. "The only way I can behave is if I don't open my mouth. I won't even pray, except to say 'Amen,' because the minute I daven, I'm no longer myself."
So he said to Reb Baruch: "When we're making kiddush, don't ask me to say a blessing. Let me be absolutely silent, because it's the only way I can control myself."
The two rebbes agreed. Reb Levi Yitzhak came for Shabbes. They davened and he only answered "Amen." The praying went beautifully. Everybody was sure that by kiddush, Reb Levi Yitzhak would start jumping on the table. But, no, Reb Baruch made kiddush and Rav Levi Yitzhak only said "Amen."
Everybody knows that it's a minhag, a custom on Friday night, to eat sweet fish and sour fish. The deepest question in the world, and a big controversy among the rebbes, was which fish to eat first. Some said sweet fish, because then you have the strength to bear the sour. Others said: "Let's get the sour fish out of the way, so that the end will be sweet."
But both ways are holy.
Rav Baruch was civilized. He had a little hasid, like a waiter, bring the fish on a platter and ask each person which he preferred to eat first - sour fish or sweet. So the waiter came, sadly enough, to Reb Levi Yitzhak and asked, "Do you like sweet fish? Hostu lieb zisseh fisch"
That's all the poor hasid had to ask. Rav Levi Yitzhak said: "Hob ich lieb fisch? Do I love sweet fish? Ich hob lieb nor hashem! I love only God!"
And he took the whole platter of fish and threw it up to the ceiling. And the fish began to drip onto Rav Baruch's tallit, because in those days the big rebbes always wore their prayer shawls for the feast on Friday night.
Everyone was aghast. Everyone, that is, except Rav Baruch who, for all his civilized behavior, would never wash his tallit after that feast because, he said, the stains were very holy. "These stains are caused by a Jew who really loves God. How can I wash them out?"
After Rav Baruch's death, the tallit was passed from one rebbe to another to wear on Shabbes, but never washed. During this century it became so precious that the rebbes only wore it for Yom Kippur. The holy Munkatcher Rebbe, the last to possess it, wore it only for Neilah, the final prayer of Yom Kippur. He must have foreseen the destruction that would be coming into the world with the Holocaust. For the holy Munkatcher's last will was to be buried in Rav Baruch's tallit, covered with the stains caused by one who loved only God. (as told by R Shlomo Carlebach)
What does love of god look like for us?
Are we really commanded “veahafta et adonai,” to love god, to have a particular emotion?
What is we don’t feel it?
Do we even want to feel it?
“loving god” as an ideal is very challenging
In a world where fanatics claim to be focused on divine
But use this as an excuse for killing and hatred
So Many of us don’t think of God as a person we would be in love with
And if god is a person, we think of god as a parent or ruler
One way many people tone it down: “love” as service
If I love you, do nice things for you
Veahafta leads into “vehaya im shamoa”—leads to action
Useless to love god is we don’t serve god
If I love someone, always thinking about making them happy
Most important value in my life
This is very dry
Is this really loving god?
But what can loving god be for us in today’s world?
One aspect: yearning to experience divine, spiritual core of everything
we can yearn to see the divine,
to taste god,
to bring god’s presence into our life in a palpable way
Story: blessing over apple
Once a man brought his ten year old son to visit R' Aharon HaGadol of Karlin. As they were sitting and talking, Reb Aharon asked for a bowl of apples to be brought in. Reb Aharon and his guests each took an apple, with great intention recited the blessing, ". . .Borei Pri HaEtz. . ", and began to eat.
The boy thought to himself, "What is the difference between me and the Rebbe. He eats apples and also I eat apples. He makes a blessing and so do I. Even I could be the Rebbe someday."
Reb Aharon, attuned as he was to the thoughts of others, felt what the youngster was thinking. "Oh, there is a real difference between us my friend", divulged Reb Aharon. "When you wake up in the morning and look out the window, you see that there is a beautiful apple tree in your yard. You see the juicy, red apples growing on it and right away you can think of nothing else but those apples. You run to wash your hands, get dressed as quickly as possible, bolt out the door and scamper up the tree. You quickly decide which apple is to be your breakfast and open your mouth for the first delicious bite. You almost take that bite until you remember, just in time, that you must make a blessing before eating an apple. So you make the blessing in order to eat."
"When I wake up in the morning", continued Reb Aharon, "it is a different story." "When I wake up and look out the window I see a beautiful apple tree. I think about the wonder of Hashem's creation. I contemplate how this apple tree began as a small seed in the ground, and how it slowly grew year by year until one year it flowered and then apples appeared. I remember to wash my hands before I run outside to take a closer look at this amazing creation. In awe of Hashem and His Creation I want to make a blessing on the apple tree and its fruits. I begin to say the blessing, but then I remember, in order to make a blessing, I need an apple. . .!" (retold at Nishmas.org)
Loving god, yearning for god, is to yearn to experience divine energy
What the kabbalists call sheaf, divine abundance which flows through every molecule of the universe
Also: yearn for a world where that divine energy is palpable
Mishnah: ever since shekhinah exiled, sky changed color, fruit lost its flavor
We can no longer simply taste the divine
We have to look for it, yearn for it
Love of God also comes from appreciating the way god loves us love in our lives
The blessings of food, water, shelter
The love from our family, their presence in our life
The love from our critics, the way they help us grow
All of these are expressions of divine love
And of course loving god is an action as well, of pouring our energy into taking care of each other & of the world
Mother Theresa: In loving one another through our works we bring an increase of grace and a growth in divine love
May we discover divine love in our lives
May we become fountains of divine love
But when Rav Levi Yitzhak prayed, he jumped from one end of the room to another. He would dance, turn around, fall to the ground. At his table, one had to be very careful. You never knew what to expect. In the middle of kiddush, he could go absolutely wild, take the wine bottle, pour it up, pour it down, throw the cup into the air.
Reb Levi Yitzhak wanted so much to spend a Shabbes with Rav Baruch, the Baal Shem Tov's grandson, that he finally invited himself.
Rav Baruch said: "You can come, but you have to behave my way. Especially at the table, with my family, you must be very proper."
Reb Levi Yitzhak of Berdichev thought about it. "The only way I can behave is if I don't open my mouth. I won't even pray, except to say 'Amen,' because the minute I daven, I'm no longer myself."
So he said to Reb Baruch: "When we're making kiddush, don't ask me to say a blessing. Let me be absolutely silent, because it's the only way I can control myself."
The two rebbes agreed. Reb Levi Yitzhak came for Shabbes. They davened and he only answered "Amen." The praying went beautifully. Everybody was sure that by kiddush, Reb Levi Yitzhak would start jumping on the table. But, no, Reb Baruch made kiddush and Rav Levi Yitzhak only said "Amen."
Everybody knows that it's a minhag, a custom on Friday night, to eat sweet fish and sour fish. The deepest question in the world, and a big controversy among the rebbes, was which fish to eat first. Some said sweet fish, because then you have the strength to bear the sour. Others said: "Let's get the sour fish out of the way, so that the end will be sweet."
But both ways are holy.
Rav Baruch was civilized. He had a little hasid, like a waiter, bring the fish on a platter and ask each person which he preferred to eat first - sour fish or sweet. So the waiter came, sadly enough, to Reb Levi Yitzhak and asked, "Do you like sweet fish? Hostu lieb zisseh fisch"
That's all the poor hasid had to ask. Rav Levi Yitzhak said: "Hob ich lieb fisch? Do I love sweet fish? Ich hob lieb nor hashem! I love only God!"
And he took the whole platter of fish and threw it up to the ceiling. And the fish began to drip onto Rav Baruch's tallit, because in those days the big rebbes always wore their prayer shawls for the feast on Friday night.
Everyone was aghast. Everyone, that is, except Rav Baruch who, for all his civilized behavior, would never wash his tallit after that feast because, he said, the stains were very holy. "These stains are caused by a Jew who really loves God. How can I wash them out?"
After Rav Baruch's death, the tallit was passed from one rebbe to another to wear on Shabbes, but never washed. During this century it became so precious that the rebbes only wore it for Yom Kippur. The holy Munkatcher Rebbe, the last to possess it, wore it only for Neilah, the final prayer of Yom Kippur. He must have foreseen the destruction that would be coming into the world with the Holocaust. For the holy Munkatcher's last will was to be buried in Rav Baruch's tallit, covered with the stains caused by one who loved only God. (as told by R Shlomo Carlebach)
What does love of god look like for us?
Are we really commanded “veahafta et adonai,” to love god, to have a particular emotion?
What is we don’t feel it?
Do we even want to feel it?
“loving god” as an ideal is very challenging
In a world where fanatics claim to be focused on divine
But use this as an excuse for killing and hatred
So Many of us don’t think of God as a person we would be in love with
And if god is a person, we think of god as a parent or ruler
One way many people tone it down: “love” as service
If I love you, do nice things for you
Veahafta leads into “vehaya im shamoa”—leads to action
Useless to love god is we don’t serve god
If I love someone, always thinking about making them happy
Most important value in my life
This is very dry
Is this really loving god?
But what can loving god be for us in today’s world?
One aspect: yearning to experience divine, spiritual core of everything
we can yearn to see the divine,
to taste god,
to bring god’s presence into our life in a palpable way
Story: blessing over apple
Once a man brought his ten year old son to visit R' Aharon HaGadol of Karlin. As they were sitting and talking, Reb Aharon asked for a bowl of apples to be brought in. Reb Aharon and his guests each took an apple, with great intention recited the blessing, ". . .Borei Pri HaEtz. . ", and began to eat.
The boy thought to himself, "What is the difference between me and the Rebbe. He eats apples and also I eat apples. He makes a blessing and so do I. Even I could be the Rebbe someday."
Reb Aharon, attuned as he was to the thoughts of others, felt what the youngster was thinking. "Oh, there is a real difference between us my friend", divulged Reb Aharon. "When you wake up in the morning and look out the window, you see that there is a beautiful apple tree in your yard. You see the juicy, red apples growing on it and right away you can think of nothing else but those apples. You run to wash your hands, get dressed as quickly as possible, bolt out the door and scamper up the tree. You quickly decide which apple is to be your breakfast and open your mouth for the first delicious bite. You almost take that bite until you remember, just in time, that you must make a blessing before eating an apple. So you make the blessing in order to eat."
"When I wake up in the morning", continued Reb Aharon, "it is a different story." "When I wake up and look out the window I see a beautiful apple tree. I think about the wonder of Hashem's creation. I contemplate how this apple tree began as a small seed in the ground, and how it slowly grew year by year until one year it flowered and then apples appeared. I remember to wash my hands before I run outside to take a closer look at this amazing creation. In awe of Hashem and His Creation I want to make a blessing on the apple tree and its fruits. I begin to say the blessing, but then I remember, in order to make a blessing, I need an apple. . .!" (retold at Nishmas.org)
Loving god, yearning for god, is to yearn to experience divine energy
What the kabbalists call sheaf, divine abundance which flows through every molecule of the universe
Also: yearn for a world where that divine energy is palpable
Mishnah: ever since shekhinah exiled, sky changed color, fruit lost its flavor
We can no longer simply taste the divine
We have to look for it, yearn for it
Love of God also comes from appreciating the way god loves us love in our lives
The blessings of food, water, shelter
The love from our family, their presence in our life
The love from our critics, the way they help us grow
All of these are expressions of divine love
And of course loving god is an action as well, of pouring our energy into taking care of each other & of the world
Mother Theresa: In loving one another through our works we bring an increase of grace and a growth in divine love
May we discover divine love in our lives
May we become fountains of divine love
Wednesday, August 6, 2014
Tisha B'Av: Holding ourselves up to a higher standard
Holding ourselves up to a higher standard
Talmud: he who doesn't see temple rebuilt, as if destroyed in his lifetime
we are meant to spend tisha b'av asking: what are we doing to delay the redemption?
what do we do now that causes temple not to be rebuilt
Opposite of blame game: always blame ourselves
Is this blaming the victim?
No: more productive to always grow
This year, with the war in Israel, Eicha resonates deeply with the destruction happening there
Thank God, not as many civilian casualties as when the romans destroyed jerusalem
But the fire of the rockets reminds me of the fire in the temple in roman times
fires now all across Israel
It is easy to point the finger at hamas and at the civilian population in Gaza
a terrorist organization dedicated to destroying Israel
spent on order of millions of dollars each tunnel instead of building infrastructure
sacrificed 160 children building them
civilians too:
gazans teach children right of return instead of building gaza
elected Hamas & happy to martyr civilians for its jihad
and publically we need to do this—to speak up for Israel
It's easy to say, we already hold ourself to too high a standard
roof knocks & leaflets when there are civilians in the way
actually investigate whether a target was accidental, fesses up when it makes a mistake
providing electricity to Gaza
Offering to provide blood to injured citizens (which Gaza turned down)--whether jewish or palestinian blood
Painful that the world holds Israel up to a higher standard
to a standard apparently: shouldn't fight back when threatened
and our response to the world is to say that we need to protect ourselves
The challenge of this teaching: what more can we do to promote peace in Israel?
What more can we do to promote peace between jews and palestinians, and all muslims?
What more can we do to help the palestinians build a viable state?
What more can we do to protect and save the lives of civilians?
What ways can we treat each other better, erase traces of sinat hinam, create jewish unity?
Can we reach out here to muslims we know, to create understanding, friendship, the seeds of peace?
Never to blame, only to constantly improve ourselves
Talmud: he who doesn't see temple rebuilt, as if destroyed in his lifetime
we are meant to spend tisha b'av asking: what are we doing to delay the redemption?
what do we do now that causes temple not to be rebuilt
Opposite of blame game: always blame ourselves
Is this blaming the victim?
No: more productive to always grow
This year, with the war in Israel, Eicha resonates deeply with the destruction happening there
Thank God, not as many civilian casualties as when the romans destroyed jerusalem
But the fire of the rockets reminds me of the fire in the temple in roman times
fires now all across Israel
It is easy to point the finger at hamas and at the civilian population in Gaza
a terrorist organization dedicated to destroying Israel
spent on order of millions of dollars each tunnel instead of building infrastructure
sacrificed 160 children building them
civilians too:
gazans teach children right of return instead of building gaza
elected Hamas & happy to martyr civilians for its jihad
and publically we need to do this—to speak up for Israel
It's easy to say, we already hold ourself to too high a standard
roof knocks & leaflets when there are civilians in the way
actually investigate whether a target was accidental, fesses up when it makes a mistake
providing electricity to Gaza
Offering to provide blood to injured citizens (which Gaza turned down)--whether jewish or palestinian blood
Painful that the world holds Israel up to a higher standard
to a standard apparently: shouldn't fight back when threatened
and our response to the world is to say that we need to protect ourselves
The challenge of this teaching: what more can we do to promote peace in Israel?
What more can we do to promote peace between jews and palestinians, and all muslims?
What more can we do to help the palestinians build a viable state?
What more can we do to protect and save the lives of civilians?
What ways can we treat each other better, erase traces of sinat hinam, create jewish unity?
Can we reach out here to muslims we know, to create understanding, friendship, the seeds of peace?
Never to blame, only to constantly improve ourselves
Tuesday, August 5, 2014
Devarim: what is our vision for the third temple?
It’s been quite a week
uncovered Hamas plans to send 200 miltants into Israel on Rosh hashanah
to kill/kidnap civilians
we collectively have been saved from a contemporary Haman
ninth day of the month of Av (“Tisha B’Av”) coming up Monday night
Both the first Temple (833–423 BCE) and the second Temple (349 BCE–69 CE) were destroyed on this date.
How sadly apt now that we are in this terrible war
Shabbat preceding tisha b'av: “Shabbat of Vision,” for on this Shabbat we read a chapter from the Prophets (Isaiah 1:1–27) that begins, “The vision of Isaiah .”
Isaiah's vision but also our own.
Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berdichev: the vision is our own.
each and every one of us is granted a vision of the third and final Temple
paraphrases the Talmud, “though we do not ourselves see, our souls see.”
even if we are not consciously aware of the cause of our sudden inspiration.
Our souls behold a vision of a world at peace with itself and its Creator, a world suffused with the knowledge and awareness of G d, a world that has realized its divine potential for goodness and perfection.
a vision that inspires us to correct our behavior and hasten the day when the spiritual vision becomes physical reality.
Now, with such violence in Israel
hard to imagine such a vision
of peace in israel, between Jews and Arabs,
a peace which inspires the world to live in peace
Reb Arthur Waskow's vision:
our sages teach us that when Mashiach comes, he will rebuild the Holy Temple in the twinkling of an eye. But often have I wondered: How can this be? Mashiach will be extraordinary, yet still a human being merely …
“But now! I have seen … Well, let me tell you: At the foot of the Western Wall, the Wall where God’s Own Presence weeps and hides in exile, I have seen hundreds of thousands of Jews gathered, singing.
“Mashiach has come! — — and they are singing, dancing, as the Great Day dawns. Women, men, together — — I could not believe it! I was not even sure” — — he glanced apologetic at his Chassid — “whether Mashiach was a wo … well, forget it.
“I can see from the sun, the heat, it is late afternoon. Yet the crowd are wearing t’fillin. The only time in all the year when Jews wear t’fillin in the afternoon is Tisha B’Av, so I can see that it is the day of mourning for our beloved Temple. But there are no signs of mourning — — except perhaps the way, the wistful way, Mashiach reaches out to touch the Wall, to tuck one last petition between the great carved stones.
“I see Mashiach speak a sentence to the crowds. I cannot hear the words, but I can see that from this voice there stirs a river. Like water from the ancient stones of Wall, I see a stream of Jews flow up the stairway that rises to the Temple Mount.
“The river of people pauses on the steps. They cluster ‘round a wrinkled, tattered piece of paper, posted above the stairway. I see it is signed by the rabbis of that day. It warns all Jews to go no further, lest by accident they walk — — God forbid! — — into the space set aside as the Holy of Holies.
“Mashiach reads. And laughs. And tears the sign to shreds. The stream of people shudders — — higher, higher.
“The crowd cascades from the stairway onto the great stone pavement of the Temple Mount. Their singing turns to the thunder of a great waterfall. They look toward the other end of the Mount — toward the great golden Dome of the Rock where Abraham bound his son for sacrifice.
“Surrounding the Dome are thousands of these children of Ishmael, these Muslims. They are not singing. They are shouting, furious, stubborn. ‘Not here!’ they shout in unison, ‘Not here!’
“ ‘You will not tear down our Holy Mosque to build your Jewish Temple!’
“But I can hear the crowd of Jews — — muttering, whispering, ‘Right there, yes! — — That is the place… No doubt, no doubt, the ancient studies tell us that it is the place.’
“Mashiach is quiet. The sea of Jews falls to a murmuring, falls silent. They turn to watch. Mashiach looks, gazes, embraces with fond eyes the Holy Space. Mashiach’s eyes move across the Dome, its golden glow, the greens and blues and ivories of the walls beneath it.
I hear a whisper from Mashiach’s lips: ‘So beautiful!’
“The Muslims too are silent now. The stillness here, the stillness there — — so total that they split the Holy Mount in two.
“Mashiach raises one arrn, slowly, slowly. The Muslims tense, lift knives and clubs and shake them in the stillness. The Jews tense, ready to leap forward with their picks and shovels.
“Mashiach points straight at the Dome.
“The peoples vibrate: two separate phantom ram’s horns in the silent air, wailing forth a silent sob to Heaven.
“Mashiach speaks quietly into the utter quiet:
‘This green, this blue, this gold, this Dome — — This is the Holy Temple!’
“I blink.
“For seconds, minutes, there is not a sound.
“Then I hear a Muslim shout, see him raise a knife: ‘No! No! You will not steal our Holy Mosque to make your Jewish Temple!”
“He throws the knife. It falls far short. No one stirs. The other Muslims turn to look at him. They look with steadfast eyes: no joy, no anger. They just keep looking. He wilts into the crowd; I can no longer see what he is doing.
”Mashiach steps forward, one step. Everyone, Jew and Muslim. breathes a breath. One Jew calls out: ‘You must not do this. You must not use their dirty place to be our Holy Temple. Tear it down! — — We need our own, the Prophets teach how wide and tall it is to be. It is not this thing of theirs, this thing of curves and circles.
“He takes a step toward Mashiach, lifts an axe to brandish it.
“The man beside him reaches out a hand and takes the axe. Just takes it. There is a murmur. but the murmur dies. The man holds the axe level in both hands, walks out with it into the no- man’s land between the crowds. He lays it on the pavement next to the Muslim knife, he backs away.
“There is another time of quiet. Two Muslims reach out from the crowd, toss their knives to land next to the axe. The pause is shorter this time. Then on every side weapons come flying through the air to land beside the axe, beside the knives. There is a pile. Somehow — I could not see how — there lights a fire. The pile begins to burn. The flames reach up and up and up - — to Heaven.
The weapons are the burnt offering
the beit hamikdash, holy temple
is not a building
but the space between them, sanctified by the flames of their burnt offering
uncovered Hamas plans to send 200 miltants into Israel on Rosh hashanah
to kill/kidnap civilians
we collectively have been saved from a contemporary Haman
ninth day of the month of Av (“Tisha B’Av”) coming up Monday night
Both the first Temple (833–423 BCE) and the second Temple (349 BCE–69 CE) were destroyed on this date.
How sadly apt now that we are in this terrible war
Shabbat preceding tisha b'av: “Shabbat of Vision,” for on this Shabbat we read a chapter from the Prophets (Isaiah 1:1–27) that begins, “The vision of Isaiah .”
Isaiah's vision but also our own.
Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berdichev: the vision is our own.
each and every one of us is granted a vision of the third and final Temple
paraphrases the Talmud, “though we do not ourselves see, our souls see.”
even if we are not consciously aware of the cause of our sudden inspiration.
Our souls behold a vision of a world at peace with itself and its Creator, a world suffused with the knowledge and awareness of G d, a world that has realized its divine potential for goodness and perfection.
a vision that inspires us to correct our behavior and hasten the day when the spiritual vision becomes physical reality.
Now, with such violence in Israel
hard to imagine such a vision
of peace in israel, between Jews and Arabs,
a peace which inspires the world to live in peace
Reb Arthur Waskow's vision:
our sages teach us that when Mashiach comes, he will rebuild the Holy Temple in the twinkling of an eye. But often have I wondered: How can this be? Mashiach will be extraordinary, yet still a human being merely …
“But now! I have seen … Well, let me tell you: At the foot of the Western Wall, the Wall where God’s Own Presence weeps and hides in exile, I have seen hundreds of thousands of Jews gathered, singing.
“Mashiach has come! — — and they are singing, dancing, as the Great Day dawns. Women, men, together — — I could not believe it! I was not even sure” — — he glanced apologetic at his Chassid — “whether Mashiach was a wo … well, forget it.
“I can see from the sun, the heat, it is late afternoon. Yet the crowd are wearing t’fillin. The only time in all the year when Jews wear t’fillin in the afternoon is Tisha B’Av, so I can see that it is the day of mourning for our beloved Temple. But there are no signs of mourning — — except perhaps the way, the wistful way, Mashiach reaches out to touch the Wall, to tuck one last petition between the great carved stones.
“I see Mashiach speak a sentence to the crowds. I cannot hear the words, but I can see that from this voice there stirs a river. Like water from the ancient stones of Wall, I see a stream of Jews flow up the stairway that rises to the Temple Mount.
“The river of people pauses on the steps. They cluster ‘round a wrinkled, tattered piece of paper, posted above the stairway. I see it is signed by the rabbis of that day. It warns all Jews to go no further, lest by accident they walk — — God forbid! — — into the space set aside as the Holy of Holies.
“Mashiach reads. And laughs. And tears the sign to shreds. The stream of people shudders — — higher, higher.
“The crowd cascades from the stairway onto the great stone pavement of the Temple Mount. Their singing turns to the thunder of a great waterfall. They look toward the other end of the Mount — toward the great golden Dome of the Rock where Abraham bound his son for sacrifice.
“Surrounding the Dome are thousands of these children of Ishmael, these Muslims. They are not singing. They are shouting, furious, stubborn. ‘Not here!’ they shout in unison, ‘Not here!’
“ ‘You will not tear down our Holy Mosque to build your Jewish Temple!’
“But I can hear the crowd of Jews — — muttering, whispering, ‘Right there, yes! — — That is the place… No doubt, no doubt, the ancient studies tell us that it is the place.’
“Mashiach is quiet. The sea of Jews falls to a murmuring, falls silent. They turn to watch. Mashiach looks, gazes, embraces with fond eyes the Holy Space. Mashiach’s eyes move across the Dome, its golden glow, the greens and blues and ivories of the walls beneath it.
I hear a whisper from Mashiach’s lips: ‘So beautiful!’
“The Muslims too are silent now. The stillness here, the stillness there — — so total that they split the Holy Mount in two.
“Mashiach raises one arrn, slowly, slowly. The Muslims tense, lift knives and clubs and shake them in the stillness. The Jews tense, ready to leap forward with their picks and shovels.
“Mashiach points straight at the Dome.
“The peoples vibrate: two separate phantom ram’s horns in the silent air, wailing forth a silent sob to Heaven.
“Mashiach speaks quietly into the utter quiet:
‘This green, this blue, this gold, this Dome — — This is the Holy Temple!’
“I blink.
“For seconds, minutes, there is not a sound.
“Then I hear a Muslim shout, see him raise a knife: ‘No! No! You will not steal our Holy Mosque to make your Jewish Temple!”
“He throws the knife. It falls far short. No one stirs. The other Muslims turn to look at him. They look with steadfast eyes: no joy, no anger. They just keep looking. He wilts into the crowd; I can no longer see what he is doing.
”Mashiach steps forward, one step. Everyone, Jew and Muslim. breathes a breath. One Jew calls out: ‘You must not do this. You must not use their dirty place to be our Holy Temple. Tear it down! — — We need our own, the Prophets teach how wide and tall it is to be. It is not this thing of theirs, this thing of curves and circles.
“He takes a step toward Mashiach, lifts an axe to brandish it.
“The man beside him reaches out a hand and takes the axe. Just takes it. There is a murmur. but the murmur dies. The man holds the axe level in both hands, walks out with it into the no- man’s land between the crowds. He lays it on the pavement next to the Muslim knife, he backs away.
“There is another time of quiet. Two Muslims reach out from the crowd, toss their knives to land next to the axe. The pause is shorter this time. Then on every side weapons come flying through the air to land beside the axe, beside the knives. There is a pile. Somehow — I could not see how — there lights a fire. The pile begins to burn. The flames reach up and up and up - — to Heaven.
The weapons are the burnt offering
the beit hamikdash, holy temple
is not a building
but the space between them, sanctified by the flames of their burnt offering
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