Last weekend, Ohev Shalom had the privilege of hosting a wonderful Scholar in Residence, Arthur Kurzweil. Mr. Kurzweil was funny and entertaining, but above all else, he taught us some amazing passages from the Talmud, gave us a taste of the Kabbalah, and showed us how to begin genealogical research. Everyone who attended even one of his sessions left with profound new insights, and with a renewed appreciation of Judaism and Jewish learning.
One of the things that I took from Mr. Kurzweil's terrific sessions was an expression that fits very well with this week's Torah reading. I already quoted it above, but let me repeat it again
(for dramatic emphasis): Gam Zu Le-Tovah. Mr. Kurzweil shared midrashim (stories) with us about Rabbi Akiva who experienced several misfortunes, yet kept repeating to himself, "Gam Zu Le-Tovah" - "This too is for the best," and ultimately things DID work out for him. We also learned that Judaism does not believe in falling down. Every time you fall,
it is another opportunity to learn about getting back up. Falling, therefore, is just the beginning of an ascension. At a recent staff meeting, our Executive Director, Josh Laster, brought in a quote by Confucius with almost the same idea: "Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall." What an unbelievable philosophy! Imagine what our lives would be like if we could truly internalize this, and live our lives accordingly.
Pretty much the only story you ever hear about in this week's reading is the Golden Calf incident. It is one of the most embarrassing moments in Israelite history, where - just months after being freed from slavery - the Israelites reject God and build an idol in the form of a golden calf which they worship as their "new" deity. This is the Israelites at their very worst; if this isn't a fall, nothing is! Well, you know what? Maybe nothing is. If we internalize Kurzweil's philosophy, so that even the Golden Calf is seen as a chance to ascend, our eyes are opened to a very different way to read this story.
After Moses smashes the tablets containing the Ten Commandments, and the Israelites are
sufficiently remorseful and penitent, God instructs Moses to carve a new set of tablets. But a very important difference between these new Commandments, Version 2.0, and the first set is that God made the originals. This time, Moses has to carve them himself, and we see that what has been created is a partnership between God and humanity. The words are still God's, but now the effort and the craftsmanship has become human. The tablets that came, not just from the Word of God, but from the Hand of God were too intimidating, too much to take on. As with everything else in life, we need to feel a sense of ownership, of responsibility and accountability, if we are going to take something seriously. A (read with a booming voice:) Command From On High sounds impressive, but it doesn't make us want to try harder, or want to dedicate ourselves to that command. It just leaves us feeling afraid and small.
Gam Zu Le-Tovah - Kurzweil reminds us that even though bad things happen, we can still use those experiences to grow, improve, and come out stronger on the other end. There's no doubt that the Golden Calf incident was bad, that Rabbi Akiva faced serious challenges, or that bad things happen to all of us. Everyone experiences hardship, and sometimes it can leave us reeling, even feeling that there is no way to recover. But here's
an opportunity to look at it a different way, to not focus on the fall, but on the recovery. Every time we feel like we're falling, let's instead look ahead to the ascension, and we may find that we are already on the way back up.
Photos in this blog post:
1. Image courtesy of Congregation Ohev Shalom
2. CC image courtesy of Jos Dielis on Flickr
4. CC image courtesy of Enygmatic-Halycon on Flickr
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