There is a wonderful rabbinic tale that I really love, and which I think is particularly appropriate today, both because of this week's Torah
portion AND because of our upcoming (impending?) election. In this story, a group of rabbis are arguing over a legal matter. One of them, Rabbi Eliezer, disagrees with all the others, and he is certain he is right. He calls on various supernatural signs to testify on his behalf against his colleagues, and a tree uproots, a river runs backwards, the walls of their study hall start to crack, and even a voice from heaven proclaims the law IS, indeed, on Eliezer's side. But the other rabbis refuse to be persuaded. Not even the heavenly declaration convinces them, as they yell defiantly back at the sky: "Lo Ba-Shamayim Hee!" And Eliezer is defeated.
The rabbis' retort does not come from this week's Torah portion, if you thought that was going to be my connection. "Lo Ba-Shamayim Hee" actually comes from Deuteronomy, 30:12, and it means "It is not in heaven." In our fable, the rabbis
use it to signify that the Torah was, at one point, God's possession, and God DID write all the rules and edicts expressly in the text... BUT, then God gave us the Torah. And now it's ours. It is our responsibility to apply it to our lives, and we have to be the ones to interpret new laws based on the Torah text. "Lo Ba-Shamayim Hee" - "Your part is done, God! Thank you for the Torah; now let us handle this." A lot of Chutzpah, right? Pretty amazing that the rabbis could or would yell such a thing at God. And yet, if we continue to expect God to resolve our disputes, and we don't put our faith in human institutions and the need for us, for all humans, to take responsibility for our actions, our laws, and our planet; we are in trouble.
This week, we are once again reading about Noah and the Flood. It is, perhaps, the quintessential story of God stepping in and saving the day. Humans messed the place up - this is why we can't have nice things - and God pressed the "reset" button. At the end of the story, God says
something that is BOTH a great comfort and assurance, but also an ominous warning: "Never again will I doom the earth because of man, since the devisings of man's mind are evil from his youth; nor will I ever again destroy every living being, as I have done" (Gen. 8:21). On the one hand, God is promising never to wipe us all out again, and surely that is a VERY good thing. But on the other hand, God is also reminding us, "Lo Ba-Shamayim Hee," it is no longer God's problem to fix things when we mess them up. WE need to take responsibility! We need to interpret the laws, apply the Torah in our lives, and create a just society that will stand the test of time. We can't keep ruining things... because God won't bail us out again.
In just a few more days, we will be seeing a perfect example of this. "Lo Ba-Shamayim Hee," God doesn't decide this election; heck, God doesn't even get a single vote! (Even though some fundamentalists DO seem to believe God resides in the United States of America alone, and WOULD therefore be able to vote...) People get
frustrated, disillusioned, and jaded, and they look around at the corruption, smear tactics, and voter suppression that we see all around us, and it might look like we're back in the evil world that Noah lived in pre-flood. But that's on us! It's OUR world, and yeah, it's got a whole myriad of flaws and problems. But no one else is bailing us out. Each and every one of us must cast a vote; there are no good excuses. We are NOT living in Noah's world, and hopefully reading about his problems can help put ours in perspective. Change is not impossible, and improvement CAN happen. If we grab hold of our fate, say "thanks, God, we'll take it from here," and work collectively to build a better future; change will happen. It starts with a single vote.
Photos in this blogpost:1. CC image courtesy of Apdency on Wikimedia Commons2. CC image courtesy of Adiel lo on Wikimedia Commons3. CC image courtesy of Russavia on Wikimedia Commons4. CC image courtesy of Asdefgaheckel on Wikimedia Commons
portion AND because of our upcoming (impending?) election. In this story, a group of rabbis are arguing over a legal matter. One of them, Rabbi Eliezer, disagrees with all the others, and he is certain he is right. He calls on various supernatural signs to testify on his behalf against his colleagues, and a tree uproots, a river runs backwards, the walls of their study hall start to crack, and even a voice from heaven proclaims the law IS, indeed, on Eliezer's side. But the other rabbis refuse to be persuaded. Not even the heavenly declaration convinces them, as they yell defiantly back at the sky: "Lo Ba-Shamayim Hee!" And Eliezer is defeated.
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