Yom Kippur Morning Sermon by Temple Israel spiritual leader Rabbi Moshe Tom Heyn, 2014/5775: Choose Life: Choose Health A few weeks ago, I saw a brief segment on TV. Maybe it was a commercial or a scene from the middle of some program. I wasnt sure. There a man talking to his teenage son as he was retrieving something from his bedroom closet. His son was sitting on the father’s bed as they were having a conversation about whatever it was he was retrieving: “Remember, this isn’t a toy.” “I know, Dad.” “This is serious business.” “I understand.” The boy then asked, “Why do you have it?” As the father brings out a box from a shelf in his closet he says, “Well, it’s important that I protect our family and our rights.” “Does everyone have one?” the boys asks. “No, but they should.” The father sits down on the bed next to the boy. “When will I get one?” “When you get old enough, I’ll take you to get your own,” replies the father as he opens the box to reveal what’s inside. We presume he’s going to bring out a gun, but instead, he brings out a voter registration card. The boy nods approvingly and says, “I’m proud of you dad.” It turns out this was a commercial, to promote voter registration. It was sponsored by the NRA, which really shocked me. Politics aside, that was a good commercial, and it highlights something I want to talk about today. Yes, if youre not already a registered voter, be sure to register and be sure to vote next month. But there is another choice I want to talk about; a choice that constitutes a central theme of this day, and the Torah portion we just read. In Deuteronomy chapter 29, Moses says, “You stand this day, all of you, before your Eternal God.” He is speaking to all of us, saying that the commandment, the teaching he is offering to us, is not something thats remote or hard to comprehend. Instead, he says its “in your mouth and in your heart,” which is to say that you can practice it in word and in deed. But then Moses goes on to say that he sets before us life or death, blessing or curse. We are to choose life, “so that we and our descendants may live and endure on the earth that Adonai promised your ancestors.” So just like registered voters, we can listen to Moses, take his recommendation and choose life. Right? Yeah, but just as there are lots of people who dont have a registration card, there are lots of people who dont have a chumash, a printed edition of the Torah. And just as there are many who have a registration card but dont make it to a polling station on election day, there are many who have a chumash but dont make it to a synagogue on Shabbat. Do you see this correlation? In the case of voting, there is a choice one makes between one candidate or another. For those who dont vote for whatever reason, in most cases that too is a choice. In other words, choosing not to choose is a choice. In the case of choosing life by following the commandments as Moses implores us to do, those who read up on the issues and follow whats going on in the Torah or in the Temple newsletter are well-informed and ready to make the choice that Moses is talking about. But there are so many more Jews who have that opportunity but dont take advantage of it. In other words, remaining unengaged from the religious dimensions of Judaism is a choice that many, many Jews are making. You are here at the polling station on election day, so to speak, but there are still many, many Jews who stayed home today or went out to play tennis or run errands. I cant help but wonder why that is. Think with me here for a minute. What was the worst sin in the history of our people? The Golden Calf. If it were not for the prayers of Moses, God was prepared to destroy the entire Jewish people. But then, we are told that God forgave them. But whom did he forgive? And for what? The Torah tells us that Moses executed all those who were involved in worshiping the Golden Calf. According to the Talmud, there were 3,000 who were found guilty. So they were punished for their sin. So, who was it that God forgave? He forgave the rest of the Jewish people! What was there to forgive? What was their sin? They didn’t do anything! Ahh, but that was their sin! In American law, if you do nothing you are not culpable; in Jewish law, you are. As Rabbi Mitchell Wolhberg put it, “In American tradition, silence is golden. In the Jewish tradition, silence is the Golden Calf!” Elie Wiesel puts it even more succinctly. He said that “The opposite of love is not hate; its indifference. The opposite of art is not ugliness; its indifference. The opposite of faith is not heresy; its indifference. And the opposite of life is not death; its indifference.” We just read from our Torah how Moses set before us a choice, but alas -- it seems that most Jews today are pretty much indifferent. Of course there are lots of religious Jews who strive to obey the commandments, but there are many more who would describe themselves as secular Jews. Some might say they’re “spiritual but not religious,” but more Jews, especially in the younger generations, are not religious or spiritual and are not engaged at all Jewishly. When asked, they might say that: • congregational life doesnt really do anything to them • they dont want to pay dues to an institution for services that they dont use • there are so many other ways they can find spirituality, if they want it • there are so many other ways they can experience community, if they want it • they may not have a high level of Jewish literacy so they dont feel very comfortable in a synagogue • they went to synagogue just to “have their Bar Mitzvah” and now theyre done • maybe they joined out of respect to tradition but they dont feel compelled to be active • maybe institutionalized religion is an old model that doesnt work for them any more These are some of the reasons why Jews have drifted away from being active in religious life, and I totally get it. But the real reason underlying all these other reasons is one we haven’t seriously considered, and it boils down to one question: Why? Why should we do any of these things? Basically, why be engaged in religious life? Until we answer that question, any other questions will be met with – indifference. Jack, who was an accountant, warned his son against marrying outside of the faith. His son assured his father, however, that his fiance was planning to convert to Judaism, but in Jacks mind she was still a shiksha, a derogatory term for a non-Jewish woman. After the wedding, Jack called his son, who was in business with him, and asked him to come into the office over the weekend to help catch up on a few things. His son declined and said, “Sorry Dad, tomorrow is Shabbos.” Jack was surprised and said, “But weve always worked on Saturdays.” “Sorry Dad, Rochel wants us to go to shul on Shabbos.” Jack said, “You see, I knew that marrying a shiksha would be a problem.” Back in my parents generation, Jews were religious out of a sense of obligation. Perhaps it was an obligation to God, as the Torah and all the rabbinic literature would have us believe. Or perhaps it was a social obligation. In the days when we lived in ghettos and insular neighborhoods, going to shul was the thing to do. Of course, you would follow the guidelines and customs of your community. Or lastly, perhaps it was an obligation to one’s family. You wouldn’t want to disappoint your parents or your bubbe, would you? Ah, but these obligations no longer have the same pull on younger generations. Young people are much more independent today and motivated by other interests; certainly not by religious, social or familial obligations. Jewish guilt doesn’t have the same effect that it used to. What does motivate people is what we might call “enlightened self-interest.” Sure, there are some people who do things only when it brings them personal gain. But there are many, many more who are involved in all sorts of activities that don’t directly bring them personal gain. They may be involved in charity work because they derive satisfaction from it. But by and large, most people are engaged in activities that have some perceivable benefit, whether to themselves or others. Most people want to know that their investment in time and/or money will have some positive outcome. The payoff for going to shul or keeping kosher or supporting a Temple, however, is less obvious. For the very religious, they derive a sense of satisfaction from the belief that they are doing what God commanded them to do. For folks who are moderately religious, they may enjoy the sense of connection they feel with our people and our past, and thats all good, too. For many, it is their passion for the land of Israel, for the culture and traditions of our families. There are so many reasons why people love being Jewish, even if they’re not all that religious. But there’s a deeper question here that we haven’t addressed yet. Over the course of these Yamim Noraim, my sermons have followed a certain progression. I began talking about global issues on Erev Rosh Hashanah when I spoke about extremism as our world’s most serious problem. On Rosh Hashanah morning, I spoke about Israel and our need to talk about the challenges faced by our homeland and why it needs our support. Last night, on Erev Yom Kippur, I spoke about community and the quality of relationships that makes this place so special. But this morning, we bring the focus from a global to a personal level. The choice that I’m talking about involves each of you, on a very personal level. Do you remember Admiral Stockdale? In 1992, Ross Perot was running for president and asked Stockdale to be his provisional Vice Presidential nominee. Stockdale was not informed that he would be participating in a vice-presidential debate until a week before the event. He had no formal preparation for the debate, unlike his opponents Al Gore and Dan Quayle, and did not discuss any political issues with Perot beforehand. When responding to a request for an opening statement, he replied by saying, Who am I? Why am I here? Initially, these rhetorical questions drew applause from the audience, seeming to be a good-natured acknowledgment of his relatively unknown status and lack of traditional qualifications. Later, however, he was ridiculed for them. I dont think he would have made a very good Vice-President, but I thought these are always good questions to ask. In fact, I taught a class on meditation a few weeks ago to a group of students with intellectual disabilities. I explained how all religions attempt to answer those questions, Who am I?” and “Why am I here?” Immediately, one of the students raised him hand and said, “I know who you are. Youre Rabbi Tom.” That was a good answer but that wasnt the question I was asking. The real question is “Who are you and why are you here?” Did you choose to be here? If so, why? Is it because of some religious obligation, or a social or familial obligation? Or is it because of a more personal or spiritual reason? When people say, “Im spiritual but not religious,” I wonder about what that really means. Does “being religious” mean believing in supernatural deities? Or could it simply mean doing things on a regular, consistent basis. You wake up every morning, right? Do you brush your teeth, get dressed and usually eat breakfast? Do you check your e-mail? Many people are very religious when it comes to checking their e-mail. We do many things each day “religiously.” Spiritual practice, on the other hand, can seem as an interruption and inconvenience, but Id like to suggest that its a little bit like eating healthy food and exercise. Exercising can be an inconvenience; it gets in the way of watching TV. Or eating healthy foods. Why would you want to eat bread with seeds on it when you can have Wonder Bread, which doesnt have all those annoying things on it? Why would you want to fruit when you can eat jellied fruit slices and candy? So Id like to suggest that there may be another way of understanding what “being religious” means in a spiritual context. If we think of health as a new motivator and incentive, we see that millions now pursue it “religiously.” Where are they on Shabbat morning? Theyre not here; instead, theyre working out, or jogging, or bicycling or doing yoga. And why might they engage in these practices so religiously? Because these practices provide some benefit, as I mentioned earlier, such as contributing to their health and wellness. Health and wellness is not a narcissistic pursuit if we understand that what we do for ourselves -- the tikkun hanefesh that we do within our own souls -- contributes to tikkun haolam, repairing of the world. We know now, after the recent presentation by Dr. Isaac Prilleltensky, that wellness means more than just being physically fit. There are many components that we must take into account, such as physical, mental/emotional, intellectual/organizational and spiritual elements. Spiritual health is the most subtle and the most difficult to measure, but there is something that people who practice yoga know about. Many people, wiser than you and me, have been engaged in religious and mystical pursuits for centuries, if not thousands of years, because they know that theres something called “self- knowledge” or “self-realization.” We have work to do with regard to defining and measuring this domain, but we know that it has something to do with the full actualization of our human potential. Its the ultimate response to the question “Who am I and why am I here?” I believe that Temple Israel can be a center for authentic Jewish spirituality which enables people to most-fully actualize their potential as Jews and as human beings. Theoretically, we could call our Temple a Jewish “Spiritual Fitness Center” because thats what it is from the perspective of overall health and wellness. Weve already begun initiatives here that involve physical activities, like Israeli dancing; our team focusing on mental/emotional health will be hosting “family mussar” classes which will be held on Sunday mornings to engage our Religious School families, and anyone else would like to come to learn how to be a better person. Our intellectual/organizational health team will be offering a program for the Global Day of Jewish Learning on November 16th, and our spiritual health team will be developing innovations such as including more niggunim, wordless melodies, and meditation in our services, and offering classes on meditation and other ways we practice Jewish spirituality. So we have, as human beings and as Jews, a responsibility to help ourselves and our species, which can be done within the framework of overall health and wellness. This is what Moses meant when he urged us to “choose life.” It is for us to make use of the privilege we have been granted to choose life and health. Like having the right to vote, no one else can exercise that right for us. If we take advantage of the opportunity we have to better ourselves and our species, our children will be proud of us. Were still stuck in an old paradigm that views the practice of religion as an obligation, and no one wants or needs to do that any more. But engaging in practices that enhance our health and wellness is something many of us already do -- religiously. Instead of seeing the attendance of a service like this as a dreaded obligation, we might think of it as a “Spiritual Health” workshop in which we can learn and practice the techniques that enrich our lives and our community. Asnd so in closing, I ask that you “choose life” by making a commitment to your own health and wellness, “so that you and your descendents may live and endure on this earth which Adonai promised our ancestors.” I want Temple Israel to be that place, where a new rationale for Jewish life and a new vision for spiritual renewal can become a reality. Temple Israel can be that place. Temple Israel must be that place. Temple Israel will be that place. And together let us say -- Amen.
Posted on: Tue, 14 Oct 2014 12:02:30 +0000
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