Last week this time Layah and I were in Israel,walking through the Machane Yehuda "shuk" open marketplace. The vendors with their fresh challah,the chassid with the six overfilled plastic bags digging into his fingers,the elderly woman with her wobbly two wheeled cart,the screaming out of the different wares,the jostling mass of human energy,the smell of fresh chocolate babka,pulls one into Shabbat,regardless of whatever else is happening in ones life.This is only Erev Shabbat. The magic of Shabbat in jerusalem can only be described as a journey to the heart of Shabbat itself, upwards into the womb of our souls.As the holy lights are kindled,we get entirely "checked into" Shabbat. Swaying and singing in the balmy Jerusalem twilight ,eyes closed,we lose ourselves in ecstatic prayer.
As Shabbat approaches here in Boston I am upbeat.Tonight @6 is the Friday project.The vibe of our spiritual singing community brings me right back to Jerusalem!
The Eagles said it best
"..Last thing I remember, I wasRunning for the doorI had to find the passage backTo the place I was before"Relax, " said the night man,"We are programmed to receive.You can check-out any time you like,But you can never leave! "
Shabbat Shalom
Yossi
Random musings and reflections, jewish, spiritual, and otherwise...
Friday, February 28, 2014
Thursday, February 13, 2014
Ki Tisa - what really counts ...?
This weeks portion opens with the command to perform the census of the Jewish people in the desert.Jewish people have always been uneasy with counting our own numbers.This "count phobia"might have actually originated from this weeks portion where they collected coins from the people and counted those instead of the people.This continues to the present day when we say"not 1 not 2" to see if there is a minyan in Shul-also,good luck trying to get my bubbi to tell you how many grandchildren and great grandchildren she has!
Given this Jewish unease with counting its surprising that g-d keeps asking for the census.Whats the deal-do we count people or not? Also-what ever happened to G-d being "all knowing"- and why then the need to count at all?
A Kabbalah way of looking at this might suggest something else at play here.For me the key is always in the words.The Hebrew word for count,(שאו) here in our text also mean to lift up.
The Divine values of this fledgling nation are being established right from the get go.
In order to count in G-ds eyes we must first count in one another's eyes.
How do we count in one another's eyes?The Jewish answer is quite clear. שאו את ראש....if you see a person who's head is down,then you must a find a way to uplift them and remind them that they too count and were put here by G-d for a purpose that only they can achieve.The mere act of graciously acknowledging another persons presence is sometimes all it takes to pull them out of their existential loneliness.Joining together in a Shul for prayer is often more about a validation of self than a discovery of G-d.Seen this way,the census is less about knowing numbers,and more about us growing closer and fostering a sense of community amongst ourselves.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
I was present last week at a meeting between The Ruderman family foundation and the leaders of the worldwide Chabad movement,discussing a major initiative on inclusion for Jewish people with disabilities in our communities.
Subsequent to that meeting the following realization hit me like a ton of bricks! My friend Jay Ruderman and his family have singlehandedly transformed the entire approach toward our Jewish brothers and sisters with disabilities.They have done so by boldly blazing the path of inclusion for Jewish people with disabilities-rather than segregation.
We as a community must step onto this path as well.We can no longer stand on the sidelines.We must join them.We must remember that we are incomplete without counting and including,without lifting up every single member of Klall Yisroel!
Thank you for helping us dig out and rediscover our Jewish soul,for reminding us that the minyan of our people is Incomplete if it does not include all our people.
Thank you for reopening our hearts,and reminding us about the things in life that really count!
Yossi
Given this Jewish unease with counting its surprising that g-d keeps asking for the census.Whats the deal-do we count people or not? Also-what ever happened to G-d being "all knowing"- and why then the need to count at all?
A Kabbalah way of looking at this might suggest something else at play here.For me the key is always in the words.The Hebrew word for count,(שאו) here in our text also mean to lift up.
The Divine values of this fledgling nation are being established right from the get go.
In order to count in G-ds eyes we must first count in one another's eyes.
How do we count in one another's eyes?The Jewish answer is quite clear. שאו את ראש....if you see a person who's head is down,then you must a find a way to uplift them and remind them that they too count and were put here by G-d for a purpose that only they can achieve.The mere act of graciously acknowledging another persons presence is sometimes all it takes to pull them out of their existential loneliness.Joining together in a Shul for prayer is often more about a validation of self than a discovery of G-d.Seen this way,the census is less about knowing numbers,and more about us growing closer and fostering a sense of community amongst ourselves.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
I was present last week at a meeting between The Ruderman family foundation and the leaders of the worldwide Chabad movement,discussing a major initiative on inclusion for Jewish people with disabilities in our communities.
Subsequent to that meeting the following realization hit me like a ton of bricks! My friend Jay Ruderman and his family have singlehandedly transformed the entire approach toward our Jewish brothers and sisters with disabilities.They have done so by boldly blazing the path of inclusion for Jewish people with disabilities-rather than segregation.
We as a community must step onto this path as well.We can no longer stand on the sidelines.We must join them.We must remember that we are incomplete without counting and including,without lifting up every single member of Klall Yisroel!
Thank you for helping us dig out and rediscover our Jewish soul,for reminding us that the minyan of our people is Incomplete if it does not include all our people.
Thank you for reopening our hearts,and reminding us about the things in life that really count!
Yossi
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)