A Soulful Journey

  כל המחובר לטמא טמא והמחובר לטהור טהור וכולן אחת אחת בפני עצמן טהורות Any thing that is attached/connected to an item that is impure becomes impure. Any thing that is attached/connected to an item that is pure becomes pure.                          - Mishna  Keleim 12 While this Mishna is concerned with the laws of purity that were of singular importance in Temple times, it has great import in every era.  Values change with the company we keep.  Mix with people  who use foul language and soon we speak as them.  The same goes for drugs, lying, faithlessness.... And, of course, the opposite also applies. The right company can realign our moral compass with tzedaka, prayer, kindness....

  It was taught that when Zusya was young and in the house of his teacher, a man came before Rabbi Baer and begged him to advise and assist him in an enterprise. Zusya saw that this man was full of sin and untouched by any breath of repentance, he grew angry, and spoke to him harshly, saying, “How can a man like yourself, a man who has committed this crime and that, have the boldness to stand before a holy man such as my teacher without shame, and without longing to atone?” The man, as you might imagine, turned and left in silence. But Zusya regretted what he had said almost immediately and did not know what to do about it. Then his teacher pronounced a blessing over him, that from that moment on, he might see only the good in people, even if a person sinned before his very eyes.   -Martin Buber Who has the internal strength to realize a wrong and bring about a life-long change?  Only a person of resolute character.

The stubborn man who yearned for power, Korach, could not change course.  He was warned many times by his peers and Moses to consider himself and others differently but he refused. "Often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see that one has been opened for us," wrote Helen Keller. Sometimes life demands that we change but we insist on staying as we were.  Korach did not learn this lesson.  Helen Keller understood it well. Change is not our enemy; it is our opportunity.

  “Follow your bliss and doors will open where there were no doors before.”  - Joseph Campbell

When Rabbi Mordecai M. Kaplan taught homiletics at the Jewish Theological Seminary, his practice was to explain the portion of the week on a Monday in a sermonic manner. On Wednesday, a senior student would present his version of the same biblical text. Dr. Kaplan was a very demanding and critical instructor, and the students dreaded the ordeal. Once in our class, a student took down verbatim what Dr. Kaplan said on Monday. When it came the student's turn to explain the passage on Wednesday, he repeated Kaplan's Monday interpretation word for word. At the end of the presentation, Dr. Kaplan said, "That's a terrible exposition." 'The student then complained, "But, Prof. Kaplan, that's exactly what you said Monday. And Kaplan replied, "Young man, I have grown since then."   Rabbi Bernard K. Raskas  Heart of Wisdom

Professor Mordecai Kaplan, the founder of Reconstructionist Judaism. Kaplan taught homiletics (the art of sermons) at the Jewish Theological Seminary. One day a young rabbinical student delivered a sermon to the class, and Kaplan said, “Very nice.” The student was relieved until he came back to class a week later. Kaplan harshly criticized the sermon. “But last week you liked it,” said the student. Kaplan replied, “I’ve changed since then.”  - Michael Gold Wisdom is the ability to change.

If I am not in the world simply to adapt to it but to transform it, I must make use of every possibility there is not only to speak about my utopia, but also to engage in practices consistent with it.  -Paulo Freire

"Only a fool is interested in other peoples guilt, since he cannot alter it. The wise man learns only from his own guilt. He will ask himself: Who am I that all the should happen to me? To find the answer to this fateful question he will look into his own heart."  C.G. Jung

“A new broom sweeps clean.” -Russian proverb   There are times when we are frustrated by lack of change.  When this happens try something different, "a new broom," something out of character.  This is how we learn and grow.  

“There is nothing new under the sun.”    -Kohelet (Ecclesiastes) .  That which has been, will be again.  Here is the real task of a meaningful life: Can we learn from our mistakes and become a finer, greater and more responsible person than we were yesterday?

A neurosis, Larry Kushner defines, are the things we do to overcome neuroses. No one is perfect, not even close.  We strive t do good things, make wise choices and rid ourselves of bad habits.  Sometimes in our effort to overcome negative behaviors we overreach, creating the opposite effect.   Every day try to be yourself, as God intended. If you have nothing positive to say, remain silent. If you are angry, accept your anger but do not hurt another. Pray, like your life depended on it (it does). Look at the yourself the mirror and affirm that you are just right, as you were created to be.  Remember God does not make mistakes.

A renowned nuclear physicist, and a Nobel Prize winner was walking with a companion along the seashore when he saw a beautiful crustacean.  The scientist picked it up, examined it cautiously and then carefully put it back precisely where he found it.  His companion asked him why he replaced it so exactly.  The scientist replied, “Perhaps I have already tampered too much with the universe.”  - Bernard Raskas   This is our task to leave as few footprints on this earth as possible.  This is especially important now as we are witnessing dramatic changes due to our negligence.  What difference will I make with wasting water or not recycling or fighting for cleaner air?  The same difference as this scientist with the shell at the  shore. This is what Shabbat is all about; not making changes to the earth.  Letting it, and us, rest.

A farmer came running home one day with news. "Did you hear, my wife?  There is a rumor in town that the Messiah is coming this year.  Woe as me!  What will we do?  I have so much invested in the farm, rebuilt the house and cultivated the fields.  Now we will have to leave everything behind and go." "Don't worry, my husband," his wife consoled him. "We Jews have gone through so much suffering.  We had a Pharaoh, a Haman and the good good Lord helped get rid of them.  I am sure that he will also help us get rid of the Messiah too!" When times are bad we wish for better days.  When times are good we forget what we once dreamed of.

When Brezhnev was elected to the party secretariat he brought his mother to the Kremlin for the big celebration.  There he gave her champagne and caviar.  Waiting to hear her remarks, she said nothing.  So Brezhnev then took her to the party headquarters and there had the best cocktails and caviar surrounded in a bright, modern room.  Still she said nothing.  Then Brezhnev whisked hr off to his hunting lodge with all mahogany paneling, his own private chef and stock of vodka.  Still his mother did not say a word.  Finally Brezhnev exclaimed, “Why don’t you say anything about this?” “Well,” she said, “Just be careful that the communists don’t come back to power.” As days pass and we grow old it becomes more difficult to face change and remain unfearful of the past.  When the past still haunts us we cannot fully live in the present.  This is our challenge in the days ahead, to move past our past.

"The ideal man has the strength of a man and the compassion of a woman."  -Zohar Archetypes do not always work in reality but the force of this statement is clear:  We must never be so inflexible as not not see the other side.

When Moses freed the Israelites from bondage in Egypt, he became known throughout the world as a saintly figure. An Arabian King, who had heard of the miracles of Moses, asked one of his famous artists to go to the desert and depict Moses’ face on canvas. The artist’s mission was to be withheld from the knowledge of others.  Several weeks later the artists brought back the painting. The king then invited all the wise men of his kingdom and said, “My friends, observe this painting, study the facial lines of this man, and tell me the type of person he is. Has he any virtues or is he filled with vices?” The elder of the sages wrinkled his brow and said, “He has an ugly character.” Another said, “He is very proud.” A third one uttered, “He is ill tempered.” The last of the group confidently replied, “He is the type of man who seeks honor.” Finally the exclaimed together, “Such an individual has no love for God or mankind!” “Hold your vile tongues!” The king ...

1. Rabbi Israel Salanter said: When I was young, I used to want to change the world. I tried, but the world did not change. Then I tried to change my town, but the town did not change.  Then I tried to change my family, but my family did not change. Then I knew:  first, I must change myself. __________________________ 2. Rabbi Chaim of Sens used to say, "when I was young I wanted to change the world. I tried, but the world didn't change. Then I tried to change my town but my town didn't change. Then I tried to change the members of my family but they didn't change. Then I realized that first I must change myself." That is the call of teshuvah, tefillah and tzedakah. They change who we are, and when God lives in and through us, He and we become partners in perfecting the world. _____________________________ 3. In 1923, the Chafetz Chayim was asked to be the keynote speaker at the first Agudath Israel convention in Vienna. He was asked spe...

“The Talmud records that King Hezekiah was granted the prophetic foresight to see that the son he might bear- Manasseh – would bring evil and suffering into the world.  He decided, accordingly, not to have children. The prophet, Isaiah, rebuked him savagely.  “What have you to do with the mysteries of the Almighty?”  Any potential can be quantified – except a potential human life.”  - Rabbi Jonathan Sacks Always give people the "benefit of doubt."

"There is a wheel that continually turns in the universe." - Shabbat 151b We are all cogs on the ever-turning wheel. Time moves and we move along with it.  While the wheel revolves and is unchanging, the same is not true for us.

A Shtetl Jew came to the big city for the first time.  When everyone stared at him in his shabby clothes, he decided to buy a new suit.  He returned to the village and proudly put on his new suit but it did not fit. He rushed back to the tailor, and the merchant laughed at him.  “Of course, it doesn’t fit.  You put the new suit over your old clothes. You have to take off the old before you can put on the new.” – Rabbi Vernon Kurtz Change means discarding old habits.  It is difficult to do but necessary for real, lasting change.