Talmud as love letter

Some more early thoughts about the Talmud:

A story about Rav Soloveitchik says that he said he learned the most important thing in life from his mother – “to feel the presence of the Almighty and the gentle pressure of God’s resting upon my frail shoulders.”

Thoughts of the day during my reading of the Talmud: 1) I am amazed at the enormous effort that is spent to try to understand and live out the rules set down by God. This is about what happens when someone enters a house that is afflicted with impurity, which can make one tamei – impure.

But if HE WAS WEARING HIS GARMENTS AND HIS SHOES WERE ON HIS FEET AND HIS RINGS WERE ON HIS FINGER – then HE BECOMES TAMEI [impure] IMMEDIATELY. – BUT THEY [his garments, shoes and rings] REMAIN TAHOR [pure] UNTIL HE LINGERS in the house THE AMOUNT OF TIME THAT IT TAKES TO EAT A HALF-LOAF – of WHEAT BREAD RATHER THAN BARLEY BREAD – eaten while he is RECLINING AND EATING, the bread together WITH a RELISH.

Rashi’s commentary then says, “The ‘half-loaf’ is the amount of bread a person normally eats at one meal, for the reference is to a standard two-meal loaf . . . Wheat bread is eaten more quickly
than barley bread, and that which is eaten in a reclining position is eaten quickly, since the person concentrates fully on the food and does not divert his attention to other things. Similarly, eating the bread together with a relish hastens its consumption.”

When I view these efforts, often torturous efforts, to understand and “follow” the rules “correctly,” I sometimes think how could a loving God want people to struggle so much to understand and in so many cases “fear” God and God’s commandments?

Yet, what struck me today, was that I could also see these struggles as the attempt of a lover to decipher and understand and cherish a love letter. If one sees the Torah (Written and Oral) as this love letter from God, which is not simple and not perfectly clear because of the human agents necessary to create it [and I now would add -- because of the importance that Hashem placed on creativity] – then these struggles to interpret, to understand, to live out – are expressions of profound love and faithfulness.

Then when we study in this way and strive to hang onto every word, every nuance, every clue – these are the efforts of the lover striving to please and love his/her beloved.

It seems to me additional profundity comes when one can also see all of creation and each moment as another Torah, another opportunity to understand and respond to the actions and messages of our beloved.

More on multivalence . . . the heart of lomdus

In a recent comment to a post, a good friend wrote:

"Multi-valent" is a good, strong word, though I prefer "particulate", in the sense Blake meant when he referred to 'reality' as made up of "Minute Particulars" . . . Particulars can be collected -- and we don't pick flowers-in-general, we pick these daisies in front of us here and now.

I believe his description of particulars is an important one for each of us to remember in our day-to-day lives as we interact with all the individuals (persons and things) in our lives and strive not to simply generalize or categorize our encounters.

However, for me "multi-valent" has a different meaning. It points to the nearly infinite number of meanings and chiddushim that Rav Rosensweig can seemingly discover within a sugya. It refers to what Shalom Carmy calls "polyphonic diversity" in his essay entitled, "Polyphonic Diversity and Military Music," from Lomdus: The Conceptual Approach to Jewish Learning, edited by Yosef Blau.

Rabbi Carmy opens his essay with these sentences from the Arukh ha-Shulhan, Hoshen Mishpat:

Indeed it is the glory of our holy, pure Torah, for the entire Torah is called a song (shirah) and the glory song is when the voices vary; that is the primary pleasantness. Whoever sets sail in the sea of Talmud will discover varied melodic pleasure in all the varied voices.

A student who is comfortable with the polyphonic world of the Talmud is also comfortable with complexity and ambiguity, and does not seek simple answers, because in the end they do not exist. Rabbi Calmy writes:

Typical of the polyphonic consciousness is the Rav's assertion that when human beings are faced with many crucial dilemmas and orientations of value, Halakhah "tries to help man in such critical moments," but does not provide a formulaic "synthesis, since the latter does not exist."

It is this type of student who appreciates what Rabbi Calmy calls, "the infinite challenge that defines the human endeavor to study Torah."

To help me better understand what lomdus is and how it is lived out, I found this essay on the internet entitled, Humility and Halakah: Placing Derekh Ha-Limud in Perspective, by Rabbi Doniel Schreiber.

At first he describes various types of iyun or lomdus (in-depth gemara study) this way:

• One end of the spectrum, reflective of classic iyun found in Ge'onic times, would place the elucidation of texts as its main goal. All questions and analyses, in this approach, aim to arrive at a better understanding of the texts.
• On the other end of the spectrum, reflective of more contemporary lomdus, is the attempt to understand concepts by classifying, conceptualizing and defining halakhic matter.
• In the middle of the spectrum, one finds a more balanced system embracing both the importance of text and the centrality of concept. The text generates analysis of concepts, while concepts shed light upon new ways of reading text.

He then defines lomdus practiced by Rav Rosensweigh in the following manner;

More recently, mori ve-rabi HaRav Michael Rosensweig shlita, Rosh Yeshiva at Yeshiva University, has catapulted iyun into a new sphere of analysis. It demands, on the one extreme, a microscopic approach. This entails an exhaustive, comprehensive, and often tedious sifting of the most subtle halakhic minutiae and the most seemingly trivial detail. On the other extreme, it requires one to ascend to a macroscopic perspective, in which one, taking into consideration a wealth of sugyot revolving around a broad issue, peers downward upon the sweeping, halakhic landscape. This method, in essence, expands Brisker analysis to the farthest reaches of both ends of the sugya.

These two polar extremes, rigorous scrutiny and panoramic vision, when concomitantly implemented, enable one to integrate and interpret all forms of nuances and detail into the landscape of the sugya in the broadest sense of the term - the meta-sugya.* For example, elements of halakha associated with the process of beit din (courts) may shed light on how to understand the broader concept of din (Jewish civil law); details in the topic of eidim zomemim (false witnesses) could reflect on the larger picture of eidim and eidut (witnesses and testimony); minutiae in the discussion of gittin (bills of divorce), might clarify the wider topic of shtarot (legal documents). The incessant and rigorous investigation of a detail's relationship to the meta-sugya is the hallmark of this system. To some degree, this may represent the pinnacle of lomdus and the Brisker derekh.

*I use the term meta-sugya to refer to mori ve-rabi HaRav Rosensweig's emphasis on analyzing classic sugyot and then treating each of them as a detail within a broader enveloping sugya, which in turn may become a detail in an even broader sugya, and so on.

I am proud to say that I have listened to many of Rav Rosensweig's shiurim in which he has done very similar to the ones described above . . . they truly are quite a ride.

As Rabbi Schreiber continues in the his essay, he also speaks of some of the benefits and reasons for taking such an approach:

When one is involved in conceptual analysis of sugyot, reaching great depths of understanding, one achieves a genuinely rich sense of satisfaction. While this is partially due to the fact that one is involved in the important and basic mitzva to learn Torah, it is largely because one is engaged in something that is the most meaningful and penetrating experience as humanly possible. It is the endeavor, in our never-ending pursuit to draw close to God, to understand Divine intent.

The only real way finite man has to reach God is to be involved in what God has revealed to us. This, to be sure, includes performance of mitzvot, but especially pertains to talmud Torah, because talmud Torah is THE embodiment of the will of God. While thrashing out questions of kinyanei geneiva (theft law) is not as obvious a method of bringing one closer to God as learning the laws of avodat Hashem is, it accomplishes it as effectively.

Although one may be serious about talmud Torah, if one does not relate to this experience, if one is not animated by it, one cannot be passionate about learning Torah. Anyone who is really passionate about his learning, to the extent that he is actually consumed by, and excessive in, his talmud Torah - not just that he derives a certain pleasure from it - has certainly, whether consciously or not, encountered the Shekhina.

As well as these:

Success [in lomdus], inasmuch as there are always new facts, new definitions and new situations, lies in the ability to perceive new concepts in new facts, to penetrate to their meaning as much as possible, and apply them to new situations. This is the pursuit of Divine intent and its inner logic.

and these:

It is important to keep in mind throughout that lomdus is not a formal method which merely requires a series of steps, nor is it an artificial process consisting of stale categories of thought. Rather, lomdus is a response to internal stimuli; one must always endeavor to be creative, open to nuances, formulations, and shifting winds - flexibility is critical. Thus, while these tools are useful, one must not let them dull sensitivity and constrict creativity.

Lomdus, when successfully implemented, allows one to respond to sugyot with intuitive precision and depth of understanding.

and finally these:

A skillful lamdan, thus, transforms the passive absorption of information into an encounter, an engagement with devar Hashem.

To learn more about this approach I came upon this recorded shiurim by Rav Rosensweig, which I intend to listen to shortly: Derekh HaLimud 1 (11/21/05) and Derekh HaLimud 2 (11/28/05).

In a few words, I guess I am drawn to the profound ability and desire to find infinite depths in the finite world around us. While my good friend Gary's words opened this post, about the importance of the particulars around us, which certainly holds much truth, I cannot help but think that a lamdan, might see the same flowers that Gary speaks about and immediately ask him or herself, halakhic questions regarding its permissability to be eaten or planted or uprooted on Shabbat, etc.

To close this too long post, I want to share some quotes from Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik's Halakhic Man:

When a fruit is growing, halakhic man measures the fruit with the standards of growth and ripening that he possesses: budding stage, early stage of ripening, formation of fruits or leaves, and reaching one-third of complete ripeness. He gazes at colors and determines their quality: distinguishes between green and yellow, blue and white, etc., etc., “between blood and blood, between affection and ffection” (Deut 17:8) p21

There is no real phenomenon to which halakhic man does not possess a fixed relationship from the outset and a clear, definitive, a priori orientation. . . . The Halakhah encompasses laws of business, torts, neighbors, plaintiff and defendant, creditor and debtor, partners, agents, workers, artisans, bailees, etc. p22

When his soul yearns for God, he immerses himself in reality, plunges, with his entire being, into the very midst of concrete existence, and petitions God to descend upon the mountain and to dwell within our reality, with all its laws and principles. Homo religiosus ascends to God; God, however, descends to halakhic man. The latter desires not to transform finitude into infinity but rather infinity into finitude. p45

The study of the Torah is not a means to another end, but is the end point of all desires. It is the most fundamental principle of all. p87

Looking for more than a "measure of sanctity"

From Rabbi Rosensweig's essay, "The Spiritual Legacy of Noah and Avraham":

These two perspectives [Noah's and Abraham's] are reflected in the contrast between the full complement of halakhic obligation and the Noahide code. The 613 commandments relate to and regulate every dimension of human life, expanding the concept and scope of the sacred and suffusing the mundane with sancitiy. The more limited seven-obligation Noahide code does effectively insure significant social stability, a standard of monotheism, as well as a measure of sanctity in other realms of life, but it does not approximate the pervasive and ambitious program of the halakhah.

In reading these words, I had to ask myself what then does the Jewish tradition claim a ben Noach should do if they want more "measure of sanctity"? Where and how can one find it and strive with Abraham for something more, something like Rabbi Soloveitchik describes in this passage from Out of the Whirlwind (p. 171), which I find as one of the most moving and important passages in all of Rabbi Soloveitchik's writings.

The way of every Jew to God must not differ from the trail along which Abraham moved toward his destiny, which had to be blazed through the wilderness of a brute and nonsensical existence. The experience is attained at the cost of doubts and a restless life, searching and examining, striving and pursuing—and not finding; of frustrating efforts and almost hopeless waiting; of grappling with oneself and everybody else; of exploring a starlit and moonlit sky and watching the majesty of sunsets and sunrises, the beauty of birth and also the ugliness of death and destruction; of trying to penetrate behind the mechanical surface of the cosmic occurrence and failing to discover any intelligible order in this drama; of winning and losing and reaching out again; of being able to put on a repeat performance of something which I had and lost; of asking questions and not finding answers; of ascending the high mount like Moses and falling back into the abyss, shattering everything one has received, and yet pulling oneself out of the depths of misery and trying to climb up the mountain again with two new stone tablets.

Opening up the Halakhic Man at random this morning

I often open a book at random and see what I find. Today, I did that with Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik's Halakhic Man, and found these amazingly profound and important words that are a wonderful antidote to other-worldly mysticism and pure this-world attention:

His [halakhic man] goal is not flight to another world that is wholly good, but rather bringing down that eternal world into the midst of our world. Homo religiosus, his glance fixed upon the higher realms, forgets all too frequently the lower realms and becomes ensnared in the sins of ethical inconsistency and hypocrisy. See what many religions have done to this world on account of their yearning to break through the bounds of concrete reality and escape to the sphere of eternity. p41

There is nothing so physically and spiritually destructive as diverting one's attention from this world. And, by contrast, how courageous is halakhic man who does not flee from this world, who does not seek to escape to some pure, supernal realm. Halakhic man craves to bring down the divine presence and holiness into the midst of space and time, in the midst of finite, earthly existence. p41

Universalism must flow from our particularism

I just recently listened to the recording of event put on by Yeshiva University entitled, Yehudim V'Amim: Destinies Intertwined?, which was about the Jewish responsibility for the global community from a social justice perspective. It was an evening of very interesting talks given by the Richard M. Joel, the president of YU and Rabbis Michael Rosensweig and J.J. Schacter.

While one of the messages of the evening was the need for offering students a balance of opportunities including social justice outreach, as well as training in Torah along with the full range of university curriculum.

During his presentation Rabbi Rosensweig made the point that a Jewish sense of universalism must flow from Judaism's particularism. I find this point very interesting and very important. Clearly, Judaism is known for it particularism in the sense that there is a perception that it has a dominant focus on the family of Jews and not the larger family of the world. And while Christianity may claim to have offered a remedy for that particularism, I think that the more interesting type of Jewish "particularism" is the type of amazing attention to real world details that is at the heart of the Talmud. For instance in Berachos 4b we find:

This is what David said before the Holy One, Blessed be He: Master of the Universe, am I not devout? For all the other kings of the East and the West sit among their company in their glory, but as for me, my hands are soiled with blood, embryos, and afterbirths which I examine, in order to permit a woman to her husband.

Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik, described this passage in Halakhic Man as an example of how the halakhic man gets "his hands soiled by the gritty realia of practical Halakhah."

Another example of this specificity comes from in today's Daf Yomi, Nazir 49B, which describes the amount of a corpse (bones, blood, gel, dust, etc.) needed to make a nazir tameh (ritually impure).

From these "gritty" particulars, the Talmud and its interpreters are able to build an ideal vision of reality, what one might call a universal vision. Again from Halakhic Man:

Halakhah has a fixed a priori relationship to the whole of reality in all of its fine and detailed particulars. Halakhic man orients himself to the entire cosmos and tries to understand it by utilizing an ideal world which he bears in his halakhic consciousness. p23

What I find fascinating is that another direction my attention has taken me recently is to a somewhat similar particularist vision of reality that is described by The Rule of Benedict (RB), St. Benedict's monastic rule that he wrote around 600 CE (the same time that the editing of the Talmud was completed).

Here is the reading for May 6:

Hence the Lord says in the Gospel,
"Whoever listens to these words of Mine and acts upon them,
I will liken to a wise person
who built a house on rock.
The floods came,
the winds blew and beat against that house,
and it did not fall,
because it had been founded on rock" (Matt. 7:24-25).

Having given us these assurances,
the Lord is waiting every day
for us to respond by our deeds to His holy admonitions.
And the days of this life are lengthened
and a truce granted us for this very reason,
that we may amend our evil ways.
As the Apostle says,
"Do you not know that God's patience is inviting you to repent" (Rom. 2:4)?
For the merciful Lord tells us,
"I desire not the death of the sinner,
but that the sinner should be converted and live" (Ezech. 33:11).

Words like "rock" and "deeds" and the entire RB is filled with real world, nitty gritty details about life within a community of monks written 1400 years ago. Yet, it contains an enormous array of details and insights from which one can learn much for living in the everyday world of the 21st century.

And on the other hand, philosophical or theological positions that do not rely on the particular, but are built on abstractions or generalizations often evaporate when challenged or lose their strength over time or simply merge into one, weak message that no longer has the power to move, motivate or inspire.

Somehow, these two visions, the Talmud and the Rule of Benedict, for me contain a way to focus on the particular, but dwell within the eternal and point to the universal.

Creativity . . . the purpose of the universe?

In other posts (here, here and here), I have written specifically about the importance of creativity. Today, I want to try again. As the title declares, the questions I want to ask are:

• Is creativity the purpose of the universe?
  
• Is creativity our purpose?
  
• Is the universe fundamentally creative?
  
• If so, are we?
  

In this post I will share quotes from two writers, who I believe would have a wonderful time talking and exploring together, even though their they come from very different perspectives. I will share quotes from Dr. Stuart Kauffman and Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik.

Dr. Kauffman is director of the Institute for Biocomplexity and Informatics at the University of Calgary and is a professor in the departments of Biological Sciences and Physics and Astronomy at the university. More can be found out here.

The YU website has a short bio of Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik here. The last line simply says, "was the most influential figure associated with the spread of Torah in America, and he was singularly known as “the Rav.”

While I enjoy the holistic view of Dr. Kauffman, I must admit that I find the Rav's view more inviting and a more tangible invitation to create on my own and to turn my day-to-day life into one filled with meaning and creativity.

Stuart Kauffman from Reinventing the Sacred draft (a book to be released in May)

Thus, beyond the new science that glimmers a new world view, we have a new view of God, not as transcendent, not as an agent, but as the very creativity of the universe itself. This God brings with it a sense of oneness, unity, with all of life, and our planet — it expands our consciousness and naturally seems to lead to an enhanced potential global ethic of wonder, awe, responsibility within the bounded limits of our capacity, for all of life and its home, the Earth, and beyond as we explore the Solar System.

The third, rather astonishing theme that is emerging in this new world view is that the biosphere and human culture are ceaselessly creative in ways that are fundamentally unpredictable and presumably non-algorithmic or machine like.

I want God to mean the vast ceaseless creativity of the only universe we know of, ours. What do we gain by using the God word? I suspect a great deal, for the word carries with it awe and reverence. If we can transfer that awe and reverence, not to the transcendental Abrahamic God of my Israelite tribe long ago, but to the stunning reality that confronts us, we will grant permission for a renewed spirituality, and awe, reverence and responsibility for all that lives, for the planet.

Stuart Kauffman -- Investigations

'Forever Creative' -- "In this chapter I have been trying to say, argue, articulate the possibility that a biosphere is profoundly generative--somehow fundamentally always creative. The cornerstone of this dawning new conviction lies in the belief I now hold with some confidence that we cannot finitely prestate the configuration space of a biosphere." 135

Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik -- Halakhic Man

“Only man is capable of creative interpretation (hiddush), something which is beyond the power of angels, for since the Holy One, blessed be He, created them in a state of perfection, they need not and, therefore, cannot develop and progress. But this is not the case with man, for he progresses and his intellect gains ever-increasing strength. . . . The essence of the Torah is intellectual creativity. 82

Halakhic man is a man who longs to create, to bring into being something new, something original. The study of Torah, by definition, means gleaning new, creative insights from the Torah (hiddushei Torah). 99

Man’s task is to “fashion, engrave, attach, and create,” and transform the emptiness in being into a perfect and holy existence, bearing the imprint of the divine name. 101

If a man wishes to attain the rank of holiness, he must become a creator of world. If a man never creates, never brings into being anything new. anything original, then he cannot be holy unto his God. 108

The most fundamental principle of all is that man must create himself. It is this idea that Judaism introduced into the world. 109

And halakhic man, whose voluntaristic nature we have established earlier, is, indeed, a free man. He creates an ideal world, renews his own being and transforms himself into a man of God, dreams about the complete realization of the Halakhah in the very core of the world, and looks forward to the kingdom of God “contracting” itself and appearing in the midst of concrete and empirical reality. 137

If we accept that the universe is this abundant and creative realm -- then doesn't it make simple sense that that type of abundant creativity is key to each of us, to the human universe. Therefore, as one investigates ideas, theories, even religions--this notion of creativity and abundance and its nurturing, advocating, encouraging and teaching is fundamental.

What creates the opportunity for more creativity, more diversity, more abundance, more LIFE? This creativity is not simply poetry (the favorite of many philosophers, e.g Heidegger) or art, but the creativity in all of Life's areas -- creatively exploring new opportunities for growth.

With creativity, diversity, novelty as fundamental goods--freedom is another key -- because without freedom, we would not have the opportunity to explore new possibilities, new opportunities, new horizons.

I think the most important thing to remember is that this is how the universe works -- when we block this creativity, this newness, we run counter to life; we block our own creativity, we block the fundamental direction, urge, push of Life.

What are some of the keys to making this happen? Language -- language helps create new possibility, new ways of thinking and seeing by finding/creating the right word(s). Environment -- a rich (though not chaotic) environment creates new opportunities.

Moment to moment to moment -- looking for creativity, opportunity, possibility, growth.

Why I write this blog

As should be clear to anyone spending time on this blog, I have a deep interest in Orthodox Judaism and its teachings, even though I am not part of the tradition. On various pages I have tried to explain my attraction, my interest and hopefully I have offered some insight.

I think that at the heart of my writing are three intentions:

1. To capture and express insights and ideas -- Often in my readings and listenings I am struck by something that moves me so much that I want to share it with others. This blog gives me that opportunity to share some of those insights with a broader audience, who may find some light and inspiration from them as well.
2. Expand the message -- I truly feel that Modern Orthodoxy has valuable and inspirational insights not just relevant for Orthodox Jews or even non-observant Jews, but for all people, and especially for all spiritual seekers of meaning and purpose. This type of "universal" message is something that I first found in the writings and shiurim of Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik and just recently in Chofetz Chaim's writings on lashon hora. True, at times it takes translating and expanding of "Jew" to "person," which the writers might object to. But I believe that if it helps me and hopefully others lead more respectful, more peaceful, more God-fearing lives, then I think it is a worthwhile expansion.
3. To find a study partner -- while in various locations within the Talmud have read a number of warnings about studying by oneself, sadly at this point that is what I have been doing. Luckily, I have the amazing resources that are present online and in book form, but I would enjoy being able to discuss and study with one or more individuals. As more people come to the blog, perhaps one or two might be interested in studying with me, for example someone from Rabbi Rosensweig's shiur (though I know I am like a kindergarten student in comparison). I know that I would be an unusual partner, but one never knows what could come of it. If you are interested please leave a comment or email me.

Each of our actions is important

The other day I was reading one of Rabbi Gil Student's posts on his terrific blog -- Hirhurim Musings. It is about the halacha regarding brushing one's teeth on Shabbat, which was an issue raised when his young son had a friend spend the night on Shabbat. I will let you read it, but I have to admit that while I was reading all the detail that R' Student went into about the prohibition of causing bleeding and squeezing on Shabbat, I could not help but think "Unbelievable, this is legalism at its worst!"

BUT the next day as I was listening to a lecture by Hubert Dreyfus on Martin Heidegger's Being and Time, professor Dreyfus was describing sense of the worldhood of the world, but the important thing for this post, is that professor Dreyfus in discussing one of Heidegger's points (I can't even remember the exact point at this time), made the distinction that for the discussion Heidegger was really focusing only on the "important" types of actions that we perform (such as teaching or being a parent -- something that defines us), and not unimportant actions like washing our hands, etc.

On hearing him say this I couldn't help but think about how hard R' Student had worked to describe the issue of brushing one's teeth on Shabbat! Now that is an unimportant issue (except of course for the health of your teeth -- though one day probably doesn't hurt one's dental hygiene much), if I ever heard of one. However, instead of treating in as unimportant the halachic tradition took it very seriously and put much energy into understanding what Chazel and the tradition said on the topic.

A bit later in the day I was listening to Rav Soloveitchik's shiur "Al Hanisim Chanuka" from Boston 1971, which can be found on the http://www.bcbm.org/ website. In it Rav Soloveitchik discusses the dialectic between the importance of the individual and the community within Judaism and while I have yet to finish the shiur and probably couldn't summarize it, even if I did, the one message that came through clearly on it and through much of the other works I have listened to and read from the Rav, was how much and how deeply valued the individual is within the halacha.

The final piece of this puzzle, which brings together many strains of thought I have recently had, comes from Rav Michael Rosensweig's recently posted shiurim on the Pirkei Avos. In the first few shiurim Rav Rosensweig is discussing the first mishnah in the second parek, which reads:

Rebbe said: Which is the straight path that a person should choose for himself?

Whatever is honorable for him and gains him people's respect. Be as careful in performing a slight mitzvah as a weighty mitzvah--because you do not know the reward for mitzvos. Consider the loss caused by a mitzvah in contrast to its reward, and the gain of a sin in contrast to its loss.

Contemplate three things, and you will not come to sin. Know what is above you: An eye that sees, an ear that hears, and all of your actions are written in a book. (translation from Rav Lau on Pirkei Avos from Artscroll)

Again, there is no way for me to try to capture what Rav Rosensweig says, but at the heart of it seems to me the message that while there may truly be a hierarchy within the mitzvot, it is most important for a person to treat each mitzva with the same level of honor and respect. Or as Rav Rosensweig might say, even though I don't think he does in shiurim, a person should treat each mitzva with a "maximalist" level of love, respect and thoroughness.

While this mishnah in Pirkei Avos brings to mind images of God as a strict taskmaster watching and judging every one of our actions, on the other hand it also depicts Hashem as a listening and guarding parent who pays close attention to us and is fundamentally and profoundly concerned about our welfare.

In closing while I am sure that the Orthodox focus on strict interpretation of all mitzvot may at times be used as more of a badge of who is the most frum (most observant), what I do appreciate is that with all that R' Student writes about brushing (and there is a second part to come) at the end of the day, the two boys had different practices (one brushed and the other didn't)! For all the scrupulousness of the halacha this recognition that in some situations there can be differences and that one should respect the tradition that one is raised up in, seems to be an important, if not essential, counter weight to a overly legalistic view of the world.

For myself what I find most inspiring is that sense of importance that this discussion gives to my actions. While the world may be interested in the day-to-day activities of celebrities, politicians or reality show contestants, the message from the halacha seems to be "Everyone of us is important and essential, and each of our actions shapes us and our future and has seemingly infinite depth and significance."

This is a message that I think many, many people need these days. Since today it is easy to feel unimportant, to feel like a number or to define one's value only in what we consume. When I combine this vision regarding our actions with the importance of study, of Torah lishmah (studying Torah for its own sake), it helps see my life with a sense of depth and meaning that is difficult create on one's own within the often time's far too shallow, superficial and fast-paced world in which we live.

In closing, I am grateful to the Orthodox Jewish tradition for providing such an enormous array of online material and beautiful books in translation, like Artscroll's Schottenstein Babylonian Talmud, to help one become engaged in a conversation that began thousands of years ago and will continue for thousands of years in the future . . . What could be more important and exciting than that?

WITT? -- Thinking and Living

In keeping with the Internet world's love of acronyms -- I have decided to create one "WITT?," which stands for "What is the Talmud?" :-)

In a recent comment, Rabbi Gluskin, stated that the “Talmud then is ultimately about helping people to think in order to figure out how to behave.”

The key to me in this sentence is the idea that Talmud is something (the Oral Torah, a conversation, a scripture, etc.) that helps us and teaches us how to think in order to help us understand how to “live.” I would use “live” instead of “behave,” because I think it is a more open and flexible word than “behave,” which to my ear, at least, has a lot of baggage.

What is essential is the connection between thinking and living. Obviously from a traditional Jewish perspective this “living” has to do with keeping the mitzvot, the halachah of the Torah. Yet, if we open ourselves to the overall perspective of dialogue, debate, preservation of differing opinions and love of Hashem within the Talmud, then I would argue one can find within the Talmud universal hints and methods for living a more vibrant and open life. A life that embraces the differences that exist and continually strives to find the best, the most holy way to act in a specific moment, within a specific situation.

From "Ethics of Responsiblity" by Walter Wurzburger

from Ethics of Responsibility: Pluralistic Approaches to Covenantal Ethics, by Walter Wurzburger

From my perspective, Halakhah represents not merely “the way of God”—that is, a divinely revealed body of laws; it also functions as a way to God, leading not necessarily to mystical union with Him, but to a life dedicated to responding to Him through obedience to His commandments and imitation of His ways. p3

One the ideas that first drew me to the work of Rabbi Soloveitchik was his emphasis on what he described as the "democratic" nature of the Halakhah. In the sense that anyone can perform the various mitzbvot (commandments) and can find God through those actions. One does not have to have some special mystical or contemplative ability. I find this immensely important because I think very few individuals truly have a mystical side to them. Therefore, finding some way to make our everyday actions and life "holy" is key.

The applicability of the norms and values of Jewish Covenantal Ethics is by no means restricted to the members of the Jewish Covenantal Community. Although at the present time the religiously committed Jewish community seems to turn ever more inward and tends to focus primarily upon the particularistic and nationalistic elements of its heritage, I believe it to be of special importance to call attention to its universalistic components. While the ritualistic elements of Judaism are completely particularistic and intended exclusively for individuals who either by birth or by conversion qualify as members of the People of the Covenant, Jewish ethical teachings are not subject to the same kind of limitation but are viewed as possessing universal relevance. p8

I will share more quotes from this work over time. One of the reasons I am drawn to Judaism is the "democratic," this-worldly focus and its emphasis on ethics. However, I must admit that at times I feel, as Rabbi Wurzburger alludes to, that their vision and interests are far too focused on either Israel or simply Jews as a whole. There are very few "universal" messages presented. In some ways, we should be happy that the Jews are not trying to convert everyone and have always had belief in the righteousness of the righteous from other traditions. But with the world in so much pain these days, I do believe that there are universal qualities within Judaism that can be of support and service to believers of other traditions, or simply those seeking to learn more and be closer to God.

The importance of creativity in the Rav’s thought

At times when one views an Orthodox tradition – whether that is Orthodox Judaism, Christianity, Islam or Buddhism, to name a few – one usually doesn’t think of “creativity” as an important quality. One instead views it as dogmatic, stagnant and repressive. And if anything, frightened of creativity and change.

Well, I would contend that Orthodox Judaism and in particular the thought of Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik, does embrace creativity and even places creativity at the center of its thought.

Here are a number of quotations from Walter Wurzburger’s article in Tradition, volume 30.4 1996 entitled, “The Centrality of Creativity in the Thought of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik.”

According to the Rav, human beings, as bearers of the image of God, are mandated to imitate the Creator. In view of the fact that the commandment, ve-halakhta bi-drakhav (imitatio Dei) refers exclusively to the divine moral attributes, the Rav treats creation as a moral category. . . .

R. Chaim of Volozin, a forebear of the Rav, [defined] the human task as the realization of one’s potential for spiritual creativity. In his view, that human beings bear the image of God implies that they are charged with imitating His creativity. . . .

He [R. Chaim of Volozin] goes so far as to assert that the bliss of the Hereafter can be enjoyed only by those who actually create their own immortality. The World-to-Come is not a pre-existing domain to which God dispenses visas of admission to meritorious individuals. Everyone must by his own good deeds create his own spiritual domain in the World-to-Come. . . .

According to the [Rav] individual providence extends only to those human beings who by dint of their intellectual and spiritual development have become genuine individuals and are no longer merely members of the human species. When a person creates himself, ceases to be a mere species (“man”), and becomes a man of God, then he has fulfilled that commandment which is implicit in the principle of providence. . . .

What matters for us is that, basing himself on Rambam, the Rav unequivocally declared that striving for ever higher rungs of moral perfection and participating as a partner with God in overcoming the imperfections of the universe is the pre-eminent approach to imitatio Dei. . . .

According to Rav Soloveitchik the extremist enjoys the advantage of being self-assured. But whoever has deeper insight and perceives different aspects of issues must forego the satisfaction of dogmatic certainty.

Rav Soloveitchik points to the dialectical tension within human beings as demanding the balancing of hesed and emet. In his interpretation, hesed mandates involvement in the world to transform it and create conditions conducive to human welfare. Emet, on the other hand, refers to the eternal values of the covenantal community, which transcend the world of temporal flux and which alone can provide us with a sense of meaning and purpose and enable us to overcome our existential loneliness. Since, according to halakhic Judaism, it is our task to seek to encounter God’s Presence primarily in the lower realms of being (ikkar Shekhina ba-tahtonim), we must not try to escape from this world by a flight into transcendental spheres. The human task is to create an abode for God in this world.

This is a vision of human creativity that I find quite beautiful and meaningful, especially in our world that seems so caught up in simplistic visions of good and bad, right and wrong, us and them. This is a profound challenge to each of us to create ourselves and to create a world that are truly fit for God, a world and a self full of love, care and hope.

from OUT OF THE WHIRLWIND

Either the religious experience flows from a heart filled to the brim with love of God, and from a soul stirred to its inmost roots, or it is non-existent and artificially produced.

The way of every [person] to God must not differ from the trail along which Abraham moved toward his destiny, which had to be blazed through the wilderness of a brute and nonsensical existence. The experience is attained at the cost of doubts and a restless life, searching and examining, striving and pursuing—and not finding; of frustrating efforts and almost hopeless waiting; of grappling with oneself and everybody else; of exploring a starlit and moonlit sky and watching the majesty of sunsets and sunrises, the beauty of birth and also the ugliness of death and destruction; of trying to penetrate behind the mechanical surface of the cosmic occurrence and failing to discover any intelligible order in this drama; of winning and losing and reaching out again; of being able to put on a repeat performance of something which I had and lost; of asking questions and not finding answers; of ascending the high mount like Moses and falling back into the abyss, shattering everything one has received, and yet pulling oneself out of the depths of misery and trying to climb up the mountain again with two new stone tablets.


Out of the Whirlwind, Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik, p. 171 (my emphasis)

More quotes from HALAKHIC MAN

The consciousness of homo religiosus is overflowing with questions that will never be resolved. He scans reality and is overcome with wonder, fixes his attention on the world and is astonished. . . . is the ultimate goal and crowning glory of the process of cognition of homo religiosus. p10

Homo religiosus is dissatisfied, unhappy with this world. He searches for an existence that is above empirical reality. This world is a pale image of another world. p13

Cognitive man, on the other hand, is not concerned at all with a reality that extends outside the realm of lawfulness . . . for the law is his goal, and lawfulness is always and only to be found within the context of concreteness. p13

These quotes capture the Rav's desire to focus our attention on the everyday world, on the here and now, on our own struggles and triumphants. He rejects any separation between the sacred and the secular -- all is one world in which we strive every day to understand and live out the will of God.

Quotes from Rabbi Soloveitchik's HALAKHIC MAN

The most important book in my spiritual journey at this time is Halakhic Man by Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik. Today, I will begin to share a series of quotes from this master work of religious Orthodoxy. I hope these quotes will encourage you to buy this powerful book.

Halakhic man reflects two opposing selves; two disparate images are embodied within his soul and spirit. On the one hand he is as far removed from homo religiosus as east is from west and is identical, in many respects, to prosaic, cognitive man; on the other hand is a man of God, possessor of an ontological approach that is devoted to God and of a world view saturated with the radiance of the Divine Presence. p3

Halakhic man is not some illegitimate, unstable hybrid. On the contrary, out of the contradictions and antinomies there emerges a radiant, holy personality whose soul has been purified in the furnace of struggle and opposition and redeemed in the fires of the torments of spiritual disharmony to a degree unmatched by the universal homo religiosus. p4