Daily Life Lessons from Rabbi Heschel
Day 64
“Creation in the language of the Bible is an act of expression. God said: “Let there be”; and it was. Creation is not an act that happened once, but a continuous process. The work Yehi, “Let there be,” stands forever in the universe.”(Man is Not Alone pg. 144/5).
I have been thinking about this last sentence since yesterday. I am trembling with the impact and force of Rabbi Heschel’s words. “Yehi, “Let there be” has never left the universe, it is a constant call, a constant demand, a constant hope and a constant prayer. Creationists think God created the world in 7 days and then everything was finished. Evolutionists believe that there is no God and everything that has happened has been random and the world is dynamic. Rabbi Heschel’s teaching is saying they are both wrong and right. Creationists are correct in that God/Ineffable One/creative energy/Higher Power created the universe and they are wrong that creation is over. Evolutionists are wrong that there is no Divine/Mystery/Ineffable One at work in the creation of our worlds and they are right that creation is dynamic and happening right now.
The power of “Yehi, “let there be”, is overwhelming at first blush in this way of living. We are constantly being called to create anew, to improve on yesterday’s creation, to use the power we have to create goodness, wholeness, community, safety, justice, truthfulness, kindness, acts of lovingkindness for everyone, equality of worth, value and dignity for all humanity. We are being called to create a better world each and every day. We are called to be “a light unto the nations”. “Let there be” is a demand, not just a command as I am understanding Rabbi Heschel this morning. I never thought of it in this way before. The Ineffable One is demanding us to create, to continue the creation the Ineffable One began, to be true working partners, not just the entitled children of the king/ruler, etc. I am struck by this call/demand/thought. Looking at the world today, we can see the people who respond to this demand through creating more and more goodness, kindness, reach out to the poor and the needy, see another human being-not a skin color or religious affiliation, etc. We see the people who are making a fortune and sharing it with those less fortunate, trying to change the systems that are set up so the poor and the needy can never succeed. We can see so many people answering the call, the demand of “Yehi, “Let there be”.
We can, of course, see the people who use “Yehi” for their own benefit. Who seem to care about creating a better world and really only care about themselves. We see the people who use their power corruptly, to line their own pockets, to defeat the very ideals, ethics, morals that gave them opportunity! We see how people use “Let there be” to create systems that keep people out, exclude another human being and I am not talking about just immigration here. Country clubs, neighborhoods, etc have/had restrictions against people of color, Jews, Muslims, etc. and once these restrictions were found to be unconstitutional, they made sure they could keep the “riffraff” out through high initiation fees; larger taxes for schools, etc; blackballing, etc. These same people decry the immigration debacle caused by our government and still engage in exclusionary practices. “Let there be” can be used to create chaos, prejudice and power grabs, unfortunately as well as hope, goodness, form and inclusion.
The demand to do T’Shuvah, to see what we have created that is good and what we have created that is not good each day rings loudly in our souls/inner lives. This use of “Yehi, “Let there be” is so very important to engage in. We have to be constantly aware and on-guard as to what we are creating, as we have seen in another and in our own lives, slipping into bastardizing our power to create, our call to create can happen without our conscious awareness, through our self-deception and mendacity. Acting on this demand to create, appropriately, entails doing our T’Shuvah each and every day.
In recovery, we know about a daily inventory, we know about a complete and fearless moral inventory as well. We are acutely, painfully aware of how we use our “Yehi, “Let there be” power and call to serve our self only, to bastardize the faith, the power, the demand that the Ineffable One imbued in us for our selfish desires. In recovery, we seek to find commonality, we pray for those who are still suffering, we welcome all into our way of being and we seek to serve rather than be served. In recovery, the actions we take are in direct opposition to the bastardization of earlier times, they are creating wholeness and goodness within us and with another(s).
I am guilty of bastardizing the demand and the power the Ineffable One gives me to “Yehi, “Let there be”. I see the times I disregarded the call, pushed aside the demand, argued with people who were trying to help me see and hear the call of my soul, the call of God more clearly and act upon these calls rather than continue on in the path that I was on. I am acutely and painfully aware of the difference in my life hearing these calls from my soul, the universe, the people around me would have made. While I am proud of the way I have lived “Yehi, “Let there be” these past 33 years, I also realize there was more to be done and I could have done more had I not been afraid, had I not been so deaf. And, since “Yehi” stands forever in the universe, I have time and the energy to hear anew, create anew and live anew each day. God Bless and Stay Safe, Rabbi Mark