Daily Prophets
Day 73
“For it is a rebellious people, faithless children, children who refused to heed the instruction of God. Therefore, God says: because you have rejected this word, and have put your trust and reliance in that which is fraudulent and tortuous, this iniquity will work on you… Truly God is waiting to show you grace, Therefore God will pardon you. For God is God of justice; happy are all who wait for God.(Isaiah 30:9,12,13,18).
Isaiah is speaking to Judah about making a pact with Egypt. God tells us in the Torah to not go back to Egypt, it is a dangerous place for us. On this 2nd day of Passover, I believe that God knew/knows our propensity to trap ourselves through our self-deception. Why else would the Jews of that time be faithless, rebellious, stubborn?
As we continue to celebrate Passover, are we aware of all the fraudulent and tortuous things we rely on instead of God? Isaiah is pointing out the issue, the problem, and the solution. We, each of us as individuals and we, as a community, have to search out the paths we take that lead us away from God, thinking that we are really going towards God. This way of thinking and living is a powerful example of how self-deception ruins our lives and the lives of people around us.
Yet, Isaiah reminds us that God is waiting for us, God wants to bestow Grace upon us, God wants to pardon us, all we have to do is turn to God, renew our covenant with God, begin to hear, listen and understand God’s call to us, and live in Truth rather than the self-deception we have come to embrace, love and wrap ourselves in.
Rabbi Heschel teaches: “How abysmal stubbornness can be. Man rears his own despots-idols, lies, perversions; he labors to prepare his own disaster. Is he insane?”(The Prophets pg. 190). He goes on to say: “The king put his trust in the art of politics, carrying out his plan, disregarding God’s plan; entering an alliance, but not in God’s spirit…(ibid. pg 70).“There are very few thoughts as deeply ingrained in the mind of biblical man as the thought of God’s justice and righteousness.”(ibid. pg 199/200). “The grandeur and majesty of God do not come to expression in the display of ultimate sovereignty and power, but rather in rendering righteousness and mercy.”(ibid pg 214). These teachings are crucial for our understanding how to live in God’s Will and World instead of carrying out our own plan. Our stubbornness and demons that we create our killing us and we don’t even see nor understand this truth. Many people continue to miss the truth of Rabbi Heschel’s last teaching above, we/they believe practicing righteousness and mercy is a weakness instead of a strength and a show of solidarity and connection to God.
If only our political leaders would study The Prophets. They are living in the self-deception of their own power and ‘rightness’, on both ends of the continuum. There is a middle ground the Rambam teaches us to seek and go to the extremes only to right-size ourselves when we are out of proper measure. I am thinking of how much these ‘people of faith’ refuse to heed God’s call to care for the stranger, the poor, the needy, etc. Rather, they look for ways/paths to cater to the constituents that give them money and help them get reelected. The purpose of power is to render righteousness and mercy, as Rabbi Heschel teaches, to our political leaders it is to display ultimate power and sovereignty. We, the People, must hold them accountable to serve God, to serve democracy and to serve us all. This is our right, our responsibility and our gift.
In recovery, we are aware of where our faithless behaviors, our refusal to heed God’s call, our trusting in fraudulent and torturous paths has led us, to the destruction of our souls, to the perpetration of evil upon others, to our bottoms. Yet, we have experienced the “grandeur and majesty of God” through the mercy we have been shown and the grace we have received. In recovery, we see how we were enslaved to our lies, deceptions, perversions, etc. as Rabbi Heschel teaches, and we know that God has redeemed us and, once again, taken us out of the burdens of slavery and the bonds of slavery. In recovery we invite all who are hungry and all who are needy to our seders, and to our meetings, our table, into our lives everyday.
I struggle with both of these parts. Putting trust into fraudulent alliances is one of my greatest weaknesses and has brought spiritual ruin to me often. I have always wanted to believe in the people I believe in, believing that we can rise above our own agenda-most of the time-to aid another(s)/community. I have been disappointed so many times and, I think, this last time has shown me a new light that God has been shining on me, yet I refused to heed. I also see how I have missed the mark in making alliances that I knew were fraudulent and yet, expedient!. These also have no place in God’s plan and desire for me. It is important for me to stop these behaviors/paths so I can truly be free of the pain, hurt, and sadness this way of being causes me. I don’t need these false alliances, I don’t need to show power to/over another, I don’t need to reject God’s Torah ever again. I am committed to truth, to real connections and to mine the Torah/Tanach for new teachings and new ways to carry them out-letting go of self-deception and idols. This is the slavery I am leaving this year. What slavery are you leaving and how are you recommitting to God’s plan? Stay safe and God Bless, Rabbi Mark