Daily Life Lessons from Rabbi Heschel
Day 261
“To be human involves the ability to appreciate as well as the ability to give expression to appreciation. For thousands of years authentic existence included both manipulation and appreciation, utilization and celebration, both work and worship. In primitive society they were interdependent; in biblical religion they were interrelated. Today we face a different situation.” (Who is Man pg. 116)
Encountering Rabbi Heschel’s teaching this day allows us to have a new respect, understanding and experience of what it means to honor and frequent our genuine coming into being, our genuine taking a stand for what is good and right ethically, morally whether or not someone passes laws that go against what is right and good! The Latin root meaning “frequented/honor” is so crucial to our understanding and encounter with celebration, I believe. Where does one frequent in their constant search for both meaning and purpose? Where do you frequent in your search for the next right action? Where do we need to frequent in order to honor the being we are/need to be coming into? These questions, I believe, are the ones we need to be asking ourselves in this moment, at this time, and for the sake of our souls as well as for the sake of our world.
We are witnesses to the constant drumbeat of mendacity; of Goebbels playbook being used over and over again; tell a lie often enough and it becomes true! Another deception is: if I live my false self long enough it becomes my real/genuine self! We are witnessing Mealy-Mouthed McCarthy pledge to investigate the Democrats with Junkyard Dog and Look The Other Way while young college athletes are being molested Jim Jordan heading the charge. These ‘good christian IDOLATORS and scam artists are frequenting the club where Donald Trump is Don, they are Capos, and White Supremacy, steal as much as you can, and fealty to the Don is all that is important. This is what we are witnessing happening to our country, our institutions of democracy are being torn down in the name of Jesus Christ while the people tearing them down are acting IN THE EXACT OPPOSITE of Jesus’ teachings. These good bible-thumping deceivers go against every possible way of honoring God, honoring the teachings of Moses, honoring Jesus’ teachings, honoring Mohammed’s teachings, yet they believe you will continue to frequent their 3 Card Monte game and continue to be the suckers we have been.
To frequent places that help us find our “authentic existence” we need to change the areas we frequent. We have to stop “going to the well” of senseless hatred and take the cotton out of our ears to hear truth. Why do we hate anyone, what do we gain from being hateful towards one another? Nothing except power, camaraderie, and continued energy to stay stuck in blame rather than be responsible for our self and for “turning our swords into plowshares”. As long as we continue to frequent the clubs of mendacity, senseless hatred, prejudice, we will keep on hating, we will tear down the ideals, ideas, the very constitution these Judas’ claim to be following. We have a choice to end our sucking on the tit of self-hatred, the tit of white supremacy, the tit of prejudice aka “cancer of the soul” and be in recovery from this nightmare of our own making.
There are no more good guys/gals and bad gals/guys, there is only us, fellow human beings seeking an “authentic existence” that is in service of a power greater than ourselves, in service of a higher consciousness, in service to the premise that “all men/women are created equal” and “are endowed with the unalienable right to life, liberty and happiness”. I challenge the Crooked Cruz’, the Molester Gaetz’, et al to be in service of these ideals and promises, I challenge Mendacious Mitch to be in service of the principles and experiences that Lincoln espoused and went to war for, I challenge us all to look at the places we frequent, Fox News, Hearings of Jan.6th Committee, etc and decide if we are honoring the dead who fought for our freedoms, honoring the Israelites who left Egypt so there would be an Israel where Jesus could learn and add to the teachings he learned from the Hebrew Bible, honoring the deaths of the Concentration Camps of Nazi Germany of 6 Million Jews + so many other people. Where one frequents will determine if one honors God, truth, love, kindness, justice, mercy and compassion, if one honors imperfection, Tshuvah/amends and forgiveness and moving forward. This is the choice encountering these words today bring us to.
In recovery, we are acutely aware that if we hang out in the barbershop long enough, we will get our hair cut, meaning if we frequent areas that are bad for us, neighborhoods that will bring us back to old behaviors, we will fall back, we will partake in our old ways of deception, mendacity, dishonesty, etc. In recovery, we make and find new places to frequent so we can continue to honor God, people, and our authentic self each day.
I have frequented places in my head that are bad neighborhoods for me and in these places I have not honored what I know and my recovery. I also have frequented one place over and over again, the neighborhood of truth, of speaking about the emperor having no clothes and I am not popular for this and for the ways I speak at times. People make my choice of language an issue when they don’t want to face the issues I am speaking about. I commit to continue to frequent the places where truth, kindness, justice, mercy, compassion and truth hang out! God Bless and stay safe, Rabbi Mark