Daily Life Lessons from Rabbi Heschel
Year 4 Day 347
“Judaism is a theology of the common deed, of the trivialities of life, dealing not su much with the training for the exceptional as with the management of the trivial. The predominant feature in the Jewish pattern of life is unassuming, inconspicuous piety rather than extravagance, mortification, asceticism.” ( Thunder in the Soul pgs. 77-78)
Being immersed in “the Jewish pattern of life”, as I hear Rabbi Heschel this morning is to immersed in “the common deed”, “the trivialities of life”! What a concept: kindness and mercy, love and justice, caring for the stranger and the needy, doing T’Shuvah and practicing forgiveness towards self and another for our imperfections, decency, ensuring freedom throughout the land, seeing and honoring the infinite dignity of ALL human beings as we are ALL created in the image of the divine, and so many more daily routines, like eating, bathing, working are all “the common deeds”, “the trivialities of life”?!?!? Some would, could, do say: why concern yourself with the poor, the widow, these trivial matters, “keep your eye on the big picture”, “see the goal line” etc. Judaism, as Rabbi Heschel is pounding in my ears, is “a pattern of life” that demands concern, exhorts its members to rise above their self-centered, can’t be bothered with ‘those trivial matters’ and Shema, hear the call of “the poor, the tired, the huddled masses yearning to breathe free” as Emma Lazarus wrote so beautifully and with piety to welcome these ‘trivial’ people to our shores. We the People are being given a gift by Rabbi Heschel to remember that either everything matters or nothing matters, either we recognize that every human being is precious and ‘worth’ an entire world or none of us are and our lives mean nothing.
I am tired of people talking about “the big picture” all the time while ignoring the plight of the people they are ‘going to help’; example: trickle down economics, tax breaks for corporations, the ultra wealthy “will make the poor so rich they won’t be able to count it” according to Trump and his lying Commerce Secretary, Lutnick, and his mendacious Treasury Secretary, Bessent- both Jews who proclaim their loyalty to a “Jewish pattern of life”-BULLSHIT! Isn’t it WAY PAST TIME that We the People demand our government deal with these “trivialities” like feeding the poor, affordable medical insurance for those in need, living wages for the ‘working poor’, decency in our discourse, argue about issues not personalities, honor the spirit as well as the letter of the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, the Bible, the words and teachings of Christ, etc? Isn’t it WAY PAST TIME that We the People turn away from our hurts and angers, from our traumas and wounds to be of service, to be the GIFT we are created to be, giving out our gift of wisdom, knowledge, vision, insights, helping the wounded like us and receiving the gift of all these and more from another human being? Isn’t it WAY PAST TIME to engage with our soulmate, with our partner, with our Higher Power, higher consciousness, to both give and receive what we need, what they need so we both live one grain of sand better each day and we are stronger to go out and be the GIFT we are created to be to our corner of the world?
“Piety” is from the Latin meaning “dutifulness”. Rabbi Heschel is reminding us that We the People are given the GIFT of duty, of serving, of doing the next right thing without fanfare, without needing acknowledgment, with the humility and gratitude of being able to serve not just God, not just another human being, rather we GET to serve the call of our soul, we GET to GIFT our wisdom, skill, wonder, awe, reverence, to another human being and RECEIVE the GIFT of same they GIFT to us. It is not an “even exchange”, it is not always a reciprocal exchange, sometimes the GIFT comes from another source altogether, what is called a reciprocity of generosity. AND, when we are in the “unassuming, inconspicuous piety” rather than the need to show off our piety, we receive some of the best GIFTs from those who can only receive our help, receive our kindness, receive our amends, and just can’t, for whatever reason, give anything back.
Living into “a Jewish pattern of life” has brought me joy, love, community, angst, righteous indignation, impatience, and I would not trade it for the world-having lived in the other world for far too many years. Living into the piety embedded in me, the piety that motivates me to BE ME, the piety that pushes me to do the next right thing, the piety that doesn’t allow me to “go along to get along”, the piety that forces me to live the inheritance WE ALL receive from the prophets to stand up and speak truth to power, to demand justice, mercy, and that they walk in God’s ways instead of the ways of idolatry they currently and always have to a greater or lesser degree. There is, actually, nothing trivial about the “common deed”, it is the path and pattern laid out in the Bible for us and We the People need to accept and live into it. “Piety”, “the common deed” are the “life and length of my days” as the prayer says.
ACTION STEPS:
Make a list of the “common deeds” you usually ignore and add them to your “pattern of life”
Make a list of the “common deeds” people do you for you and be grateful in words and actions for their help
Make a list of what you are going to GIFT the world, individuals with today and notice what the universe GIFTs back to you
Live life as a duty to repay the GIFTs you are so freely given!
God Bless and stay safe, Rabbi Mark