Ghosting God, Ghosting Self
Day 117
Since we looked at misappropriation, aka stealing, yesterday, We the People have to look at the myriad of ways we took the next right action, how often we were living in proper measure. Just as looking at the good we have done, seeing the ways stayed true to our principles, without engaging in the ways and situations we take the next right action is very important for being able to acknowledge the WHOLE of our beingness, it is also one with which many of We the People are uncomfortable with.
While the hope and prayer of every spiritual discipline, of which Judaism, Christianity, Islam are, is to be accepting of all that enters our countenance, our realms, it is obvious that this is impossible for human beings! So, these spiritual disciplines all have their unique ways to “welcome us back home” after an error AND to cheer We the People on for doing the next right action. To many people this cheering feels kinda dumb-why should I be honored, cheered, rewarded for doing what I am supposed to do-many of us ask. The reason, I believe, is to give us the strength, encouragement, impetus to do the next right thing more often, especially when it is hard, when it could go against our own self-interest. Also, it is a recognition that We the People are adhering to, engaging in, reveling in the Covenant with God, hearing the Voice from Sinai call out to us, and not ignoring the pleas of the stranger, the needy, the poor.
I know this way of being is “out of vogue” right now, we the people seem to be more narcissistic than ever, more cruelty practiced than anytime since Nazi Germany, Stalin’s Russia, the pogroms, etc. Hence the importance of We the People to look at and see how we have done the next right thing, how we have stood up to the bullies, the creeps, the grifters, the thieves, the idolators and liars, the desecrators of God’s Name, those who are swearing falsely in the Name of Jesus. This inventory is to give us the strength to admit our assets, to acknowledge our readiness to serve something higher than ourselves. It is the ultimate rebellion because instead of rebelling against something/someone, We the People are rebelling to God, to decency, to Truth, to Love, to Kindness, to Trust, to Service, to Compassion, to Forgiveness, to Being Right Sized, etc.
It is also a moment for We the People to gather ourselves with like-doing people, people for whom taking a leap of faith is secondary to “taking a leap of action” as Rabbi Heschel calls upon us to do. It is a moment for We the People to appreciate the “roads less traveled” that We have taken, the help we have received from another, taking the time to thank the people who have helped us along the way once again-there is never a better time to remember all the aid and comfort, help and guidance We the People have received in order to be able to stand in this place, in this moment, in front of the mirror, in front of God, in front of one another. It is also a moment to remember doing the next right action is not for anyone but oneself! Of course it helps another human being, of course it brings us closer to God, to the Universe, AND the action is taken so an individual can better live with her/himself. I am thinking about the resentments I have had when I was doing the next right thing and another(s) were not, they got what they wanted and I was ‘stuck’ taking care of business, how these resentments fueled my criminality and alcoholism. OY, I am experiencing such remorse right now, AND I am experiencing such JOY because I have let go of these stupid resentments, I do the next right thing because IT IS THE NEXT RIGHT THING-without much expectation of any reward and I always get the knowing in my kishkas, my gut, that I am okay in the moment I am doing the next right thing and the afterglow of this as well.
Knowing how we live in proper measure, how we do Tzedakah because we should, taking the actions needed to live a full, holy, joyous life all come from the Bible, all are spoken about in the Torah, by the Prophets, in the various books of Psalms, Proverbs, etc. While many of We the People proclaim they are past religion, they are beyond the need of the Biblical Commandments, they are humanists, I have great fear of people who are unwilling to surrender to anything, anyone other than themselves! Hence the importance of doing this part of our inventory. This is the balancing principle so We the People do not get so down on ourselves for our “missing the marks” or so uninterested in seeing our part in each and every action/aspect of life.
There is much talk about self-esteem, self-worth, etc and Knowing, Acknowledging, Proclaiming our actions that have helped another(s), our following the commandments to serve, to care for, to be in truth, to “pursue righteousness”, to “do justly”, to “love mercy”, are very impactful and lasting ways to see our worth, to build up our esteem as well as see the same in another(s). We the People must do this part of the inventory in order to NOT give in to the LIES of the Bullies, not do a clean up of the CRUELTY of the fundamentalists, those ‘good white christian male nationalists/supremacists’, those ‘fine upstanding defenders of torah, bible, orthodox/far right jews who kill people in the West Bank with impunity’! Action Step: do this inventory so you can take action against those who do not do the next right thing.
God Bless, Stop Ghosting God, Ghosting Self, Rabbi Mark