JUST REPORT FOR DUTY

  A wise, elderly, gentleman, seated next to a younger man, overheard the young man’s prayers, “ Please G-D,” he was saying, “let my boss give me that promotion, and get my wife to stop nagging me. Let me win the lottery.” He went on and on with many requests of G-D. The sage, listening to all this, turned to him in a soft tone and said, “Don’t give G-D instructions, just report for duty.”

Life, indeed, is reporting to duty. Our Judaic way of living is, even more, a life of devotion and commitment of Kedusha and of Performance.

This week’s Parsha, Mishpatim, begins with the letter “VAV” ואלה to emphasize that we are to connect this Sedrah with last week’s Parsha of Yisro, wherein the Ten Commandments are mentioned. This was done to connect that great spiritual experience at Sinai, with the Mitzvot , ofבין אדם לחברו, as suggested in this Sedrah of Mishpatim. The Torah did so to emphasize that life is not only one that lives on a high spiritual level represented by Mt. Sinai, but to teach us that as we move forward in our daily life and it’s mundane and prosaic way, we always need to be influenced and controlled by that great experience at Sinai. The”VAV” teaches us that there must be Discipline in our lives. By living such a meaningful and influential life, we keep Torah and Sinai in our existence.

This is the great wisdom of Yahadut. Judaism recognizes that these great pronouncements and these great visions, must not be allowed to remain on the mountain of inspiration, but they must be brought into the arena of our daily activities. 

Too often people have a tendency to separate their religious observance from their daily activities. This never was and must never be our Judaic way of life. For Jews there is a dynamic synthesis between Sinai and Mishpatim, between our relationship, בין אדם למקום ובין אדם לחברו.

The more scientific and technological savvy we become, the more character building religion is needed. Albert Einstein wrote, “Science at best can only teach us “ What Is.” We need religion to show us “What Should Be.” Science provides us with instruments. Only religion can give us goals toward which the instruments of science must be used”.

The more we study Torah the more we realize that true religion is determined by the life one lives, not just by the creed one professes. Religion is to be prose for everyday living, not just poetry for rare moments.

The Baal Shem Tov, was once walking with his disciples when they came to a pond. Across the body of water was stretched a rope on which a man was balancing himself as he crossed from one end of the pond to the other. The Baal Shem was entranced by the tight rope artist and lingered behind to watch the performance. Because his pupils did not think that their saintly teacher should waste time, they were surprised that he payed so much attention to such a frivolous feat. He explained that as he was watching that tightrope walker, it occurred to him, that he had to train his feet before he could perform such a difficult feat.

Oh, said the Baal Shem, if only people could learn to train their souls as well as that man had trained his feet, what a wonderful world this would be”.

Now more than ever we need to realize it is through the power of Torah and Yiddishkeit that the human soul can be shaped and fashioned. Judaism is not an escape from life, but life itself.

Remember Judaism is not something you have, but something that has you.