A number of the tasks I must accomplish in the course of my job,
are challenging. But I don’t think any
task is more so, than preparing my weekly drashes, or sermons. As you know, I prepare two per week: one for Friday evening, and one for Saturday
morning. It isn’t difficult to think of
two messages per week. But it is
sometimes difficult to find two messages in the weekly Torah and Haftarah
readings. It is not an ironclad
requirement to use the weekly readings as my jumping-off point. But if I can, it is a feather in my cap. Just about anybody can imagine two things to
say on any given week if one can choose freely from the happenings in the
world. But to use the weekly readings,
over which we have no control, and tie in our thoughts to those texts…that’s a
challenge for the brave!
In reality, no
matter what I use as the jumping off point there is bravery necessary. We all know the joke about the Rabbi and the
cab driver who arrive at the gates of heaven together. The cab driver is ushered in
immediately. The Rabbi must wait. The Rabbi takes issue and demands to know why
the cab driver is given priority. The
answer? When you were giving sermons,
everybody was falling asleep. When he
was driving, everybody was praying.
The least of my worries is that my
drash will put you to sleep because it isn’t immediately relevant to you. The worst danger is that it will be
relevant. You’ll think I’m talking to
you directly. And you’ll take issue with
that. This happens repeatedly. In what I was saying, I ‘hit the nail on the
head’ for one of my listeners or readers.
And they resented it. And then
lashed out at me in some way.
Look, I’m not saying this to whine about my lot. This is simply one of the occupational hazards
I face. It goes with the territory. Many of my colleagues work hard to sidestep
it. They try to keep their finger on the
pulse of their congregations. And then
deliberately avoid saying anything that might evoke a strong
reaction. Many of these colleagues are
highly successful, in conventional terms.
They enjoy long-term contracts at large, wealthy congregations. And…many of their sermons are as evocative as
a weekly book review.
Wouldn’t you rather be challenged by
what your Rabbi says? I would think
so. My mission statement? To comfort the afflicted. To afflict the comfortable.
When I give a drash that resonates
deeply with you. You need not wonder if
I’m speaking directly to you. If you
react that way, then I am! Whether
by design, or consequence. But it
shouldn’t matter which. If I am, it’s
because I’m addressing an issue that I see around me, that requires
addressing. It doesn’t mean that I want
to call you out publicly. I don’t to
that, because it is not what I do.
Rather, I address conditions that I observe to beset many people in
front of me. If what I say resonates
with you, it simply means you are one of them. I am not trying to make anybody feel exposed
or ashamed.
If what I say hits close to home, it
means that I have succeeded – at least for you – to address a relevant
topic. It doesn’t mean my words are
Torah. It simply means that you might do
well to take my words into consideration.
To mull over them. If I’m
addressing something that is an issue for you personally, then my purpose is to
get you to think about it. Not to prescribe
a solution. If you would like assistance
addressing an issue as you reach for a solution, you may call upon me for a
private consultation. My drashes should
never be taken in that spirit.
Many of us have heard the teaching of
the Hassidic master, Simcha Bunim of Peshischa, in Poland. He taught that one should carry around two
slips of paper in two of one’s pockets. On
one should be written: For my sake
was the world created. On the other: I am but dust and ashes. Both maxims are necessary, if one is to
achieve and maintain balance. When we’re
feeling oppressed or depressed, we should remind ourselves that for my sake
the world was created. And when we’re
feeling high and mighty and full of ourselves, we should remind ourselves that I
am but dust and ashes. The two are
necessary counterpoints. If we only
remember that we are but dust and ashes, we be locked into depression and dysfunction
for lack of energy to invest in anything.
If we only remember that for our sake the world was created, we
are in danger of thinking that the world revolves around us. Each one of us knows someone in each of the
aforementioned conditions. We might be
the one in either condition. We must
focus on the maxim that will help to get us out of our condition. But to never forget its opposite.
Have I said something in a drash
that makes you think that I’ve written that drash specifically for you? If so, I recommend you think I am but dust
and ashes. In other words, the world
does not revolve around you. No one of
us should feel so central to everything that the Rabbi would give a drash to
the community based solely on one person’s needs. If you keep that in mind, then maybe you can
take my words as addressing general principle.
If it speaks directly to you, know that you are one of many. Try to step back in this fashion.
But that done, remember the other
maxim: For my sake was the world
created. If I did hit the nail on
the head for you, accept the personal applicability of the message as a gift
you richly deserve. Because even if I’m
not intentionally speaking to you personally, it is likely that at some point,
something that I say in my drash will be directly applicable to what you’re
experiencing in real life. If that’s the
case, don’t just dismiss my words. But
don’t take them as Torah mi-Sinai either. Instead, take my words on board for further
reflection. If it is true that for my
sake the world was created, then it is important that each one of us
overcome the issues that beset us at any given time. Rather than wallow in our misery, we can be
assured that it is important to the greater scheme of things that each one of
us finds wholeness. Shabbat shalom.
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