Daily Life Lessons from Rabbi Heschel
Year 4 Day 4
“Absorbed in the struggle for the emancipation of the individual we have concentrated our attention upon the idea of human rights and overlooked the importance of human obligations. More and more the sense of commitment, which is so essential a component of human existence, was lost in the melting pot of conceit and sophistication.” (Insecurity of Freedom pg. 5)
Reading this, 2 days before Christmas and Hanukkah, given the promises of the Trump Administration, hopefully fills us with trembling awe. I am amazed at the insight, knowledge and prophetic vision of Rabbi Heschel and the courage and strength he had to call out what was, what is, and what will be if we don’t change our course. Evidently, the change of the 1960’s, the Great Society only lasted for a few years while the “melting pot of conceit and sophistication” has grown exponentially larger.
The first sentence is so subtle because on one level why not be “absorbed in the struggle for the emancipation of the individual”? Why not concentrate “our attention upon the idea of human rights”? It makes so much sense it seems on the surface. As we delve into what Rabbi Heschel is saying, however the second half of the sentence bowls us over with its simplicity and brutal honesty. We have become so enamored with our “human rights” we ignore the “rights” of another, as we have seen these past 14+ months on College Campus’ and across the globe in the ‘Free Palestine’ demonstrations which intimate, when they don’t outright say, that the only path to ‘Free Palestine’ is to kill the Jews and demolish the State of Israel. We have seen the growth of “identity politics” to such an extent that a proven liar, grifter, convicted fraudster, convicted sexual assaulter was elected President of the United States this past November, while the Democratic Party was busy speaking to different identities, Trump was busy speaking outrageous statements, falsities, etc to a public hungry for someone to speak in a language they could understand, to a public that was so uninformed they would believe his bullshit while the Democrats had Beyonce, Trump had lies and, as Mark Twain told us, “a lie is halfway around the world before the Truth has put its shoes on”. Kamala Harris tried, the odds were against her as a woman, a woman of color and she was knighted nor chosen by the people. I applaud her for her courage and her hard work-the fault rests with the party not pushing the issue of obligation more, in my humble opinion.
We are in desperate need, as a society, as individuals to return to “the importance of human obligations.” As Rabbi David Wolpe wrote, “Spirituality is an emotion. Religion is an obligation. Spirituality soothes. Religion mobilizes. Spirituality is satisfied with itself. Religion is dissatisfied with the world.” When we are obligated, when we are obliged, we are binding ourselves to a way of being that recognizes Truth and separates it from fiction, we bind ourselves to a way of living that is compatible with being a partner with God in perfecting this world, in moving creation forward. When we live obligated lives we take actions that respect the infinite, inherent dignity and value of every human being, including ourselves. When we live into the obligations of being human, the rights of another have to be respected and, when another is doing the wrong thing, we have to tell them so we do not bear the guilt of “standing idly by the blood of our neighbor”. When we are aware and act in accordance with “the importance of human obligations” we no longer blame the stranger, the poor, the needy for our woes, we no longer seek to accuse another of that which we are guilty of, we no longer seek control for our selfish, self-centered, narcissistic pleasure. Instead, we seek to make the world a better place because we are obligated to, because we know we are doing the next right thing when we live an obligated life.
It is so sad to see how our “sense of commitment, which is so essential a component of human existence, was lost in the melting pot of conceit and sophistication”. It is evident in the way we fight for ‘our’ rights and ignore the rights of another-like the women’s movement which has remained silent in the face of the rape and torture of women by Hamas terrorists or Amnesty International, who has not spoken out about the taking of hostages by Hamas nor has the Red Cross visited the Hostages-what was I thinking, these are Jews we are talking about and the “obligations” of these groups end where the “rights” of the ‘underdogs’ begin. The world has been split apart by the intensity of human rights ‘violations’ Israel is accused of- has the destruction in Gaza been horrific, yes, is it necessary, I don’t know, what I do know is that our obligation, both Jew and non-Jew, as human beings is to ensure the safety and security of our citizenry, to welcome the refugees and the strangers, to care for the needy and the poor. I know Israel saved Sinwar’s life when he was in prison, I know Jewish hospitals care for Palestinian people, I know Israel is not perfect and I know we are obligated to seek to be better each day, not be perfect.
What has happened is both the progressives and the conservatives, the far right and far left, have become more concerned with the “human rights” of themselves and those who are ‘on their side’ than with the obligations of being human which are found in the moral and ethical codes in the Bible and elsewhere. For the fundamentalist religious people, their literal reading of the Bible which has 70 different meanings is how they focus on ‘their rights’ and then make themselves into warriors of a false god. For the fundamentalist progressive, their misplaced feelings of spirituality relieve them of their obligation to be congruent and respect every one, not just ‘their people’. Be it the conceit of the fundamentalists, the sophistication of the progressives, this “struggle for the emancipation of the individual” has been co-opted by the fascists, the opportunists, and the wanna be oligarchs and all of us will suffer because neither the obligation to be human nor the rights of the individual will be served under the Trump administration unless you are part of the upper crust of fascists, opportunists, and/or oligarchs.
I am aware of the need for our return to human obligations. “I am, therefore I owe” is a mantra I have been saying for over 36 years. It is what I grew up with and forgot and then remembered when God hit me over the head with a 2x4 in 1986. I have remained obligated which is how I can forgive another when I have been harmed, how I can ask for forgiveness when I have erred, how I can withstand the hurts of being open and transparent because the rewards outweigh the hurts 1000fold. It ain’t easy and it is simple-live an obligated, moral life. God Bless and stay safe, Rabbi Mark