OK, so not only am I a most excellent budding quasi-religious scholar (not really, obviously), but I'm also really good at math. And my stellar math skills have recently helped me figure out that if I continue this project at this pace, it'll take me 23 years, 29 weeks and 6 days to finish. That would be approximately in time for Hanukkah 2035. So I'll be about 49 years old - I'm working on it though.
But on to today's mitzvah....
Type of Commandment: Love and Brotherhood - it's # 26 on the list
Commandment: "To love all human beings who are of the covenant"
Where does it come from: Leviticus 19:18. In my bible, it says "Do not seek revenge or ear a grudge against one of your people, love your neighbour as yourself. I am the Lord."
How might you follow this?: I suppose it seems pretty straightforward, although most probably would seem so on the surface. Simply, I think, it's just saying that we should treat others with the same dignity, respect and love that we would like to be treated with. I'm sure there are lots of ways that people might choose to follow this one.
Why might this have been commanded in the first place?: This seems like kind of a silly question to answer - it almost seems like we should know why. I suppose even the best things in life can be reiterated to us. It just seems like such common sense, doesn't it? To treat others as we would like to be treated?
What are some benefits to following this today?: OK, let's be for real here. There are tons of benefits to following this. I feel like if we send more good (karma perhaps?) into the world and we'll get more good back, but it'll also create such an amazing community for us to live in. I guess I just think that the world needs as much good as it can get. So that's that.
What are some drawbacks to following this today?: Um, literally none?
So I think what I'm most interested in is the different language in my study bible and on the list. I feel like we should love all others - neighbours, those "who are of the covenant", strangers, and everyone else - as ourselves. So I have to say I dislike saying that we should only love others "who are of the covenant" as ourselves. I'm just not a fan of excluding others like that (which I'm sure wasn't the initial intent).
I started writing this on Saturday and then got lazy and didn't finish it, but I'm actually pretty happy about that because of an experience that I had yesterday.
Every year around this time, the Calgary Jewish Federation, specifically the Young Leadership Division, puts on an event where the community has the opportunity to hear the stories of Holocaust survivors. I volunteered to facilitate one of the discussions. I was very lucky to hear the amazing story of the extremely kind and interesting man that I sat with. As hard as the discussion was and as much as I know the survivor that I was with, as well as no doubt all others, would rather not rehash the horrific things that happened to them time and time again; it is important that we hear these stories from these strong, amazing people before we lose all of them.
I think I felt something new when hearing the stories yesterday that I haven't felt before when hearing these stories. I, as many of you, knew that "Never again" was the message to be taken away from the horrors that were the Holocaust. Yesterday, though, I felt disappointed in my generation that we are still so aggressive towards one another. I realize that many would see it as naive to think that there could be no war, but I do wish for it (and I don't think it's entirely impossible). Because it isn't even only the Holocaust - we have done horrific things to one another over and over and over again and we never learn our lesson. One of the survivors had written a beautiful piece that her grandson read to the crowd that wished that we would have a next generation that would not know war. I'm frustrated that we do not necessarily have any plans to raise these generations who do not know war. I hope this isn't too ramble-y, I'm just really frustrated and disappointed in myself and my peers. Maybe partly because I have no idea how to do that.
I'm sorry to leave you on such an unhappy note. I'd be very happy to hear some of your comments about this. It's just such a tough issue - and one I haven't nearly exhaustively covered. Also something I wasn't planning on blogging about, but that experience was definitely applicable to what I am writing here.
Take care of each other,
-L.
I think you raise a really important point in your discussion of this issue in regards to being ill-willed towards each other in society as a whole.
ReplyDeleteMy History degree was focused primarily on two things - the world wars (and the Holocaust), and the American Civil War. Very different, I know, and yet, to me, very much connected with an overall theme of "how could human beings be so cruel towards others" and "how could human beings follow such cruelty." There are many different opinions on the answer and I won't side track your blog with it but I think that I have always your dilemma about interesting. We don't live in a world of peace, and at this rate, we likely never will. My soon to be brother in law is currently over in Afghanistan training the local Afghan army how to lead and train their own soldiers. A noble cause, but how is that leading to peace? Some say it is, some say it is not and that is just one example.
I guess have studied this general theme so much I am a little jaded to it all - it seems like the idea of "never again" has not really been learned as a whole society, or at least, that we have not fully learned the idea of "love all" as your commandment says, which is very much a shame, when we know what has happened in the past.
Oh, please "side track" away! I don't think it would be side tracking at all! I definitely think that those kinds of things are linked and would love to hear more comments if you would like to share them!
ReplyDeleteI definitely think this whole Afghanistan issue that you bring up is the most recent example of this exact problem that we have - actually for a couple of reasons. I mean, for the most part, I would just have hoped that we had learned our lesson to fight wars at all, but I am trying not to be too naive. I kind of wonder how much history the people who make those decisions looked at and said "is it the same as this mess" - if that makes any sense. I definitely think you're right that it's a noble cause to try and share some of the Canadian army's peace tactics to better equip them - but I guess I sort of wonder if we should have been there in the first place. But this is something I know nothing about! Definitely there are lots of others who are better at making (and criticizing) those decisions. I guess that just in general I am hoping we can start to learn our lesson. Even if it takes a bit at a time.
But thanks so much for your comment! Would love to hear more of your thoughts if you'd like to share them!
Alright then, here is my "side tracked" thought on this.
ReplyDeleteI think regardless of the time, the place, or the circumstance, history has shown us that human beings can cause great harm to other human beings. The American Civil war put half a country fighting against another half. Slavery put one race against another, and in a role of pure power over the other. The Holocaust had Hitler and the Nazi's killing Jews and other minorities. The World Wars in general pitted nation against nation. Rwanda repeated much of this over again. Afghanistan, the Middle East, all put rebel forces against nations, sometimes even their own. WHY? Well, in some cases, the answer may be unknown but I've drawn my own thoughts over the years in studying this.
I believe, human nature is such that you want to preserve your own life first. Human nature is also to believe what you are told as truth, as exactly that, the truth.
To put this in a Jewish context, I will use the Holocaust. Hitler had an idea. And to make it work he needed followers. So he started to put his ideas about a pure race out in the open. He had reasoning, that could been seen as scientifically true at the time, for why an Aryan race was superior and why the Jews, etc were nothing. He worked his way into politics. He worked his way into power without it ever being known what he was doing. He knew, he planned every tiny move he made. But before anyone could figure out what he was doing, he had been granted enough power that there was no stopping him. But he still needed followers. So - you are in his army. You are told to kill Jews or be killed. What would you do?
I know, hard to say, as we sit here and say you'd never do it. But just think of the years of brainwashing you've been put through. The rallies alone would sweep you in. You literally no longer saw the Jews as humans. And so, when told to eliminate the problem, you do so. For those who do not, end up dead beside you. Brainwashing is a huge factor here. Fear is a huge factor here. Manipulation is a huge factor. And before we know it, 6 million are dead because of that, and because the rest of the world either turned a blind eye, or saw what Hitler wanted them to see when visiting the camps - work camps where everyone was fed and clothed - at least while the visits took place.
American Slavery was no different. The whites did not see the blacks as equals. They literally thought they were below them. I won't go on as much about it but there was huge propaganda and manipulation here as well. While not perfectly accurate, The Help is a good example of it. Look at the societal flack the main character got for speaking to the blacks, for telling their story. And the fear on the part of the blacks. It's different, and yet all the same. (I use terminology above based on how they were thought of at the time, not trying to offend anyone)
History repeats, and unless we can learn to apply "To love all human beings who are of the covenant" world wide, race wide, etc I honestly don't think we will ever see a time of peace.
How's that for side-tracking? :)
Wow - thanks for sharing that. I really, really appreciate you sharing your thoughts. It definitely reminds me of some thoughts (and baseless theories) that I have about what's going on now - events that have to do with terrorism and how a lot of today's problems have to do with historical factors (maybe Afghanistan/The Taliban and the Cold War are a decent example?). Anyways, I often have a fight with someone who will remain nameless that while I obviously think terrorism is bad (there's probably a way better way to say that, I just can't think of it), there's still another side to it. Terrorists grow up being taught to hate their oppressors (or their perceived oppressors - after all, as W.I. and D.S. Thomas theorized - what an individual perceives to be true will be true in its consequences) and all these things that others don't understand. Now, I'm not saying that terrorist acts are OK because these people were brainwashed of course, but there are always at least 2 sides to every story.
DeleteIn that spirit, I'd like to share a TED talk that was shown at last year's TEDxCalgary event in July: http://www.ted.com/talks/view/lang///id/1125
Thanks again for your comments :)
Nice article and great discussion going on here! Without having a history degree, though I do have an interest in history, I'll share my thoughts based simply upon my personal observations and experiences.
ReplyDeleteAs much as I admit that Hitler, and indeed many other leaders who have enacted other humanitarian crises of various scales, I do not believe that most of them truly come from a complete position of bigotry. I think they are quite often people simply seeking power and taking advantage of ways to obtain it.
Julie, speaking to your references to fear, brainwashing, etc I agree that these tactics are used in virtually every such case primarily as a means to create a hierarchy that they could control. By allowing certain groups to be above other groups that gives them a sense of power. Yet all of these tyrants are dictators in one form or another and are merely manipulating people so they can keep atop of the pile.
Perhaps I am blinded by my own beliefs of equality that I refuse to believe that racism is inherently in anyone. Perhaps that is a belief that is not so blind.
Great thoughts from everyone, I find this thoroughly engaging :)