Sermons & Stories

Shabbat Shalom!

On Pesach we celebrate freedom, liberation, redemption. And what are we free from? Avodah – work.

So we leave Egypt and create a system of sacrificial offerings to God. And what do we call it? Avodah – work.

The same word we used for the Temple service is the same word that we are running away from in Egypt. What’s the difference? In Egypt, the Avodah was back breaking and soul crushing. In the Temple, the Avodah spiritually uplifting and draws us closer to God. One kind of labor is debilitating, oppressive, and makes it impossible to live. The other brings meaning and purpose to life.

To fully appreciate our freedom, we work to ensure that all people are free from slavery and oppression. I teach about this often and such work is challenging and never ending. Tonight, I want to focus in on the other kind of work. For to fully appreciate our freedom, we need to do the work that brings meaning and purpose to our lives. This work is also challenging and never ending.

Think about your accomplishments in life. Raising a child, earning a degree, accomplishments at work, accomplishments at home, mastering a skill or hobby – It all comes from Avodah – hard work and dedication. From the mundane – like this amazing Harry Potter birthday party I organized – I actually made a Quiddich Pitch. I made butterbeer. We hung fake candles that still look amazing 4 years later – and yes, they are still there…. Sure – not the most life changing work – but trust me… it was work – work that was an expression of love and I was proud of it. And of course there’s more serious work – like the work required for our relationships with partners in life. It takes work to express what we want and need. It takes work to listen in order to understand without judgment. It takes work to be creative, to problem solve, and when appropriate, to forgive. Whether we take the time and make the effort or not is reflected in the quality of our relationships – all the more so in times of higher stress, like, I don’t know, during a pandemic. Relationships take work, participating in our democracy takes work, helping people in need takes work – almost anything worthwhile takes work.

 There are times when we want don’t want to work hard – we want things to be convenient. One click shopping, frozen meals, streaming music and shows and movies, lawn or pool service, all in one vacations… Sometimes we just want things to be easy. One click shopping is convenient and effective and it will probably not lead to a moment of accomplishment or a spiritual experience. When it comes to something meaningful, something that brings purpose to our lives, we have to work for it.

The same is true for our Judaism. What is Judaism all about? It’s about connecting to God, connecting to community, and being a good person – and yes, all that takes work. I’m honest with our bar and bat mitzvah students. I tell them that it will be a lot of work. And I tell them that the more work they put in, the better they will feel about the experience.

Rabbi Jonathan Sacks (z”l) taught that

“Judaism is hard work because freedom is hard work. Pesach is especially hard because it is the festival of freedom. Freedom is threatened in two ways: by individualism and collectivism. Collectivism – worship of the system, the state, the nation, the race – has produced the worst tyrannies of history….

“Individualism represents the opposite danger. When individuals put private gain ahead of the common good, a society eventually collapses…. You can tell in advance when a society is about to begin a decline. There is a breakdown of trust…. Divisions grow between rich and poor. There is a loss of social solidarity…”

Rabbi Sacks explained that Judaism teaches freedom and struggles against collectivism and individualism by balancing personal and social responsibility. Our tradition encourages questions, debate, multiple interpretations, and personal exploration. We take responsibility for our personal learning, personal practice, and our moral obligation based on Jewish teachings. At the same time, we focus on communal prayer, communal support, and communal participation.

Judaism embodies the understanding that freedom is not a freedom from responsibility, but the freedom to be responsible – I am responsible for my learning, responsible for my actions, responsible for me and my community. Yes, doing Jewish is hard work. Living a Jewish life means living a life of meaning and purpose. Put the effort in – it’s worth it.

Shabbat Shalom!

This sermon was inspired by and quotes were taken from Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, “What Does this Avodah Mean to You?” https://rabbisacks.org/avodah-mean/