Breaching Spiritual Language Barriers - Devarim

L-R Jarrod McKenna and Aboriginal Aunty Ellen Gaykamangu 

“It’s shame, miss”, said the 10 year old cheeky Aborginal boy to the deputy principal of his school an hour from Darwin. When he first introduced himself to me and my Together For Humanity interfaith team he gave us a false name, then added; “just gamin'”, which in local slang meant that he was playing with me. For me, his name became, “just gamin'”.

Mohamed Dukuly, Jarrod McKenna and I led a game that illustrated inter-dependence. This Aboriginal boy was very generous in the game, giving away most of what he had. The deputy principal, a non-Aboriginal recent arrival from a far away big city, praised him. The minute she did that, he put his hand over his face. She asked the boy why? He told her it was “shame!” She responded that he had nothing to be ashamed of. She was right, about the English word 'shame'.

The next day our team of a Muslim, Christian and a Jew were joined by an Aboriginal elder, Aunty Ellen Gaykamangu. The elder explained to the deputy principal and the students that, for her people, the word “shame” was actually about respect and being humble. The boy did not want to be put above his peers; for him it was important to behave in a way that everyone is shown the same amount of respect. The road to respect for the boy was through an Indigenous spiritual tradition that no doubt has a word for it in their own language. However, Australia is a land dominated by the English language. So, the original idea is now carried by an English word which does not capture its original flavour and spirit.

As a Jewish boy growing up in New York, I spoke two languages, English and Yiddish. While some elements of Jewish spirituality were expressed through Yiddish words we used, a lot of the sacred texts were in Hebrew, which I did not fully understand at the time. There was also a disconnect between our daily conversation which we held in English and religious guidance which was often given in Yiddish. This sometimes diminished its relevance. Even the English some of our teachers spoke had such heavy Yiddish and Eastern European accents, they might as well have been speaking a different language. Things only really clicked for me when I had an American born teacher who I felt I could relate to.

Spiritual language barriers are important because every language carries its own energy. If our spiritual traditions were formed in a different language, there can be an element of alienation between us and the different vibes that pull us in different directions.

I was delighted to find that this tension is alluded to in my tradition, in this week’s Torah reading. At the end of Moses’ life, he explained the Torah (1). This is interpreted to mean that he explained the Torah in seventy languages (2). It has been suggested that this was for the benefit of the non-Hebrew speaking Israelites in the desert (3). However, another approach is that in Moses’ multi-lingual expounding of the Torah he was laying the groundwork for future exiles among different language groups and their “life force”, or spirit. In some mystical way, Moses was breaching the spiritual language barrier to enable Jewish exiles to live their spirituality wherever they find themselves (4). With the support of the Together For Humanity team, Aunty Ellen did the same thing for young “just gamin”.     

1)    Deuteronomy 1:5.

2)    Midrash Tanchuma Devarim, 2.

3)    Levush Haorah on Deuteronomy 1:5.

4)    Kedushas Levi, Parshas Devarim, Ohr Hachayim edition, p. 325.

Interfaith Understanding through highlighting both commonality and difference, and inclusive and confronting texts and interpretations

14.05.2019. Yesterday, a group of visiting students from the Jewish, Emanuel School, sat at the front right hand side of a large room. A group of students from the host school, Granville Boys High, of mixed backgrounds including Muslim, Hindu and other unknown beliefs filed in. They sat down at the back left side of the room, leaving a big gap between them and the visitors. The day unfolded and something magical happened. As one student reflected at the end of the day “this morning we were two distinct groups, by the afternoon there was one big group”.

The desire to be one is strong. But we must take care that in trying to become one, we don’t simply become “color blind”, which means that we minimize difference. If we do, we don’t really embrace others as they are, we just pretend that they are exactly like ourselves⁽¹⁾.

The combination of acknowledging commonality while also recognizing difference was evident tonight at an Iftar dinner I attended. As the sun was setting many of the Muslims gathered to pray. It was also prayer time for me so I rose to pray alongside the Muslim worshipers. Unlike Muslim prayer, Jewish prayer involves minimal bowing. As I stood upright alongside the synchronized rows of men and women bowing in unison, the voice of a very young child called out loudly “why is that man not bowing?” The Muslim Sheikh and I reflected afterwards about how the two faiths worship the one God, but do it in different ways and that this is to be respected and celebrated. 

16.05.2019 I am sitting on a plane, traveling home to Sydney from Melbourne after speaking on a panel at my third Iftar dinner, at Deakin University. Our topic was how people of different backgrounds can get along better and the role that religion plays in this.

I suggested that religious leaders need to take responsibility for how we teach sacred texts. There are two ways we can do this. Either we directly confront “inconvenient texts” and grapple with how they are interpreted or we focus more on texts that have a positive inclusive message. My approach has been mainly the former, while Rabbi Jonathan Sacks’ approach is the latter.

Before I switched my phone to flight mode I downloaded Sacks’ essay on minority rights⁽²⁾. His starting point is the following verse. “If any of your fellow Israelites become poor and are unable to support themselves among you, help them [as well as any⁽³⁾] (non-citizen) resident and an alien, so they can continue to live among you”⁽⁴⁾. Sacks explains that: “There is, in other words, an obligation to support and sustain a resident alien and that not only does he or she have the right to live in the Holy Land, but they have the right to share in its welfare provisions.” The requirement for equal treatment is also recorded as law⁽⁵⁾.

I am thrown by Sacks’ focus on this inclusive verse. I wrote out a list of all the challenging verses in the same reading, but I delete the list. I try to flow with his argument. He cited the example of an affair between the wife of alien soldier in King David’s army and the King.

“King David has fallen in love and had an adulterous relationship with Batsheva, wife of a ger toshav, Uriah the Hittite. She becomes pregnant. Uriah meanwhile has been away from home as a soldier in Israel’s army. David, afraid that Uriah will come home, see that his wife is pregnant, realise that she has committed adultery, and come to discover that the king is the guilty party, has Uriah brought home. His pretext is that he wants to know how the battle is going. He then tells Uriah to go home and sleep with his wife before returning, so that he will later assume that he himself is the father of the child”. ⁽⁶⁾

David’s plan failed. Uriah chose not to go home out of solidarity with the Israelites. Uriah’s words are recorded in the scripture. Uriah said to David, “The Ark and Israel and Judah are staying in tents, and my commander Joab and my lord’s men are camped in the open country. How could I go to my house to eat and drink and make love to my wife? As surely as you live, I will not do such a thing!” 

Sacks makes the point that “the fact that Tanakh [the Bible] can tell such a story in which a resident alien is the moral hero, and David, Israel’s greatest king, the wrongdoer or villain, tells us much about the morality of Judaism.”

On reflection, I think there is a need for voices like Sacks to highlight the positive. There is also a need to confront the texts that can be taken to legitimise bigotry, which I will continue to do. While in Melbourne I held some discussions with the Jewish Christian Muslim Association about doing exactly that. It irritates me to no end when I hear non-Muslims focus on apparently difficult Islamic texts. I think it is more useful for people to grapple with their own texts and be honest about what is in them. However it is also important to highlight inclusive texts. It is not an either/or choice. It is a case of “and”. Challenging and inclusive text are worth exploring, just as it is valuable to focus on both similarities and differences⁽⁷⁾.

Notes

Rev. Ian Smith in conversation on 16.05.2019.

Sacks, J. (2017) http://rabbisacks.org/minority-rights-behar-bechukotai-5777/

Rashi

Leviticus 25:35, there are some conditions to this law. See Sacks.

Maimonides, in Yad Hachazaka Hilkhot Melachim 10:12, cited by Sacks. “One should act towards resident aliens with the same respect and loving kindness as one would to a fellow Jew”

2 Samuel 11:6-11 in Sacks

Pedersen, A., Walker, I., & Wise, M. (2005). Talk Does Not Cook Rice: Beyond anti-racism rhetoric to strategies for social action. Australian Psychologist, 40, 20-30.

Together For Humanity growing up, our 12th birthday and being “unfunded”

Messages from students from many backgrounds and faiths,
sewn together to make the words "Goodness and Kindness"
Cover the NSW State Parliament in March 2004, with students
from state, Christian, Jewish and Muslim schools seated on
Macquarie street following proceedings.

Australians are preparing for the first budget of a government “of grown-ups”. Leaders of not for profit organisations such as one I spoke to this week who runs a domestic violence shelter for migrant women cannot tell her staff if she can continue to employ them much longer.  I am very concerned about the people who need these services. I am less concerned about the fact that the diversity education service that I run which does not address such acute problems has been formally advised it will not be funded again by the commonwealth. This is a good time for such news. Because today is the 12th birthday for our work, our first program with a Jew, a Christian and a Muslim at St Ives North took place 2 May 2002. The age of 12, or the 13th year (1) are the ages of maturity in Judaism. Together For Humanity is ready to be a “grown up”.

Being responsible can sometimes be difficult. We will invariably fail to realise our potential and unless we aim too low, will not always achieve our goals. Yet, I am reassured by the assertion by our president, Madenia Abdurahman, that our intentions and sincerity are important strengths. There are organisations that have better PR, fundraising and other valuable capacities that enable them to shine.  TFH’s capacity to contribute has been based on the authenticity or our people, their decency, honesty and humanity and a cause based on the truth of our common humanity, our right to dignity and respect and opportunity for delighting in engaging with those who seem different.

I was deeply moved by the reflection of Raf F., a student who attended that first session in 2002.
“I was just thinking how it was such an honour to have been there at the very beginning! 

I don't remember much from what was actually said but I remember being amazed and appreciative.

While being at a particular multicultural school, exposure to other faiths and cultures was far from a novel experience, the focus had leant towards why we were all different (yet special of course) but not the ways in which we were the same. I think it really shaped how I defined the community in which I belonged and how I approached interfaith/cross-cultural dialogue as I grew up (as hard as it is to discern my 11-year-old self's perspective!)! I'm so glad this vital cause has continued to grow over the past 12 years!” Moving comments have also been posted by the teacher, Di Barnes, who invited us to St Ives North and one of our current presenters (2).

At a Bar or Bat Mitzvah we draw inspiration from the weeks’ Torah reading. Not always an easy task because the Torah, like the world, challenges us with the prominence of difference.  It tells us about the “Cohen” clan that was extra holy. A male Cohen is forbidden to marry a divorcee and others “because he his holy to his God”. “Marrying these women would disgrace his honour and seed/offspring (3).” I have not yet found any satisfying explanation about how the fact that a woman was previously married might be a problem for someone holy. Surely every human being is compatible with holiness, provided their actions and heart are in the right place. It would be tempted to pretend these laws don’t exist, but we need not fear the truth about the texts, our own or those of others.

Reading such laws challenges me. I wonder what my Christian, Atheist or Muslim readers think when they read this. I know that many people get stuck on texts or practices like these. I don’t think we need to get stuck on these. This is not necessarily because there is always an explanation that justifies all of this and makes it all ok. Rather it is because alongside these realities are others.

In the case of the Torah here is another set of laws. The chief Cohen was forbidden to attend even his own parents’ funeral because of a prohibition against coming into contact with the dead (4).  Despite this, if he finds an unattended corpse, it doesn’t need to enquire whether the person who died was a saint or a prostitute, a fellow Cohen or a bastard, he must attend to the burial and dignity of that person (5). We can all connect with that.

We later read about the obligation to set aside a corner of the harvest for the poor (6), even if the harvest is for the purpose of fulfilling other religious obligations, the poor must be attended to (7). Indeed they should even when our country attends to deficits and defence spending in the budget process. Laws like these draw many of us together even as others, if we focused on them exclusively, alienate people from each other or from the text as a whole.

And so Together For Humanity goes ahead with the support of others, including the Community Relations Commission/NSW Government, Andrew and Nicola Forrest of the Minderoo Foundation of, our patron Janet Holmes a Court, the Becher Foundation, long-time supporter Talal Yassine, the Magid family, and many others who give time, heart and money.  We will continue to add value with the help of our amazing volunteers, including our chairman John McGrath and our board, our current intern Malin Wiander, our webmaster Gary Hoggard, designer Paul Bennet and Professor Di Yerbury. We are grateful for support from our long time educational leader Donna Jacobs Sife, Uncle Lex Dadd and all our presenters from many faiths and so many others.  A double thank you to the man who sparked it all: the late Joseph Sheridan, to his mate and a key presenter/organiser 2002-2006 Ray Corbin and to the teachers and students who engaged with our message. Kathleen Gordon, Ronit Baras and Sheikh Ahmad, thank you for TFH QLD. Sheikh Haisam, your contribution is unforgettable. The late Sabina Van Der Linden, and Costa Vrisakis, and Rabbi Nochum Schapiro of Chabad House, we would not be here without you.

We will be ok and continue to have a meaningful impact, but our Government, just as we ourselves as citizens and communities, must do the responsible thing for the most vulnerable people in our society. That is a principle we can all come together for, it reflects our humanity.






  Notes
1)    The age of 12 is the age of maturity and obligation for keeping commandments for females, and the age of 13 for males is when they are obligated to observe commandments. This is referred to as Bar Mitzvah and Bat Mitzvah
2)    https://www.facebook.com/events/1465942240307971/?ref_newsfeed_story_type=regular
3)    Leviticus 21:7
4)    Seforno
5)    Leviticus 21:11
6)    Talmud Nazir 47
7)    Leviticus 23:22
8)    Midrash Chefetz, from a manuscript, cited in Torah Shlaima, Emor 206, note 156

On Healing, “Something seems off”, & Remembering Joe Sheridan

A funeral was held exactly one month ago on the fourth of March for the late Joseph Sheridan, a catholic man who changed my life. I dedicate this blog post to his shining soul.

Joe was a modest man, who was concerned about the situation he saw around him. One Tuesday afternoon he called the Synagogue where I was teaching, at a time of significant unease for me. In late 2001, it seemed to me that the high ideals that Judaism and more specifically my particular version of Judaism, following Chabad, Hasidic, Orthodox traditions, was not being realised. I grew up believing that our teachings make us altruistic, selfless, refined, compassionate, devout and spiritually unique. Of course concerns with survival, status, money and power are part of human nature, still, I was feeling quite concerned about this. Joe talked passionately about his own deep disquiet about the same issue from a Christian Catholic perspective. His sincerity, altruism, and spiritual depth opened my eyes to a universal struggle toward ideals such as compassion. 

Apart from Joe’s courage and commitment, spiritual pain was an important catalyst for the interfaith, diversity & values education work I would lead for the next 12 years. In the Torah readings of this week and last week we learn about a time in a person’s life, when they need to be alone.  The Torah talks about “a Metzora”, a person whose skin suddenly changes its colour , (normally translated as leprosy, but traditionally argued as being something very different) which can be understood as being about a signal that something is wrong. It is useful to notice and value these signals from our spirit that something is not right or is out of balance.

When something was off-colour a member of the priestly clan, the Cohanim, was to be consulted. The Cohen’s role was generally to be an advocate for the people, performing sacrificial rituals that brought forgiveness to others. The Cohen/advocate is seen as the one that actually activates the “impure” status of the “Metzorah ”. Often , it is only a compassionate voice that can be useful for dealing with flaws in our selves, communities or in other communities. The harsh critical voice can sometimes drag us down; make us feel depressed and less determined to do what is right .

To grow or heal after spending some time alone, there was a ceremony that involved water, cedar, oregano or thyme plant and birds . Being sprinkled with Water represents rebirth. It reminds us that “today is not yesterday” . We can start over, several times a day, countless times over a life time. Oregano or Thyme represents humility, particularly when the tiny plant is contrasted with the tall Cedar tree.  The Cedar, on the other hand represents awareness of our strengths and virtues and a rejection of false modesty . I think Joe had the right mix of independent minded confidence and humility.

The ritual also included two birds, one bird was sacrificed, symbolising the need for caution about careless and hurtful twitter or chatter. The other bird was released and allowed to fly freely.

Birds are also associated with peace. The Talmud tells us that if a dream includes a river, a kettle or a bird the dreamer will have peace. The Villna Gaon explains that there are three stages in peaceful relationships. First there is trade symbolised by a river, two people who give and take to and from each other. Then there is team work, e.g. fire and water collaborate in the kettle to cook. The third stage is when the features of walking on earth and flying in the sky are completely combined in the body of the bird . This third path is the one that Joe has inspired in me and others in “Together For Humanity ”.

May your dear soul fly to beautiful places with God, Joe. I hope your soul smiles whenever the ripples of goodness, kindness and acceptance continue to manifest in the spirits of all those touched because of your spiritual discomfort, grace, and generosity of spirit.

Notes

1.  Leviticus 13:1-14:32
2.  Ohr Hachayim on Leviticus 13:3, understanding the Hebrew words אותו  וטמא  as “He will contaminate him” rather than “declare him contaminated” as it is in some translations 
3.  There are times when harsher means are needed even perhaps with ourselves see Tanya Chapter 29
4.  Tanya Chapter 26
5.  Leviticus 14:1-4
6.  Gordon, Y. http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/1612482/jewish/Today-Is-Not-Yesterday.htm
7.  Chidushei Harim, cited in Greenbaum, N. Otzar Mefarshei Hapshat, published by M. Abramovitz, Bnai Brak Israel
8. Feldman, A. (1987) River, the Kettle and the Bird: A Torah Guide to a Successful Marriage, Feldheim  http://www.amazon.com/River-Kettle-Bird-Successful-Marriage/dp/0873064402
9. www.togetherforhumanity.org.au