God Calling

Imagine a friend with whom you have lost touch, either out of neglect or because of some rift. Time has passed and you are feeling a bit uncomfortable about the whole loss of relationship. The person is trying to reconnect, sending emails, texts, looking you up on FaceBook but you either do not pay attention, ignore it, or miss it entirely. Get the picture?

This is exactly the situation Jewish tradition imagines each year in the seven weeks leading up to the High Holy Days. After three weeks (bookended by two fast days—the 17th of Tammuz and Tisha b’Av) of intense inner reflection in which we are meant to take responsibility for our shortcomings and failures, the focus of our spiritual work takes a complete 180. For seven weeks, known as the sheva d’nehemta (literally, the “seven of comfort”) through the words of the prophets chanted in the Haftarah each Shabbat morning, God takes the first step and invites us back into relationship. No matter how far we have strayed, even if we have denied the relationship altogether, God wants us back. And how do we accomplish that? Simply by turning and saying “yes” to the invitation. Slates wiped clean, roadblocks removed, “sins” forgiven, we can start all over, fully renewed. Not bad, right?

However, the fact that we receive seven invitations over seven weeks is an indication that our turning may not be as easy as it sounds. In all our relationships we get locked into ways of being and patterns of behavior. We each have our default ways of seeing the world and seeing others. We act as if we are “right” about them—they ARE this way. There is nothing we can do about it. Problem is, they are saying that about us, as well. And unless one or both of us is willing to take the first step, opening up to a new possibility, we will stay stuck and out of touch. It takes courage and a willingness to be vulnerable. It takes self-confidence to admit we may have been wrong or erred in some way. It means we have to really hear the other with an open mind and an empathic heart. We have to take a risk.

How does this apply to your personal relationship with God? Are you angry? Disappointed? Turned off? Confused? In doubt? Denial? For Judaism, God is real. In fact, God is the primary reality of the universe. How we conceive of God, as Higher Power or force within; masculine or feminine or gender neutral; mother or father; spirit or breath; King of the Universe or that still small voice leading us to what is truly good in ourselves, is totally up to us. Our mystical tradition says there are seventy names of God each with their own characteristics; in other words, seventy different ways of connecting. Each year we receive the same invitation to renew the relationship.

How will you respond this time?

P.S. This year, the first invitation went out on August 17th. Don’t worry if you failed to receive it; it will be resent each week until Rosh haShanah. If you need help figuring out how to respond, contact me at terrybookman.com I personally respond to each email.