God's Personal Involvement

Rabbi Irwin Wiener, D.D.

(This is a sermon I delivered honoring our volunteers. I am sure most can relate to these words and I offer them to encourage praticipation by all in our desire to extend a helping-hand to those needing that special feeling of connection.)

Numerous times I am asked why in Biblical text God seems to be personally involved in our daily lives. And now He seems to be so remote? Chapter after chapter in the Torah and in the Prophets and in the Writings (the Talmud and other rabbinic texts) God appears in concrete ways.

For example: When the Patriarchs are developing and fine-tuning their understanding of God there are conversations that take place one-on-one. When the Israelites are enslaved for over 200 years God appears to Moses and urges him to partner with Him in the redemption that is about to take place.

The Prophets have discourse with God, receive messages and transmit them to the people; the first kings, Saul, David, and Solomon have direct involvement and even create sonnets and poems and messages that transcend time and are with us to this day. What makes us any different from our ancestors? Why is it we don’t seem to be able to have direct contact with God? Has something gone wrong with the system?

So I search for answers, as I am sure many of you do, especially when some issue arises that creates in us a need for that spiritual connection. Most often these occasions are sad in nature because it is rare that we take the time to offer our gratitude for the good things that are part of our lives.

Consider this: When we decide to begin a family, we make all kinds of plans. They might include names that we have dreamt of or perhaps how they will be raised, or even the schools they may attend. And. Of course, we always think that we are going to be different parents than our parents were. We won’t make the same mistakes.

Then the day arrives. We are so excited. We start to nurture and are as attentive as we possibly can be. We teach them to crawl, to walk, to talk. Each step of the way we are there to encourage and “kvel.”

Finally the day arrives when they look you in the eye and say goodbye. They are off to find their fortune, to make their place in the world, to find someone to share the next phase in their journey toward total independence.

No longer are they asking and seeking, inquiring and arguing. No longer do they need us to prop them up when they falter or shore them up when they fail. No longer are they daddy’s little girl or mommies “shayna punim.” Where have the years gone? Where is the toothless face that looks at us and wonders why we are so big and they are so small? Where is the bruised knee or the climbing on the sofa to sit on our lap?

Yes, our child has grown-up.

Now, transfer that thought to a God who created us, nurtured us, taught us to fend for ourselves, even talked to us in ways that we can’t even begin to imagine. God started us on our journey with a garden filled with delights for the sight and the senses. God then said to us that it was time to move-on, stand on our own two feet.

God was there to direct us and guide us. God gave us laws and instructions that were intended to bring us closer to ourselves so that we could make-it. No longer was God there to tuck us in, to tell us stories, to wipe our tears. Now we had to learn for ourselves how to survive, not totally alone, but as independent free thinkers with choices to make.

All this leads us to another question:: Why pray? If God is remote, no longer part of our daily lives, why bother? The truth is that God is here in two ways: First and foremost, when we pray we are having a direct conversation with God and the answer to our prayers may not seem so apparent, but there are answers to prayers. We see it daily with things that happen that affect our lives in profound ways. We see them answered in birth, and recovery from illness and comfort during times of distress. Second, and just as important, we see it in each other when we extend ourselves. We volunteer for all types of activities that are designed to bring aid and comfort to those in need. Some volunteer with resources, some with time and some with encouragement for others because of time constraints or infirmities that prevent us from being actively involved.

This is God working through us. This is God talking through us. This is God personally involved through us. That is called partnership and is what God intended from the very beginning. We honor this evening all those who do God’s work. Because as the saying goes: God can’t be everywhere at every moment, so He created volunteers.

We are a very fortunate congregation. Not only do we show love and affection by our caring, but we put into action those attributes that make us responsive to everyone who is in need for that extra tender touch, that extra tender smile, that extra attentive ear.

Early 18th century poet and Kabbalist, Moses Lazzatto wrote that the habit of loving-kindness is an ingredient of saintliness. The Hebrew word for saintliness comes from the same base word that implies kindness. Conducting oneself with loving kindness toward others is one of the three foundations wherein the world, according to our Sages, is premised.

How fortunate we are. Thank you to all who serve. God continue to bless you and the works you perform. God continue to bless us, the beneficiaries of that service. Blessed be God who is continually involved with us personally and collectively.