The following material is divided into two parts. The first, developed by Rabbi Barry Freundel of Kesher Israel Congregation in Washington, D.C., is a general exploration of themes of community and responsibility in Jewish texts, with brief comments on the texts presented. The second part (included only in packets sent to rabbis), by Rabbi Danial Swartz of the Religious Action Center, is an example of how to develop these themes sermonically in the context of the current anti-regulatory debate going on about environmental health, and safety protections.
How to use this material:
This section is designed to be used in study sessions or to help prepare sermons. Please feel free to use it, without attribution, either as is or adapted to suit your particular needs. The sermon in Part II is written to be delivered during the coming High Holiday season. Because it makes extensive use of material from the Book of Ruth, it would also be especially appropriate next Shavuot. Of course, with a few adaptations, it can serve as a sermon for Shabbat. Either study sessions or sermons can be combined with advocacy on specific legislative proposals - see the "Legislative Update" for more information on advocacy. COEJL will continue to distribute sermonic materials in the coming years. Please help us in these efforts by sharing your sermons or discussion materials with Mark Jacobs and Michal Smart at the COEJL office, 443 Park Avenue South, New York, New York 10016-7322
Part 1 - Sources on Community and Responsibility
1. Mishnah - Mas. Avot Chapter 2
MISHNAH 4. HILLEL SAID: SEPARATE NOT THYSELF FROM THE COMMUNITY
2. Talmud - Mas. Berakhot 30a
Abaye said: One should always associate oneself with the congregation.
3. Talmud - Mas. Sotah 40a
R. Isaac said: Let respect for the congregation be always upon thee; for behold, the kohanim had their faces towards the people and thier backs towards the Shekhinah.
Comment: In Jewish thought, the community is a legal entity, a sort of legal person in its own right. The rule of equal protection under the law in Judaism is addressed by God to the community as a person, as it were (see, e.g. Numbers 15:15). The same idea comes through when the Torah requires sacrifices of the community (Korban Tzibor). Association with this legal personality called the community will, in much the same way as association with friends and teachers, affect the type of individual that we become. Since the community embodies the values of God and Torah, those are the values that will rub off on us if we involve ourselves with community affairs. Compare and contrast this with US law, which gives corporations the legal status of individuals. What legal status do communities have in our country?
4. Mishnah - Mas. Avot Chapter 2
MISHNAH 2. RABBAN GAMALIEL, THE SON OF R. JUDAH THE PATRIARCH, SAID: ALL WHO LABOR WITH THE COMMUNITY, LET THEM LABOR WITH IT FOR THE [SAKE OF THE] NAME OF HEAVEN. FOR THE MERIT OF THEIR ANCESTORS SUSTAINS THEM, AND THEIR RIGHTEOUSNESS ENDURES FOREVER; AND AS FOR THE [GOD IN SUCH A CASE SAYS] I ACCOUNT YOU WORTHY OF MUCH REGARD, AS IF YOU [YOURSELF] HAD [ACTUALLY] ACCOMPLISEHD [ALL OF IT].
Comment: This source speaks to motive, and it also speaks to the eternity of the community. It provides, therefore, a rationale for selflessly giving to the community, for in doing so, one makes an eternal contribution, and therefore transcends the limits of his or her own lifetime. It also creates a connection with those who have gone before and gives one a sense of not standing alone, but rather standing as part of a great, golden tradition. In what ways does our society value these sorts of connections?
5. Talmud Mas. Ta'anit 23a
One day Honi was journeying on the road and he saw a man planting a carob tree; he asked him, how long does it take [for this tree] to bear fruit? The man replied: seventy years. He then further asked him: are you certain that you will live another seventy years? The man replied: I found [grown] carob trees in the world; as my ancestors planted for me so I too plant for my children.
Honi sat down to have a meal, and sleep overcame him. As he slept, a rocky formation enclosed upon him which hid him from sight, and he saw a man gathering the fruit of the carob tree, and he asked him, are you the man who planted the tree? The man replied: I am his grandson. Thereupon he exclaimed: it is clear that I slept for seventy years. He then caught sight of his donkey, who had given birth to several generations, and he returned home. He there inquired, is the son of Honi the Circle-Drawer still alive? The people answered him, his son is no more, but his grandson is still living. Thereupon he said to them: I am Honi the Circle-Drawer, but no one would believe him. He then repaired to the Bet Hamidrash and there he overheard the scholars say, the law is as clear to us as in the days of Honi the Circle-Drawer, for whenever he came to the Bet Hamidrash he would settle for the scholars any difficulty they had. Whereupon he called out, I am he, but the scholars would not believe him nor did they give him the honor due to him. This hurt him greatly and he prayed [for death] and he died. Rava said: hence the saying either companionship or death.
Comment: This classic source, often quoted without its conclusion, embodies many of the values of the texts above while adding two more. First, it encourages people to appreciate what they have been given by previous communities, and to accept the burden of being concerned about communities yet to come. Second and perhaps more importantly, Honi's loss of status and of a community that knew and appreciated him saddened him to the point of wanting death. Life without community may not be worth living. How could a great sage such as Honi not realize the importance of such connections, while the old man did?
6. Talmud - Mas Berakhot 58a
Ben Zoma used to say, What labors Adam had to carry out before he obtained bread to eat! He plowed, he sowed, he reaped, he bound the sheaves, he threshed and winnowed and selected the ears, he ground [them] and sifted [the flour], he kneaded and baked, and then at last he ate; where-as I get up and find all these things done for me.....All kinds of craftsmen come early to the door of my house, and I rise in the morning and find all these before me.
Comment: A poetic restatement of the above texts, with the additional reminder that community can and should be a great equalizer, for all who make contributions to it should be appreciated. Does our society today function this way - why or why not?
7. Talmud Mas. Ta'anit 11a
Our Rabbis have taught: When Israel is in trouble and one of them separates himself from them, then the two ministering angels who accompany every person come and place their hands upon his head and say "so-and-so who separated himself from the community shall not behold the consolation of the community." Another baraita taught: when the community is in trouble, let not a person say, I will go to my house and I will eat and drink and all will be well with me...." But rather a person should share in the distress of the community, as it is said, But Moses' hands were heavy, and they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat thereon. Did not then Moses have a bolster or a cushion to sit on? This is then what Moses meant to convey, "As Israel is in distress I too will share with it. One who shares in the distress of the community will merit to behold its consolation." Perhaps one will say, "Who is there to testify against me?" The very stones of the house and its beams testify against, as it is written, "for the stone shall cry out of the wall, and the beam out of the timber shall answer it...." And some say: a person's own limbs testify against, as it is said, "Ye are my witnesses, said the Eternal One."
8. Talmud - Mas. Ketubot 50a
Comment: Giving to the community must be balanced with a sense of responsibility to oneself. - and taking from the community must also come with a sense of responsibility. A person without self-interest has lost something fundamental. The Talmudic principle begins with the idea that a person is ultimately one's own closest relative (c.f. Sanhedrin 10a). What are some guidelines for achieving balance between self-interest and the common good today?
9. Talmud Mas. Bava Metzia 71a
Rav Huna taught, according to R. Joseph: [if one has a choice between giving tzedakkah to] my people and a heathen, "my people" has preference; the poor or the rich, the poor takes precedence, thy poor [one's own relatives] and the poor of thy town, thy poor come first; the poor of thy town and the poor of another town, the poor of thine own town have prior rights. R. Hahman added, Huna taught that lending to an Israelite should take precedence even over lending to a heathen on interest.
10. Talmud Mas. Gittin 61a
THE POOR OF THE HEATHER ARE NOT PREVENTED FROM GATHERING GLEANINGS, FORGOTTEN SHEAVES, AND THE CORNER OF THE FIELD, TO AVOID ILL FEELING. Our Rabbis have taught: we support the poor of the heathen along with the poor of Israel, and visit the sick of the heathen along with the sick of Israel, and bury the poor of the heath along with the dead of Israel, in the interests of peace.
Comment: These two sources inject us into a tension which exists through Jewish law. On the one hand, one legitimately feels closer to those who are closest to oneself - and therefore on responds first to the need which is closest. One the other hand, priority of response does not mean exclusivity of need. One must remember that the rest of the world exists as well, and one must respond to what is out there. The Torah's ways are paths of peace, and our actions must always promote those values, even when we are acting on our best instincts and therefore might neglect some of the impact of what we are doing. Examine some current policy debates in the light of this tension.
