When Civilization Begins

Photo by Adrien xplr on Unsplash

According to the Talmud, young children are supposed to start their Torah study with this week’s Torah portion, which is the beginning of the book of Leviticus. This has never made sense to me because this week’s Torah portion is all about animal sacrifice. It is a little bit gory and quite detailed as it goes into the preparation for the slaughter of animals that the ancient Israelites sacrificed as part of their worship. Would it not be wiser for a young child to start their Torah studies with the magnificent story of the Creation of the World or the inspiring stories of Abraham and Sarah, the first Jews?  What made the sages of the Talmud suggest that young children begin their studies with Leviticus?

Rabbi Peg Kershenbaum, a friend and colleague of mine, sent me a true story that I think can shed some light on the question. Years ago renowned anthropologist Margaret Mead was asked by a student what she considered to be the first sign of civilization in a culture. The student expected Mead to talk about fishhooks or clay pots or grinding stones.

But no. Mead’s reply was that the first sign of civilization in an ancient culture was the discovery by anthropologists  of a leg that had been broken and then healed. Mead explained that in the animal kingdom, if you break your leg, you die. You cannot run from danger, get to the river for a drink or hunt for food. You become food for prowling beasts. No animal survives a broken leg long enough for the bone to heal.

Mead explained, 'A broken leg that has healed is evidence that someone has taken time to stay with the one who fell, has bound up the wound, has carried the person to safety and has tended the person through recovery. Helping someone else through difficulty is where civilization starts'.

Perhaps the sages chose to teach a child about animal sacrifice first because children need to learn that it is through sacrifice that civilization endures. The person who helped his or her friend survive a broken leg so very long ago surely sacrificed a good deal in order to nurse them back to health. So too  these days, right here and now in our nation,  we hear and read about   countless numbers of   doctors, nurses,  first responders, ambulances drivers,  lab technicians and on and on  who report to work to care for the sick despite the dangers to their own health. We see it at so many levels, from the sacrifices of those who operate the cash registers in our supermarkets, to those who stock the shelves so that we can buy foods and essential supplies. We see it in the sacrifices of those who put themselves at risk to buy food for the more vulnerable in our communities. . We see it in the behavior of all of us who have  decided to adhere to the social distancing restrictions  thereby  sacrificing our need for human contact for the larger health and good of our towns, our cities, our country.  We will perhaps feel this sense of sacrifice most acutely as we sit down to our Passover Seders without the presence of family and friends who have gathered around our tables with us in years past. Fortunately, the amazing technologies of our times , at this moment, allow us to be connected with each nonetheless even if at a distance. For this we are grateful. We may be alone – but we are not lonely!

Yes, we are at our best when our sacrifices serve the need of others. Stay safe and healthy.                      

Is the Corona-virus an Act of God?

Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

Last week a congregant wrote me to ask me a question.  “Rabbi,” they write, “Our school district has cancelled classes and states the missed days will never be made up, as they call this an "Act of G-d." My question to you is just that: is this really an Act of G-d?

Isn’t that a marvelous question? I think when the school system uses the phrase "Act of G-d" they are not making a theological pronouncement. To my understanding, an "act of G-d" is a metaphor for "a natural catastrophe", something like a hurricane or a tornado that causes great damage. It is an unforeseen, overwhelming, event that we have little capacity to prevent it. While our current crisis surely meets these criteria, we need not worry. The school system is still maintaining the separation of Church and State, despite the wording of the announcement.

What role does G-d play in the Coronavirus crisis? We Jews affirm that G-d is the "Creator of Everything" which would include a destructive virus.  I come to you this evening to let G-d off the hook, at least with respect to what we are experiencing at this time. I am going to argue that we exonerate G-d. G-d may have created the Coronavirus, for what reason we do not know, but G-d is surely not responsible for  either infecting people or spreading the virus. That responsibility lies firmly at our feet.

Scientists believe that the CoronaVirus is an infection that has “jumped” from wildlife, most likely bats, to human beings. This kind of jump from the wild to humans has probably happened throughout history. In the past, the person who was infected by this jump from wildlife probably died or infected a small number of people in their village, who died, and that was the end of the virus in humans. Today, a person who is infected in one country one day could be anywhere in the world the following day coming in contact with far more people. The very mobility that gives us the opportunity to travel widely and see the world contributes greatly to the spread of disease.

But there is another factor. The degradation of our environment, the fact that we humans encroach more and more on areas where we previously had no business, puts us in greater contact with wild animals and puts stress on its creatures themselves. The stress lowers the immune response of the animals harboring a virus that they had previously kept in check. The virus multiplies. The animals are caught and caged in markets, stacked one on top of the other, further increasing stress and the animal sheds more virus. People buy these now sick exotic animals for food or as pets, and somehow the virus makes its way to the human. At least that is the theory as it now stands.

It is not an act of G-d, it is an act of humankind. It highlights the urgent need for the world to be less cavalier in how we treat the environment.  It is a warning, perhaps from G-d, that destroying habitat and degrading the landscape not only damages the earth but damages people as well.

No, G-d is not punishing us or causing our problems.  On the contrary, we can be sure that G-d is with us in our struggles, in our fears, and in our suffering. Countless individuals and communities, throughout the generations, have turned to G-d for comfort and strength. Danger, challenge and fear are part of the human condition. We like those who came before us, can turn to G-d and to one another,  to provide comfort,  to give us courage to endure through hardship and to give us strength and wisdom to meet the challenges of the future.