| About a month ago, I went to a Bar Mitzvah for my friend's son. My friend, by the way, does not want even one peep about her to show up on this blog, so I will have to leave her & her lovely family out of the story. This will just be about another new word I learned and what it made me think about while I sat in awe during the ceremony. |  |
| The cool word I learned was "mitzvah." Ok, yes, I've heard the word before and I knew it was a big celebration that happens when a boy or girl turns 13 and becomes an adult in the Jewish religion. At least, this is what I thought it meant. I admit couldn't follow everything. I spent a little time staring out the big windows at the trees just outside -- gorgeous, dark green leaves all shiny wet with rain. But I was still paying attention. And one of the parts of the ceremony that really got me thinking was when the rabbi explained that "mitzvah" actually means obligation. She spoke a little bit about what some of the "mitzvahs" are including protecting life and trying to make the world a better place. I'm pretty sure the rabbi also said that by doing these things a person makes their own life meaningful. I was truly amazed by this whole arrangement -- that you are obligated to respect life & be good, but by being good you make the most of your own life. I guess its not a totally foreign concept, but it just sounded perfect the way she said it. Partly, I was excited about the mitzvah idea for selfish reasons. Probably doesn't get any weirder than that, right? I even thought "Wow! This is awesome! This means all the Jewish people in the world are actually obligated to help stop climate change." During those moments listening to the rabbi, I was happy for lots of other reasons, too. It just felt good to be reminded that people have been struggling with the big questions for thousands of years & they have actually worked out some very nice answers. Felt good to hear someone say they care about living a meaningful life & that they know what it takes to do that. Felt good to see a whole roomful of people that might even share the rabbi's sense of right & wrong, share the idea that we have an obligation to others. That is just not something I hear everyday. I really appreciated hearing it then. |
