Pardon the Interruption

Pardon the Interruption

Fires this week are causing great damage to land and homes in the Southern California area. Several members of our Valley Beth Shalom community are displaced as the fire rages just a few miles from our synagogue home. Where there has been heartbreak, there is inspired heroism. Where there has been concern for the safety of the vulnerable among us, there is unflagging commitment to provide shelter, protection, and confidence that in moments of crisis we are here for each other.

For many of us, the fires have been an interruption, causing inconvenience in the shifting of schedules, the cancellation of commitments, and the adjustment of our routines to accommodate the emergent needs of our greater community.  All the while, the world around us marches on. Sanitation crews collect our waste, civic agencies protect our citizens, and medical professionals care for those who are ill.

In an era when life seems to be filled with more interruption than continuity, our tradition has sustained the most vital expression - a blessing - in response. Expressing words of blessing help us acknowledge how the world is and to express a hope for a world that should be. The language of blessing is how Jews confront all moments and invite the sacred into our midst.

Consider this lesson from thousands of years ago.

Our Rabbis taught: One who sees a myriad of Israelites should say, “Blessed be the One who discerns secrets, for the mind of each of them is not like the mind of any other, nor is the countenance of each of them like the countenance of any other.”  Ben Zoma once saw a host of people on the Temple Mount. He said, “Blessed be the One who discerns secrets, and Blessed be the One who has created all these people to [care for] me.”  He also added, “How many labors did the first human being have to engage in before he obtained bread to eat! He plowed, he sowed, he reaped; he stacked the sheaves, threshed the grain, winnowed the chaff, selected the good ears, ground them, sifted the flour, kneaded the dough and baked. And only then did he eat. Whereas I get up and find all these things before me." (BT Berachot 58a)

How fortunate are we that trained professionals are putting their lives in danger to protect us! How grateful are we that those who are affected by the fires are brought to safety! And how appreciative are we that those who have suffered from the devastation of their homes are cared for by a loving community; the nameless, faceless multitudes who stand up and respond during this interruption of our lives. We bless you with the words of our tradition, “Blessed be the One who discerns secrets, and Blessed by the One who has created all these people to care for us.” Indeed, this blessing is the most welcome interruption of all.