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Parashat Re'eh 5785 | The Purpose of Human Existence — Transcript

by Jerusalem Lights - Rabbi Chaim Richman · 2,696 words · 405 segments · language en · Watch on YouTube

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0:03[Music]
0:16[Music]
0:31Shalom. This week's Torah portion is
0:33parhat beginning in the book of
0:36Deuteronomy 11 and verse 26. Our portion
0:40opens with Moshe's powerful call to each
0:42individual with the words see I place
0:45before you today a blessing and a curse.
0:48In this one simple verse, Torah conveys
0:50one of its most sacred and universal
0:52truths. The challenge of free choice
0:55known in Hebrew as also called free
0:58will. Everyone has free will. Each of
1:01each one of us is free to make our own
1:03choices in this life and we are
1:05responsible for those choices. This
1:07concept of free choice is such a central
1:10basic theme in Torah that it could truly
1:13be called the single most important
1:15underpinning of human existence. But
1:17what exactly is it? Why is it so
1:20important? What does it mean for modern
1:22man? And the deepest question of all,
1:24not just what is free will, but why does
1:27it exist at all? Why did Hashem embed
1:29this faculty into the human soul? Why
1:32not create a world where we all behave
1:33perfectly automatically like obedient
1:35angels? But as we will see, free will is
1:39not just an important aspect of what it
1:40means to be a person. It's the very
1:43foundation of God's relationship with
1:44man and the very meaning of human
1:47existence. So, open up your heart and
1:49let's start back at the beginning. Back
1:51in the Garden of Eden, where Adam and
1:54Kava were given a single command not to
1:57eat from the tree of knowledge of good
1:59and evil. Hashem's command in Genesis
2:02chapter 2, from every tree you may
2:04surely eat, but from the tree of
2:06knowledge you shall not eat, frames the
2:08first human encounter with free will
2:10that we find in Torah. According to our
2:13sages, what happened in Eden was not
2:14merely a matter of Adam and Eve's
2:16mistake of disobedience, but what
2:19resulted from it. That from that moment
2:21on, good and evil became mixed up and
2:25internalized into the very fabric of
2:27human nature. Before the sin, one's
2:30personal inclination towards evil known
2:32in Hebrew as yet was external as
2:35represented by the serpent. A whisper of
2:37seduction that emanated from outside a
2:40person. But once Adam and Kava chose to
2:43eat, that urging contrary voice entered
2:47inside them. As the sages teach, the
2:49serpent's zuma, meaning spiritual
2:52toxicity, became part of the fabric of
2:54humanity. And from that moment on, human
2:56beings became very complex. Their inner
2:59world was transformed into a
3:01battlefield. Good and evil no longer
3:03stood on opposite sides of a clearly
3:05demarcated line. Instead, they became
3:07intertwined within thought and emotion
3:10and everything in this world. Man is
3:12mixed up and walks a tightroppe in a
3:14world of confusion, constantly being
3:16pulled in opposite directions. Free will
3:19is the path along which humanity
3:21navigates this inner confusion, enabling
3:23every person to choose between good and
3:26evil.
3:27After the debacle of the tree of
3:29knowledge, God tells Cain explicitly in
3:31Genesis 4:7, "If you improve yourself,
3:34you will be forgiven, but if you do not
3:36improve yourself, sin crouches at the
3:38door, its desire is toward you, yet you
3:41can conquer it." And later on here in
3:43our book of Deuteronomy in parat kitavo
3:46in chapter 30 and verse 19. Torah is
3:48even more explicit than here in our
3:50parha. There we're going to be reading I
3:52call heaven and earth today to bear
3:54witness against you. I have placed life
3:56and death before you blessing and curse
3:58and you shall choose life so that you
4:00may live. But our opening verse here in
4:03paradra a comes first and it sets the
4:05stage for man's great continuous
4:07internal showdown. Moshe is telling us,
4:11see, I am placing this before you. Not
4:13telling you what to do, just making you
4:15aware of the reality before you. It's
4:18it's all about what we see and how we
4:20respond to what's placed in front of us.
4:22What happens next is up to us. Midash
4:25offers this parable as an illustration.
4:27A man is standing at a crossroads with
4:29two paths. One begins smoothly and ends
4:31in thorns, and the other begins in
4:33thorns and ends smoothly. and a guide
4:35warned the traveler, "This path begins
4:37in thorns, but it ends well. Choose it."
4:41We're going to be encountering this
4:42challenge of free choice again and again
4:44in Torah. Joshua echoes in chapter 24
4:48and verse 15 of Joshua, "Choose this day
4:49whom you will serve." And in his chapter
4:5221 in a reframing of the verses of
4:54Deuteronomy, Jeremiah declares, "I set
4:56before you the way of life and the way
4:58of death."
5:00So clearly God does not coers but sets
5:02the paths before us and grants us the
5:05intellectual and moral clarity to
5:07discern where they lead. Yet he leaves
5:10the decision in our hands. Raf Salvich
5:13writes that our ability to choose
5:15transforms fate into destiny. He
5:18explains fate refers to the givens of
5:20our life. Those circumstances placed in
5:22front of us. Destiny is the path we
5:25choose to forge in response
5:28in each of our lives. Free choice is the
5:30arena in which man's greatest potential
5:32is revealed. Life without choice is not
5:35life. It's just automated existence. In
5:38chapters of the father's chapter 5, we
5:40learn that Abraham was tested 10 times
5:42and withtood them all. And the reason
5:45this teaching is important is because a
5:46test is what reveals the true nature of
5:49the soul. Indeed, this is one of the
5:51understandings of what Genesis 121:27
5:54means. That man is created in the image
5:56of God. That man is capable of
5:58conscious, moral, creative will. And
6:01thus, Rafadon writes that our our salim,
6:04our being created in God's image lies in
6:06our capacity to choose between opposing
6:08desires and to act rationally even when
6:10it's difficult. And Ralph Cook teaches
6:13that free choice is the pinnacle of the
6:15soul, a reflection of divine freedom
6:17itself. Just as God acts with free will,
6:20so too he embedded in man a microcosm of
6:23that divine freedom.
6:25This means that free choice is not just
6:28a tool. It's the very expression of our
6:30godliness.
6:32So open up your heart in the deepest
6:33way. The renowned sage Rabbi Moshim
6:36Lutato known as Ram Khal is one of the
6:38Torah world's greatest expositors of the
6:41concept of free choice. Ram Khal's
6:43entire worldview pivots around free
6:45choice as the foundation of human
6:47purpose and divine justice in this
6:49world. He returns to this theme
6:51throughout all his major works
6:53expounding upon free choice as a crucial
6:55aspect of human existence. Ramal teaches
6:58that only humans are uniquely endowed
7:00with free will, enabling them to choose
7:03between good and evil and that these
7:05choices shape their spiritual
7:07development and their relationship with
7:08God. His philosophy is rooted in the
7:11understanding that the very purpose of
7:13human life is to present man with
7:16constant opportunities to choose between
7:18good and evil. And thus literally
7:20everything, every situation that life
7:23presents us from the most intense to the
7:25most mundane is about the choices we
7:28will make. Creation is not simply
7:30programmed according to a predetermined
7:32outcome. It's a dynamic process shaped
7:35by all our human choices. Most important
7:38of all is Ramal's emphasis that free
7:41choice exists not for God's sake, but
7:43for ours. It grants us the dignity of
7:45being partners in our own efforts toward
7:48perfection. He explains, "God's ultimate
7:51purpose in creation was to bestow the
7:53greatest good upon his creations, which
7:56is the reward of being close to him in
7:57the world to come, known in Hebrew as
8:00olam haba. But true good is only that
8:03which the receiver has earned." He
8:05teaches that being the recipient of
8:07unearned good as a gift is spiritually
8:10embarrassing, even shameful. And thus
8:13such un unearned reward is referred to
8:15in the mystical literature as bread of
8:18shame. This means that free will is a
8:20metaphysical necessity. This world is
8:23like a battlefield. Man stands in the
8:25center of a struggle between the and the
8:29struggle to choose good over evil
8:32enables man to earn his closeness to
8:34God. The path toward perfection is
8:37voluntary. One's ultimate reward is
8:39proportional to the effort one exerts in
8:42overcoming obstacles. And hence free
8:44choice is the field on which greatness
8:46is earned measured by the heroic humble
8:50daily act of choosing light in the
8:52presence of darkness. So open up your
8:54heart deeper still. The holy baltov
8:57emphasizes the sacred power of even the
9:00smallest choice that a person makes
9:02comparing it to the flickering of a
9:04flame in darkness that changes the whole
9:06room. He taught that at every moment a
9:08person stands between two choices to be
9:11drawn closer to God or to be pulled
9:14towards the forces of concealment. And
9:17even the tiniest movement towards God
9:19brings great joy in the upper worlds. He
9:22says in simple in simple terms this
9:24concept of the upper worlds it means
9:26that every person is wired to the cosmos
9:28to the eternal essence of Hashem's unity
9:30from which his or her her soul was
9:32drawn. And when the individual makes the
9:34right choice, it's a spiritually
9:36powerful act that increases light and
9:38strengthens the force of good in the
9:40universe. And thus, he reframes free
9:42choice not as a heavy burden, but as a
9:44momentto- moment opportunity to bring
9:46more light into the world. The choice
9:48may be as small as resisting a
9:51temptation or turning the heart towards
9:52prayer or holding back a harsh word and
9:55saying a kind word instead or
9:57remembering Hashem in a passing moment.
9:59This insight ties in so beautifully to
10:02the opening verse of our portion over a
10:04I place before you today hyom this day
10:08at this moment every moment is new and
10:10even a brief turning of the soul towards
10:12God is cosmically significant as shetov
10:16also taught a person should not be
10:17discouraged by the persistence of his
10:19evil inclination. It's Hashem himself
10:22who created it and placed it within you,
10:24not to destroy you, but to elevate you
10:27through the very struggle. In other
10:29words, the evil inclination that we all
10:31have is not a hostile obstacle. It's
10:33part of Hashem's sacred plan for the
10:35betterment of the individual. Think of a
10:38violin string. Its tension is what
10:40allows music to emerge. The inner
10:42tension between the soul and the evil
10:44inclination is what produces the
10:46beautiful music that emerges when man
10:48rises to his potential within the
10:50confines of the human condition.
10:53Rabbi Nakman expands upon the Balto's
10:56uplifting insights with his own soul
10:59penetrating encouraging teaching for the
11:01soul that struggles and falters and
11:03rises again. Rabbi Nakman particularly
11:06addresses souls that feel trapped by sin
11:08and despair or spiritual numbness. He
11:11teaches that free choice is never lost
11:13no matter how deep one has fallen. He
11:16says know that even a person if a person
11:19has fallen into the lowest depths still
11:21he has the power of free will because no
11:23place is beyond the power of choice and
11:25despair is just a great illusion.
11:28Attempting to convince a person that he
11:30no longer has free choice. But anyone
11:31can choose to cry out to God even from
11:34the lowest of places. The freedom to
11:37take one small step is always within
11:39reach and one small step can become one
11:42giant leap. Deeper still, Rabbi Nakman
11:45focuses on the greatness of choosing
11:47again and again. Each time you overcome
11:50your lower nature even slightly, he
11:52writes, "It's infinitely precious before
11:54God. Even if you fall again afterwards,
11:56the choice you made made its permanent
11:58mark upon you and upon the universe."
12:01He says that free choice is not about
12:04one big moment of dazzling
12:06transformation but about constantly
12:08renewing one's desire to live in
12:10alignment with God. Since the ess of
12:13essence of a person is is his ratone,
12:15his will. When one chooses good, he
12:18renews his very identity. And this is
12:20the primary avoda, the divine service of
12:23all mankind, mindfully choosing light
12:25over darkness, not once but constantly.
12:28And the choices are not always obvious.
12:29Often they're murky, subtle, and hidden
12:32behind layers of ego or fear. The gray
12:35area of doubt and and uncertainty now
12:38occupies the majority of the playing
12:40field. Yet, this is the very dignity of
12:42our design. We human beings were not
12:44created to be angels, but to be
12:46choosers, capable of elevating the world
12:48precisely because of the struggle. Every
12:51good deed, every act of restraint or
12:53compassion becomes a small victory in
12:55the ongoing repair of Eden. This is all
12:58reflected once again in the first words
13:00of our parha. Torah does not say I
13:02command you this day to be perfect. He
13:04says I place before you this day
13:06blessing and curse. There's no call here
13:08to be perfect. There's a call to choose.
13:12The choice itself is what sanctifies
13:14life not becoming perfect. We should
13:17never forget this.
13:19Free will is the engine that powers
13:21tshoua and tikun. Repentance and repair.
13:25Mymanities writing in his laws of
13:27repentance offers one of the clearest
13:29and most powerful declarations of human
13:31dignity in all of Jewish thought. He
13:34states, "Permission is granted to every
13:37person. If one wishes to incline towards
13:40goodness and become righteous, the
13:41choice is his. If he wishes to incline
13:44towards wickedness, the choice is his.
13:46No one compels him. He alone can discern
13:49good and evil and act accordingly."
13:52Rambam explains that this is what it
13:54means in Genesis. Behold, the human has
13:56become like one of us, knowing good and
13:58evil. Unlike the animals or the angels,
14:01the human being is free. And because he
14:04is free, he is responsible. When we sin,
14:07says Rambam, it is we who have harmed
14:09our own souls and therefore we are
14:11worthy of tears, he writes, and capable
14:13of return. And he concludes this section
14:16with a quotation from Lamentations 3.
14:18Why should a living person complain for
14:21his own sins, let us search and examine
14:24our ways and return to God? So open up
14:27your heart deeper than ever. Ever ask
14:29yourself, how come after Adam ate from
14:32the tree, God says, Ayaka, where are
14:34you? As Rashi comments, of course, God
14:36knew where he was, but he opened up the
14:38conversation gently and provided an
14:41opportunity for Adam to repent, to admit
14:43and come clean. Because free choice also
14:46includes the chance to own up to one's
14:49failure. Freedom also means being
14:51answerable and the consequences of bad
14:54choices educate us. We're not locked
14:56into our past. Free choice means that a
14:58person can return, can rebuild, and can
15:01become renewed.
15:04In a world where a cac cacophony of
15:08confused voices tries to convince man
15:10that he's nothing more than a biological
15:12creature or the product of his
15:13upbringing or environment. Torah
15:15declares otherwise. The challenge of
15:18free choice restores innate dignity to
15:20the human being. It tells the anxious
15:21heart, you're not the sum of your
15:23instincts or your past or your program.
15:26You are a soul. You could choose. The
15:28world is not predetermined.
15:30Within the human spirit, there's there's
15:32a sacred space that no external force
15:34can reach. And it's in that space that
15:37we meet God. It's not despite our
15:39struggle that our choices matter. It's
15:41because of it. In an age of existential
15:44paralysis, man's free choice is not only
15:46the answer. It is the secret of living a
15:49life of constant renewal.
15:51Hashem addresses each and every one of
15:53us today, each day, presenting us with
15:56an array of everchanging opportunities,
15:59placing before us the blessing and the
16:01curse and awaiting our next move. And
16:04the choice is always ours. So, open up
16:06your heart today and choose.
16:10Thank you for watching this week's
16:12Jerusalem Lights weekly Torah portion.
16:14If you appreciate these videos, please
16:16consider donating to Jerusalem Lights, a
16:19registered nonprofit educational
16:20organization. It's only the support of
16:23our viewers that enables Jerusalem
16:25Lights to continue to share Torah for
16:27everyone. Shabbat shalom.

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