All of Israel's population is now entering, with the enactment of the first phase of the 'hostage-cease fire deal, an excruciating period of intense confusing, complex and contradictory emotions.
Rav Soloveitchik teaches us a unique understanding of 'emunah-relgious faith' that can help us, as individuals and as a nation, better cope with this complexity, and convert our emotional turmoil into new found national purpose.
With regard to 'emunah-religious faith' the Rav teaches us to understand that our current confusion and paradox are actually central, critical elements in building a truer, more existentially meaningful, higher, religious faith.
With regard to defining our National Being (self identity), our confusion and paradoxical feelings should also serve as a driving existential force for more meaningfully defining our national self-identity. Rav Soloveitchik expresses these ideas using the concepts of a People of Fate and a People of Destiny.
For example, during the Holocaust we were a People of Fate, our eternal enemies of hate, defined our national Being. With our successful War of Independence, and with G-d's help we transformed ourselves into a People of Destiny. In 1948, we took our suffering and spiritual confusion of the Holocaust and converted it into a National Being of Jewish Rebirth, Jewish Homecoming, and Jewish national Sovereignty.
The article will:
One, briefly describe how we are experiencing our current national trauma (a war of survival that unfortunately conflicts with a hostage release).
Two, the article will explain in greater detail Rav Soloveitchik's definition of 'emunah/religious faith'.
Three, the article will explain how Rav Soloveitchik's teachings will give us greater coping ability to strengthen our national self- identity as a People of Destiny.
Experiencing our current national trauma
The current 'phase one-hostage, cease fire' has brought upon almost all of us a tidal wave of confused-contradictory emotions. Those (like me) who think that military victory takes priority over hostage release, are worried and repulsed by armed, uniformed Hamas soldiers celebrating in the street, and yet at the same time feel a warm, inner joy upon seeing the hostages united with their families.
And the same/opposite is also true of those who give priority to hostage release, feeling deep happiness on their return home, yet they are also 'worried about a 'tacit' Hamas victory, and the possible international establishment of a Sunni trusteeship in Gaza, with the Hamas holding the real reins of power, like the Hizballah in Lebanon.
We are confused. We are perplexed by so many unanswered questions. Where is our victory picture? We had so many strategic, military successes, then why do we not have a sense of victory? And then sometimes there arises the horrible haunting thought, to what extent did our soldiers 'die in vain'?
We gain moral, religious and patriotic strength from the stamina and incredible acts of sacrifices of not only our soldiers but of their families at home. But ''family normalcy' also requires a stable, peaceful 'normalcy', and when will we again see a peaceful normalcy on our borders.?
Our unprecedented degree of technological success, saved lives, achieved victories, and yet, in many ways, the Hamas 'outlasted us' in a war of attrition on our borders.
What awaits us in the future? The Mid-East is becoming more and more dominated by Muslim Fundamentalists-Jihadists who only want to fight and die, and have no interests in building constructive-modern societies or states. How long will the Jewish people in Israel have to continue to live by the sword?
Why does G-d not give his beloved People ' rest' from military and international conflict? G-d knows the answers to these confusing, perplexing questions but we are left existentially guessing.
In brief, 'this first phase-hostage, cease fire' rises many more questions than it answers.
Rav Soloveitchik teaches that our internal spiritual conflicts are a 'built-in, inherent' part of our covenantal relationship with G-d
I readily acknowledge that there are many religious Israelis that I know who find it hard to identify with the religious teachings of Rav Soloveitchik. This is primarily because, although Torah religious Law is the basis of all that he teaches, he primarily uses concepts taken from modern psychology, philosophy and sociology to talk about Emunah and our relationship with G-d. And these concepts sound very foreign and strange to many religious Israelis. They definitely did not hear them from their rabbis.
For example, the Rav refers to G-d as The Lonely One, the Eternal Companion, the Infinite Being, and the True Self.
In discussing our inner spiritual-religious conflicts he never (as far as I am aware) uses the traditional Rabbinic, or Kabbalistic terms of soul and body, evil and good inclination (yezer ha, ra yezer ha tov ), our animalistic and divine souls (Chabad), or any concepts derived from metaphysics of the kabbala.
Instead, the Rav discusses our inner spiritual conflicts in terms of two very contrasting psychological human typologies.
One typology, is a man (Adam One) who devotes his self-centered creative energies to the functional tasks of improving the material-cultural-scientific dimensions of society.
The second typology is a man (Adam Two) who deeply feels existential loneliness, meaning that he deeply intuits the many, 'inevitable 'absurd, tragic, incomprehensible, unanswerable aspects of daily, human existence'. Given this existential loneliness, Adam Two desperately searches to find the purpose and meaning of life, and thus searches for G-d.
More specifically, Rav Soloveitchik teaches that modern, materialistic technological man (Adam One) can only find a true answer to his existential loneliness by devoting his life to building a spiritual, covenantal bond with G-d, whose Torah and mitzvot will give his life the purpose and meaning he was lacking. His covenantal relationship with G-d will then enable him to build deep, powerful relationships of mutual intimacy with spouse, family and community.
Thus according to the Rav, in postmodern society, our inner emotional conflicts are the result of our life being overly dominated by our inner, Adam One technological-materialistic- ego centered drives, and too little involvement in building a covenantal relationship with G-d.
This redemptive, covenantal relationship above is best described by quoting from the Rav's commentary on the dialogue between Moses and G-d at the beginning of the parasha 'Vaeira':
"The chosen community lays existential claim to God as its God. The community belongs to G-d, and at the same time G-d belongs to the community. There is an ontological reciprocity in the covenantal contract in that each party incurs metaphysical obligation and acquire metaphysical right. The covenantal ontic agreement is an actor of reciprocal giving and accepting at a personalistic level (between man and G-d) …. a covenantal obligation that embraces the existential experience, and places the parties (G-d and the individual Jew) as spiritual personalities in an existential mutual relationship…G-d owns our very lives, our very essence and existence, our very selves."
The Jew is thus called upon to find a spiritually redemptive life by enacting and actualizing this divine covenantal relationship in the context of his marriage, parenthood, community and national life.
Three quotations of the Rav that illustrate the internal conflicts inherent part of any deep covenantal relationship.
Before I relate how the Rav's religious-emunah teachings relate to the very mixed emotions we are feeling in this 'phase one-hostage release' chapter, I want to bring three brief quotes from the Rav which forcibly teach that all and every covenantal relationship will inevitably contain existential confusion and contradictions.
The best way to understand the below quotes of the Rav is to refer to, and ponder, your own covenantal marital and family life. G-d created our marital relationships as one of 'ezer cnegdo'. (one spouse positioned opposite the other). This means that we are called upon to live the paradox, that positive, happy family life is inevitably characterized by inner conflicts. We have to learn how to use these conflicts in order to better empathize with, and understand, our spouse. And we then we hopefully use these 'new' understandings to build a renewed, deeper and truer marital union.
Three quotes of the Rav concerning the inherent contradictions and conflicts of human existence.
One : "The role of the man of faith, whose religious experience is fraught with inner conflicts and incongruities, who oscillates between ecstasy in G-d's companionship, and despair when he feels abandoned by G-d, and who is torn asunder by the heightened contrast between self-appreciation and abnegation, has been a difficult one since the times of Abraham and Moses… the practical role of the man of faith within modern society is a very difficult, indeed, a paradoxical one".
Two: "The depth of the man of faith's personality is measured according to the criteria of the torments of duality, contradictions, doubts, which issue in the emergence of a personality shrouded in sanctity whose soul was purified in the smithy pf perplexity and contradiction and refined in the fires of spiritual conflict"
Three: "And in the process of repentance, immense creative power is vested in the antithesis conflict. Inconsistency enriches existence, contradiction renews Creation, negation builds worlds, and denial deepens and expands consciousness'.
Rav Soloveitchik now challenges us to use our current, inner national conflicts to make us into a People of Destiny, and not simply a People of Fate.
Two examples of using inner conflict to bring about renewal in our personal lives
Rav Soloveitchik teaches us that to be human, to be created in the image of G-d, is thus to daily experience inner emotional-spiritual conflicts, paradoxes and incongruities. These are the raw materials of our life. Coping with these inner conflicts constitutes our divinely given freedom of choice. G-d challenges us to use his Torah and mitzvot to cope with these inner conflicts and build a life with increased, renewed existential meaning and purpose.
Two prominent examples the Rav repeatedly mentions are the process of repentance, and the process of mourning- building a meaningful life after the tragic loss of a dear one. In both cases the individual is initially distraught by inner feelings of defeat and helplessness.
And the Rav bluntly answers: Do not rely on metaphysical images of comfort, but 'get up and do the hard work of active coping'. Do not let yourself be submerged in painful inner conflicts, but use these conflicts to fuel a forward-looking growth in reestablishing a positive sense of direction and purpose and self-identity your life.
It is critical to note that a life affirming coping of repentance , marriage, and widowhood does not mean the end of coping with internal personal conflicts. Our personal inner conflicts will continue to exist. This is how G-d created us.
But successful coping with repentance, marriage and mourning means, "Yes we are still conflicted, but now our conflicts give us strength and renewal because we have used our relationship with G-d and his Torah to build an existential context in which our conflicts now occur in, and possess, lifelong purpose value, and meaning. Our inner conflicts are no longer unbearable, inexplainable inner turmoil. Using the Torah, we have transformed our inner conflicts to become constructive, 'redeemed' struggles that give positive structure and meaning to our lives.
In the Rav's terms, we have 'redeemed' (in Hebrew-geulah) our struggles. They have become struggles of a positive, purposeful personal Destiny, and are no longer born out of confusing struggles with chaotic Fate.
Similarly, the Rav calls on us to use our current national inner conflicts to strengthen our national self-identity as a People of Destiny
Given this distinction between a People of Fate or Destiny how does the Rav suggest that we cope with our current , very painful inner conflicts so that we continue in our identity as a People of Destiny?
He does not mean resolving our national conflicts by falling back on easy platitudes of middle of the road moderation, compromises that simply paper over differences, and joint meetings aimed at making the other side feel good and respected.
Rather, the Rav means that each of our ' tribal sectors' should really, constructively 'fight it out'. As taught above, Redemptive growth requires conflict. Each side should try in the most intelligent and eloquent way possible to argue his understandings of what best constitutes the general welfare of our Jewish state. This very real inner conflict of 'tribal dialogue' can include legal, non-violent political activism and street demonstrations. And both sides should try to present in objective manner their fears about the dangers of the others definitions of the general welfare.
But we should conduct our internal national conflicts in the context of sustaining the Israeli State as a People of Destiny and not a People of Fate.
The Rav teaches the distinction between a People of Destiny or a People of Fate as being:
"Fate in the life of a. …people signifies an existence of compulsion…the sense of a fate-laden existence of necessity (that) gives rise to historical loneliness (and historical helplessness)
"In contrast, the fate of destiny signifies a deliberate and conscious existence chosen out of free will. A life of destiny is a life with direction, it is the fruit of cognitive readiness and free choice…G-d awaits man and invites him to serve him (to be an active partner with him in determining our historical condition"
In practice this means that the the Rav is calling upon us to conduct our Here and Now arguments as a sub script in our three-thousand-year historical narrative. We must not get lost in Here and Now feelings of individual pain and worry. We must look, feel, and argue our Present conflicts with an overwhelming consciousness of our historical and religious connection to our Land, of our long, long exile, of the horrific tragedy of the Holocaust, of the heroic establishment of an sovereign Jewish State, of a miraculous series of military deterrence and victories, of our dynamic , impressive economic, social and cultural development, and , maybe most important, of the life -saving development and momentous increase of Torah observance and learning.
If both sides of our current 'tribal debate' argue their case with the above historic narrative in the center of their historical consciousness we will sustain ourselves as a People of Destiny. Our current confusion, worry, and sense of loss will be transformed into a renewed strengthening of our historical national self-identity and our Being as G-d's chosen People of Destiny.
Dr. Chaim C. Cohen, whose PhD. is from Hebrew U., is a social worker and teacher at the Hebrew Univ. School of Social Work, and Efrata College. He lives in Psagot, Binyamin.
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