Shabbat Bereshit

Written by Richard Jacobi Tuesday, 17 October 2006

Progressive Halakhah has been a much written about topic in recent years. Our own Rabbis John Rayner and Louis Jacobs, z”l, have contributed much to the topic, as I learned when writing my Personal Theology assignment last summer. In comparison, Progressive Midrash is a neglected topic as far as I’m aware. The following attempt at something resembling a poem may be a small contribution to filling this gap. In this Progressive Midrash, I'm going to combine some classical beads from Biblical texts with some references from other sources, adding different colours and textures to the string, but hopefully helping to make the journey.

"And God saw everything that was created and behold, it was very good" (Genesis 1:31)

Student Rabbi Baginsky opened:

"They sing to the music of timbrel and lute, and revel to the tune of the pipe" (Job 21:12) Yet we cannot rejoice during our Monday shacharit, for Student Rabbi Eli has gone far away from here and there is no-one to lead us in song. Too many of us are asking of our shacharit:

"What is Shaddai that we should serve God? What will we gain by praying to Shaddai?" (Job 21:15).

For I love coming to Shacharit, yet others do not attend:  

"Their happiness is not their own doing. The thoughts of the wicked are beyond me" (ibid: 16).

Rabbi Shire said in the name of others that in earlier days Shacharit had become:

"my beloved among the youths" (Song of Songs 2:3), indeed, they had made it:

"Like an apple tree among trees of the forest" (ibid). Shacharit had indeed included

"hearing the spirit of the Eternal God wandering about in the garden at the windy time of day. (Genesis 3:8)

We sat and debated the ins and outs of Shacharit for Leo Baeck College for a few minutes again last Thursday, for the nth time in my three and a bit years at this College. Old arguments were rehearsed and, to my perception, having just concluded Sukkot and read its related megillah:

There is nothing new beneath the sun! (Eccles 1:9)

Yet, there is a new era beginning here and, as we begin a new Torah cycle, we are settling down to the first semester of this era now that the chagim are over. We know that our new Principal has to familiarise himself with the organisation, he has to acquaint himself with what exists, as it says:

"They went up and scouted the land..." (Numbers 13:21).

"Small is beautiful", as E.F. Schumacher told us in 1973 and his principles of economics as if people mattered are relevant to us here today. We will never be the size of an HUC or JTS, but we can be brilliant and unique in the world of rabbinic formation. I am passionate about the enormous potential in this College to create in each of us the best rabbi we can become.

And God said: Let there be light and there was light. (Genesis 1:3) The word was itself a creative act, because it was a delivered promise. We need this type of creation here, where the word can be relied upon.

Psalm 8:4 What are mere mortals that you should think about them, human beings that you should care for them?

This might mean Soloveitchik's first and second Adam, the mortal seeking to:

"fill the earth and subdue it"(Gen 1:28) and the human being placed in the garden in order:

"to till it and tend it" (Gen 2:15). In both these aspects, we students need to develop and grow here at LBC. The first Adam needs the rabbinic programme

to put the world at their feet (Psalms 8:7).
Which brings me back to this sacred space to which we lonely people of faith come every so often. As Soloveitchik puts it, but rendered inclusively: 'Only when we rise to the heights of freedom of action and creativity of mind do we begin to implement the mandate of dignified responibility entrusted to us by our Maker' (Lonely Man of Faith p.16).
Here, in this space, we aspire to experiment, explore, learn, develop, go wrong, speak freely, listen attentively, participate, support, make, sing, paint, draw, be silent, be loud, simply be, not bereishit bara, but beshacharit bara. In these ways, we may become partners in creation each Monday morning and in the work of improving this College - and we can join with God in affirming everything that is created:

Richard Jacobi
4th year Rabbinic Student