Shabbat...again

This past Shabbat, I, along with a bunch of other UCT students (a few of whom are studying abroad) spent Shabbat in a suburb called Claremont with the family of the campus Rabbi who is also one of the Rabbis of the community shul, Rabbi Steele (not only is he really cool, but he has perhaps the best Jewish super hero name since Shalomman). Once again, it was wonderful to see the structure of an entirely different community and observe how it functions. The population is larger than the ones I have come across thus far but predominantly older (the group of us definitely brought down the average age by a few years). While the community has good numbers, it seems as though in 10-15 years, there may not be too many left which once again speaks to the predicament of the Cape Town Jewish community.

The Rabbi’s speech on Friday night was very interesting and inspiring to me personally until he arrived at his conclusion. He discussed the controversy surrounding the ministry of education’s decision to require a pledge of allegiance to South Africa to be said by all school children. The pledge discusses the responsibility for each citizen to remember the past injustices of their country and to accept the responsibility to prevent such things from happening in the future. For various reasons, this decision has been widely opposed by South Africans. The Rabbi said that he believed this was a very important idea for citizens to internalize for it furthers many important Jewish ideals that surround the responsibility we should all feel toward one another. I very much appreciated the simultaneous religious and universal flavor of his position.

He then decided to discuss what a Jewish pledge of allegiance might be. Based on his speech at that point, I was quite interested and excited to hear his suggestion. Proposing a slew of possible verse from the Torah that are rather well-known and important, he decided upon “Na’aseh V’nishmah” – we will do and we will listen, a phrase uttered in a recent Torah portion by the Jewish people in response to receiving the Torah. The Rabbi said that this verse is one that encapsulates the faith and trust that each Jew shall have in God. As a result of such a strong faith that does not even require understanding until after various deeds and commandments have already been adopted, the Jewish people will then lead righteous paths.

I was rather bewildered by his decision. To me it seemed as though the theme of his first half of his sermon was responsibility to one another. To then pick a phrase to define our entire faith that seems to preach allegiance to God rather than to each other was perplexing. Now I realize that these two forms of commitment are by no means mutually exclusive, however, due to this weeks portion which told the story of the sin of the Golden Calf, it seemed to me that the words Na’aseh V’nishmah do not at all indicate the full understanding of what is right in the way the Rabbi had described. Yes, I believe that the words of the Torah do allow us to live better, more righteous lives, but I also think that in order to fully reap the benefits of this text, we must understand why it allows us to do so. I would say that the Torah acts as a blueprint for how to live a meaningful life because it teaches us to be extremely aware of our actions, namely how we treat one and another. I have personally always had an issue with the phrase Na’aseh V’nishmah because it belittles the importance of the reasons behind our actions. While I believe it is important to exercise my faith in God, I also feel as though acknowledging this importance is only possible once I know why I am participating in a certain act. Thus, I would propose a different pledge that I would personally live by and that is the verse from the book of Mishlei that is carved into my Hadaiah necklace: Pales me’agel radlecha v’kol darcecha yokeinu – consider the path of your feet and all of your paths will be established. At least for myself, trust in God is not enough of a reason to do something, rather such motivation requires an understanding of how I can be a better person which will then subsequently solidify my faith.

I feel like I have been “considering the path of my feet” a lot lately, in a variety of ways. I often find myself caught up in thoughts of my past life here. I don’t think this is at all a product of homesickness because I am so glad to be here and I know that ultimately this experience will be rather significant in my personal development. Being in a new place with few links to what I am accustomed to is forcing me to analyze so many situations from afar from a new perspective. Because of that, I have started to realize that being in South Africa has become an extremely necessary, individual experience. While I have met wonderful people and have had amazing group experiences, ultimately I am here to understand myself and the decisions I have made. I do not quite know how to say this without sounding so cliché, but being rootless has provided me with the luxury to analyze the roots that have temporarily stopped growing. Though I have been here for a month, who I am is an enigma to those around me, which has forced me to uncover that mystery for myself since no one is present to do it for me. I like that. While at times, this forced-independence is a hard reality to swallow, it has and will continue to produce a large
amount of personal growth.

South African Ulpan:

Here are the two most commonly used terms in South Africa that exist within America but have more weight in this country:

Shame – This is said in response to anything to any degree of negative happening. For example if someone fails their driver’s test, an appropriate response to such an event would be “shame.”

If someone fails their driver’s test two times after the first test, a higher level of sympathy can be granted by adding an “uch” to the phrase – “uch..shame.”

Hectic – adjective - This is the rough equivalent of “crazy” in America. It is said in relationship to anything. A hard test can be hectic. A crowded dance club can be hectic. A complex philosophical idea can be hectic… I think.

Cheers!