Do unto others....

Afraid of the fray... Always... but....

Peace is an important goal. The process or the path or means to peace is also important. SO what instruction may we find in our traditions? I am thinking about the wisdom of our Sages. I am thinking about Rabbi Hillel. Below is one of the wonderful little stories of our People:

"Love of man was considered by Hillel as the kernel of the entire Jewish teaching. When a gentile who wished to become a Jew asked him for a summary of the Jewish religion in the most concise terms ("while standing on one foot"), Hillel said: "What is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow: this is the whole Law; the rest is the explanation; go and learn" (Shab. 31a). With these words Hillel recognized as the fundamental principle of the Jewish moral law the Biblical precept of brotherly love (Lev. xix. 18)." (from wikipedia.com since it was easy to find and copy it into this email.)

This is a most important point, I think and believe. I have long thought that Hillel's restatement of the Torah assertion:

"You must love your neighbor as [you love] yourself. I am God. "

was a wise way of looking at what seems to be the same thing.

The Torah's POSITIVE stating of how to treat your neighbor has a certain poetic attraction. However, love is a very challenging emotion and set of actions. Love not reciprocated can lead to severe and terrible consequences. It can lead to behaviors which are harmful (such as obssessing or becoming overbearing or controlling, etc.) On the other hand --- what harm can happen if we behave without hate? We can know what we do not like and what is therefore hateful to ourselves. Hillel tells us to behave so as to not do such hateful things to others. Hillel is showing us how not to harm anyone. Where there is no hate than there can be love. A prerequisite to love is the absence of hate. A prerequisite to peace is the absence of hate, too. Hillel is sure that there is a lot more to us and our Torah and our Jewishness than simply acting with care and consideration so as to do no harm.... BUT first do no harm and then do the significant work to learn about ourselves and other people and what is hateful and loveable and what is needed and wanted. Study more Torah.

To all this I end with a long and hearfelt SIGH - knowing that some people say that there is nothing better than a heartfelt sigh.

AAAaaaaahhhhhh........