Guest Column: May 5780 bring a renewed love of learning

Dara Lithwick leads a learning session during Limmud Ottawa, March 31, 2019.

Guest Column: May 5780 bring a renewed love of learning

By Dara Lithwick

The Jewish people are referred to as the “People of the Book,” but for many of us our formal Jewish education ended back in Hebrew school.

We know, from the Shema prayer that is recited twice daily, that we are commanded to teach our tradition to our children: “You shall teach them with your children, to speak with them, when you sit in your home, when you walk on the way, when you lie down and when you arise (Deuteronomy 11:19).”

American Rabbi Shmuly Yanklowitz frequently gets asked (from across the denominational spectrum), “Rabbi, how do I get my child (or grandchild) to love Judaism?” His answer is always the same: “You must love it!”

He explains, “The main reason that parents don’t engage their children in rigorous intellectual and spiritual Judaism is because they themselves aren’t being engaged in their own Jewish journeys.” Indeed, “meaningful Jewish experiences for adults have a profound and enduring effect on the psyche and will have a trickle-down effect to children.”

Judaism isn’t a tradition just for kids. Rather, it is a tradition focused on how to improve ourselves and the world by bringing God’s light into the world (think of the prophet Isaiah’s vision of the Jewish people serving as a light unto the nations). For thousands of years, Jews have struggled with how to do this. Our tradition is rich and nuanced, and eminently applicable to what is going on in our world and in our lives today. In the words of the sage Ben Bag-Bag, “Turn it [Torah] and turn it again, for all is in it; see through it; grow old and worn in it; do not budge from it, for there is nothing that works better than it (Pirkei Avot 5:22).”

Indeed, Judaism has survived and thrived over millennia because of its ongoing relevance. It is no wonder that we call the Torah an etz hayim (living tree), precisely because our ongoing engagement with Torah keeps both it, and us, alive, to face our 21st century human condition.

As we approach Simchat Torah, the celebration of the completion and beginning of a new cycle of Torah exploration, I invite us to take advantage of the myriad ways to dive into the wisdom of our tradition. Sign up for a weekly D’var Torah email, take a dip into the deep meanings of Talmud, try some Jewish meditation, explore social justice through Torah, engage in a Mussar workshop on Jewish ethics, explore Biblical stories through a contemporary lens, read up on Chasidism. There are many options online and here in Ottawa between our wonderful synagogues and at the Soloway Jewish Community Centre (SJCC). For example, I’ll be teaching “Foundations of Jewish Family Living” through the Florence Melton School of Adult Jewish Learning at the SJCC, where we’ll be probe complex and meaningful Torah stories from a multi-denomination perspective and with ways to bring the lessons home to the children in our lives.

As Rabbi Yanklowitz argues (and I agree), if we as parents find deep meaning in our tradition, there is no doubt that we’ll want our children to love Judaism as much as we do.

Wishing you and yours a wonderful 5780 filled with learning
and love.