With the incapacitation of its Prime Minister, Israel is undergoing uncertain times. In common with synagogues all over the world, when the seriousness of Ariel Sharon’s condition became known, we sent out an e-mail calling for a prayer gathering and urging those who could not attend to pray independently for Israel and Mr. Sharon’s recovery. Some of the recipients of that e-mail replied saying that they would pray for him.
Other responses however disturbed me. One came from a very well meaning individual who asked “Why should we pray for him? Do you not remember what he did to our brothers in the Gaza Strip. And its still not over – most of our brothers are still homeless. What can I say? I just don’t feel sorry for him.”
Another response asked me whether my desire to pray for the Israeli Prime Minister’s recovery meant that I supported the “disengagement” policy.
Now any reader of my weekly column knows that I was vociferously opposed to the Gaza evacuation and the so-called disengagement plan. Indeed I wrote impassioned articles about these both before and after the pullout However this does not mean that when the Prime Minister of Israel is ill I should not feel his pain and have a desire to do my bit – pray – to help him recover.
Let me explain with the following story. There were two well-known Chassidic Jews who fiercely disagreed with each other’s approach to certain Chassidic practices. One on them spoke passionately about the error of the other’s ways. During the dispute they both celebrated the engagement of a child, and upon meeting each other in the street they exchanged greetings and hugged each
other warmly. The students of one of them asked how they were able to show such warmth to each other when they disagreed so strongly on fundamental issues. . His reply was both profound and moving: “One has to differentiate between the Cheftza (object) and the Gavrah (person),” he said (1).
This type of approach to inter-human relationships stems from the ability to see the deeper reality of existence. To most of us the world is one- dimensional – all we perceive is the material outer crust of life. Mystics and those who practise meditation see the world on multiple levels – they sense the divinity inherent in everything. They perceive human beings in this way too. Thus, although all humans have failings and at times those flaws can seriously impact on the lives of others, they are able to see other humans on the soul level – as pure and divine. On this soul level, since each individual is created in the image of God, all people are equal and connected. We can take inspiration from this and
endeavour to see others in this way too.
Indeed I opposed and continue to oppose any expulsion of Jews from their homes or from their land: throughout history we as a people have experienced too much of that. I also completely disagree with the highly dangerous disengagement policy, the inherent logic of which baffles me. Once again, I have
elaborated on these points in previous articles.
However, when we are not dealing with policy issues, but with the life of a fellow human being, we need to be able to distinguish between the Cheftza – policy, however ill conceived, and the Gavrah – the person who is made in the Divine image. May God grant Prime Minister Sharon, together with all others who may need it, a speedy and full recovery.
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(1) This answer was a play on terminology used in advanced Talmudic logic. The word Cheftza means ‘object’ and Gavrah translates as ‘person’. A Talmudic example of its usage is found regarding the searching for Chametz (leavened food) prior to the festival of Passover. One set of Talmudic logicians maintain that the obligation to search for the Chametz has to do with the fact that Chametz is known to exist (Cheftza – object) and therefore must be found. Others hold that the individual (Gavrah – person) has an obligation to search for Chametz before the onset of the holiday irrespective of whether it “exists” or not. The practical difference between the two opinions would be if the individual sold his Chametz ful house before Passover – according to one view the ritual searching would not need to be carried out because he has no Chametz (Cheftza) and according to the other it nonetheless has to be done because the person (Gavra) is obligated with the ritual See Shulcha Aruch, Orech Chayim: 436 and it commentaries.