When
Chaim of Zanz was a young man, he set out to change the world. But, when he reached the age of forty, he
looked around and saw that the world remained unchanged. So he said, “Perhaps I
was too ambitious. I will begin with my country.” But at the age of fifty, his country too
remained unchanged. So he said, “I was
still too ambitious. From now on I will
only try to lift up my community.” But
at sixty he saw that his community still remained the same. So he decided to change his own family. But when he looked around, he saw that his
family had grown and moved away, and now he remained alone. “Now I understand that I needed to begin with
myself.” So he spent the rest of his
life perfecting his own soul.[i]
Chaim of
Zanz was a Hasidic Master. He wrote
brilliant books on Jewish Law, commentary about the Bible, which were read by
those in his day. He began a Hasidic
Dynasty, which attracted hundreds if not thousands of followers and
students. He had a deep impact on an
entire generation; developing a community that grew in its commitment to Torah and
caring for one another. Chaim of Zanz
could have described his impact on the world around him, the impact we have on
the world around us, yet his most famous story expresses an entirely different
ideal.
After a
long life, Chaim of Zanz recognized that change sometimes comes slowly. The Rabbi encountered many hurdles as he attempted
to make true transformation in his world.
Overtime, he rightly became quite discouraged that the change he hoped
for, didn’t happen. After decades of
trying, he learned this lesson: he might not be able to repair his world, he
might not be able to change his community, he might not be able to uplift his family,
but he could transform himself. Each of
us has the ability to perfect our own soul; to begin that process of
self-transformation. The crux of his
story: we can’t begin to change the world, unless we first begin to change
ourselves.
A similar
sentiment is found in this week’s Torah portion. After chapter upon chapter which discusses, holiday
upon holiday, our Torah portion, Shoftim, changes direction to address justice
and the rule of law! Our Torah portion
begins with these words: “You shall appoint judges and officials for your
tribes in all of the settlements” (Deuteronomy 16:18). Of course our country should have judges and
officials who can judge and rule with impartiality. In order for justice to occur, we must have
the rule of law.
But, there
is something unique about this first line of our Torah portion! The rabbis notice that there is an extra word
found in this sentence; the word “Lecha” meaning “for yourself”! According to tradition, every word in the Torah
is there for a reason, no word is written there by mistake or for no
purpose! However, this word, “Lecha” –
meaning “for yourself” is unnecessary, it’s not needed for the sentence to make
sense. We are told that we need to
appoint judges… why do we need to appoint judges “for yourself"?
The
Chasidic rabbis later teach that “Lecha” – “for yourself” reminds us that we
must begin with ourselves. We judge
ourselves before we judge others! This extra
word serves as exclamation point, reminding us of how easy it is to sit upon
our high horse and judge others for behaviors we’d condone in ourselves! How easy it is to be lenient with ourselves,
but be harsh with others!
The
Chasidic Rabbi[ii]
remind us: We must use the same yardstick to judge ourselves that we use to
judge other! Our goal is not to compare
ourselves to others, but instead to assess ourselves, to understand how we
measure up!
This is
our season of assessment, our season of measuring ourselves. These few weeks of Elul, are a time of preparation,
a time of accounting for our mistakes. Transformation
doesn’t occur in one day, we need weeks to truly make change! We need time for contemplation,
self-assessment, and reflection, in order to make the changes in our lives that
will lead to self-growth and healing.
Long ago,
Chaim of Zanz taught that for true change to occur, we must first begin with
ourselves! The Torah takes this a step
further, not only is change difficult, but searching inward at our very being
is excruciating difficult. It’s much
easier to judge others than to judge ourselves.
It’s much easier to demand perfection of those that surround us, and
give ourselves a pass. No one ever said
that Judaism was easy, during these next few weeks, we’re asked to step-up to the
challenge. To look inward, to give a
true accounting of ourselves, to be brutally honest in our self-assessment
because only when we are honest and forthright with ourselves, can we truly
begin that path towards transformation and change!
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