Studying.  All-nighters.  Cheesecake, pizza, and other dairy goodies.  Am I talking about college?  No.  (Well, maybe…)  Folks, tomorrow night marks the beginning of the holiday of Shavuot!  That’s right, the Jewish holiday where we commemorate the revelation at Mount Sinai and the giving of the Torah to the Jewish people.  Among other things, many Jews celebrate the day by engaging in all-night Torah study sessions (where’s my Red Bull?), eating delicious dairy meals (my vegetarian-inclined parents love that part), and reading the Book of Ruth.

This lovely article in the Jerusalem Post posits the Book of Ruth as “the book of Jewish kindness and compassion, especially toward those individuals who feel themselves weak and disadvantaged because of life and societal circumstances. This includes the widowed and the orphaned, the alien and the stranger, the poor and the otherwise hopeless.”  On a day when we immerse ourselves in the consumption of cheesecake and the study of Torah, we read the Book of Ruth – that wee little book way towards the back of the Tanakh - to remind ourselves that, in the end, Torah and Judaism are about compassion, kindness, and caring for others.

On May 17, Dr. Ellen Frankel, the CEO and Editor-in-Chief of the Jewish Publication Society, delivered the Commencement address for the Hornstein Program in Jewish Professional Leadership at Brandeis University (you can read the full text of the address here).  While she was specifically addressing graduates about to enter the field of Jewish communal service, I think that her message is rather universal.

[...] After much hard work of mind, heart, spirit and body, you have earned the right to call yourselves Jewish leadership professionals. You will now go forth into the world to lead Jewish communities who are much in need of your talents and skills, and who will greatly benefit from your efforts. The North American Jewish community is fortunate to have you as its newest leaders.

[...] But there is one member of your future community who may escape your notice, whose vulnerability is usually not recognized, yet whose welfare and resilience are critical to your success as a Jewish leader.  That person is you.  The rest of my brief remarks concern the inner life of a professional leader, especially a Jewish one.

Dr. Frankel then makes an interesting point – some of the people who are most often overlooked by Jewish communal workers are the Jewish communal workers themselves.  She notes that it is important for Jewish professionals to focus not only upon their professional objectives of bettering the community, but upon their inner personal lives as well.  She suggests that Jewish professionals should see their work not as work per se, but as a “vocation – literally, a calling.”  By realizing that they are engaged not in work, but in service, they can recognize that through their chosen career paths, they are instilling meaning in their lives.  But what exactly is “service”?  Dr. Frankel goes on to discuss the meaning of the Hebrew word for service: avodah.  After briefly explaining two potential definitions of avodah – slavery and work – she suggests that the most important meaning of avodah is worship, or holy service.

[...] During the time when the Temple stood in Jerusalem, avodah referred specifically to the sacrifices performed there by the priests. Once the Temple was destroyed in 70 CE, the sacrifices were replaced by prayer; avodah came to mean “worship.”  However, if words are truly meant to replace gifts of animals and grain, they need to represent a genuine sacrifice, the forfeit of something of personal value in exchange for being drawn closer to God, which is the literal meaning of korban, the Hebrew word for sacrifice.

But how can we give up something through our words? How can we sacrifice something so intangible? How can we make our work into “holy service”? What do we need to give up in order to serve a higher purpose in our lives?

Jewish tradition offers several wise answers to these questions. I’d like to conclude by sharing them with you. I invite you to carry these teachings with you as you take up your work in the world. They have stood me in good stead in my career and in my personal life.

The second century rabbinic anthology known as Pirke Avot, one of my favorite Jewish books, teaches that giving up something can be the key to gaining something even more precious. Rabbi Ben Zoma asks: “Who is wise?” And he answers: “The one who learns from everyone.” He goes on: “Who is strong?  The one who conquers his or her impulses. Who is honored? The one who honors others” (4:1). In other words, to be wise requires that we give up the pretense that we have all the answers, listening instead for other truths. To be strong requires that we sacrifice our willfulness, making room for the needs and desires of other people. To be honored requires that we subordinate our ego, acknowledging that we live in a community filled with people likewise created in the image of God.

To do these things is to engage in holy service.

[...] Consider your work as holy service, giving fully of yourself to a purpose greater than yourself, offering your talents, energy, intelligence, and commitment to those you serve. Much needs to be done to repair our troubled world. There are many broken hearts and spirits in need of mending. Our community is now particularly hurting from economic losses and betrayals. Each one of you can make a genuine difference – if you engage in holy service.

[...] Each of you has something precious to offer the world, a great gift that is only yours to give. Give it wholeheartedly but don’t forget to enjoy the fruits of your labor: wisdom, strength, and honor. Don’t forget that you, too, belong to the community you serve.

-Naomi