Dear Friends,
We are all descended from Adam, the first human being. All of us!
Why?
A teaching in the Mishnah, our first extra-biblical code of Jewish law, explains: “The single human being was first created for the sake of peace in the human race, so that no one might say to another, ‘My ancestor was greater than yours.’” (M. Sanh 4:5)
And, thus, we all came from the first human being. Talmud wisely knew that humans could – or would – claim greater authority, or priority, or power through the claim of coming first, or due to the might or significance of their progenitor. By uniting us all through a common source, we cannot claim to be better than the other.
But, some do. We all have seen it, and we know that many claim ethnic or racial primacy at the expense of another, by claiming such greatness, against which the Talmud sought to forefend.
Claiming greatness – not even bearing it – undermines the potential of all parties. It wrongly elevates one while sadly diminishing another. And, it is difficult to defeat in argument. Commonly, the claim of one’s greatness is not founded on arguable terms; it is self-asserted self-aggrandizement. Rationality is silent against such assertions. Thus, boasting too often silences reality. The only defense is knowing what the Talmud knew: we all came from Adam, and none is truly any better than the next.
Therefore, this week as we return Torah to the beginning of Genesis, it is time to humbly recognize our common origins, and in so doing, not only chop ourselves down a notch, but to thoughtfully and devotedly elevate every other soul!
Nice to be related! To Adam, and to you!
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Douglas Kohn
We are all descended from Adam, the first human being. All of us!
Why?
A teaching in the Mishnah, our first extra-biblical code of Jewish law, explains: “The single human being was first created for the sake of peace in the human race, so that no one might say to another, ‘My ancestor was greater than yours.’” (M. Sanh 4:5)
And, thus, we all came from the first human being. Talmud wisely knew that humans could – or would – claim greater authority, or priority, or power through the claim of coming first, or due to the might or significance of their progenitor. By uniting us all through a common source, we cannot claim to be better than the other.
But, some do. We all have seen it, and we know that many claim ethnic or racial primacy at the expense of another, by claiming such greatness, against which the Talmud sought to forefend.
Claiming greatness – not even bearing it – undermines the potential of all parties. It wrongly elevates one while sadly diminishing another. And, it is difficult to defeat in argument. Commonly, the claim of one’s greatness is not founded on arguable terms; it is self-asserted self-aggrandizement. Rationality is silent against such assertions. Thus, boasting too often silences reality. The only defense is knowing what the Talmud knew: we all came from Adam, and none is truly any better than the next.
Therefore, this week as we return Torah to the beginning of Genesis, it is time to humbly recognize our common origins, and in so doing, not only chop ourselves down a notch, but to thoughtfully and devotedly elevate every other soul!
Nice to be related! To Adam, and to you!
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Douglas Kohn
