Transcript:
Well, hello, this is Heather and I have been learning about Judaism in the 21st century, since this is something I don't have a lot of experience with. I have quickly come to really enjoy a podcast called Judaism Unbound. I've listened to several episodes and there's always something wonderful that I take away with me.
Today I listened to an episode about the holiday of Shavuot, and one of the speakers on the podcast used a phrase that sent shivers up and down my spine. What she said were these words:
Being part of the all.
Being part of the all. And when she said this, she was talking about the very traditional idea that all people connected with Judaism were present at Mount Sinai when God handed down the law to Moses. And it's a beautiful idea. The idea resonated powerfully for me all on its own, but there's something more to it that really made it seem special. And that's that the all doesn't need to be all Jewish people or even all people, and it doesn't have to be all people alive at that time or all people alive ever.
It is the entire universe.
It is, it is God, or the Divine One or Divinity, however you are most comfortable expressing that. Being part of the all means that we are part of the fabric of of reality and maybe even of unreality.
We are, we are part of something so much bigger than we are that we can't even imagine. And what's more, I noticed that the words were not being a part of the all. It's not that we are separate individual beings with crisp boundaries and that are apart from each other, but it is in fact that we are connected with all that is. We are connected with the humans who were at Mount Sinai, and we are connected with all other humans, past, present, and future. And we're connected with the stars and the planets and moons. And we are, it is like we are a drop of water in a lake or a grain of sand on the beach, that we do have some separateness but we are also immersed in the all. So when we are part of the all, and not a part of the all, then there's more to us than our separateness. It is our connection with the all that gives us life and light and vitality.
And so, I encourage you over the next days and weeks to maybe reflect on this phrase, some more.
Being part of the all.
And may you be part of all light, and all life, all kindness, and love. All everything, in the days and weeks to come.
Thank you for listening.
