Words of Faith: God makes space – use it well!

At a Bar Mitzvah, the lay leader of Temple Solel and I introduced ourselves as just that; lay leaders, not rabbis. We are volunteers who create and lead worship services. We do this to fill the religious leadership space at Temple Solel. We read and research, talking with rabbis and others to learn.

The same goes for many other congregations, no matter the denomination or size.

For Jews, any learned volunteer can lead a service if a rabbi is not available. A rabbi is a Jewish scholar or teacher. Rabbis lead services, conduct marriages and conversions, and generally interpret Jewish laws and customs. A rabbi is someone who chose to invest a lot of time and education, learning the history, customs and laws of Judaism.

And, just as there are colleges and seminaries for Christian ministers and priests, there are colleges for rabbis. Most rabbinical programs are four to five years, with time spent in Israel, and are quite rigorous. It’s pretty much like getting your master’s and doctorate degrees.

Recently, I sat in on classes for the rabbinical program at Hebrew Union College. One of the classes was philosophy. The class had a mix of ages, including folks straight from under-graduate school and nearly as many “physically mature” students. I was struck by the curiosity and confidence of all of them. They came into the class discussing their homework, comparing notes and readings.

The topic was Tzimzum, or contraction. It is an expansion on the statement “When God began to create Heaven and Earth…” which are the first words of the Jewish Publication Society’s translation of the Holy Scriptures from Hebrew directly into modern English. The class was examining writings and ideas of just what might have gone on as God began to create heaven and earth. Tzimzum translates from Hebrew as “contraction” or withdrawal.

It’s the idea that God contracted a bit of His presence to allow for the creation of worlds.

He pulled back, to put into motion the things that led to human existence. This idea was first put forth not by these students, but by a rabbi in the 16th century, Isaac Luria, who lived in Jerusalem and Egypt.

Tzimzum does not imply that God completely left, just that there was that withdrawal to create space for something else. It’s a fascinating concept. God pulled back a bit to make a space for humans – you and me – to become more, independently. The idea is that some glimmer of His presence still vibrates and thrives in each of us.

It seems a little parent-like, doesn’t it? Hanging back slightly as your child takes her first steps, first bike ride without training wheels, or first solo errand in the car after getting a driver’s license. Standing back and letting your child fly free, hopefully making good choices.

This idea of contraction fits with that old quote, “Nature abhors a vacuum.” As God created a space and then, we filled it. That space has seen both marvelous and horrific events. But it is our space, perhaps linked to God when we reach back, up or out to find that Divine Presence and what it means to us. That reaching is choice, not an expectation.

And how do we fill this space ceded to us? Do we fill it with our best efforts, or our “just sort of good enough”? Do we make time for charitable acts, large or small, or instead invest hours in Facebook, Liking the activities of others?

That freedom to fill our time is such a gift. It may not be wrapped in pretty paper and ribbons, and it does not take up space on a shelf. It just takes remembering that life and whatever we do with it is a gift from God. And what we do with that gift matters.

This story was originally published June 2, 2016 at 7:14 PM with the headline "Words of Faith: God makes space – use it well!."