Dear Members and Friends of Congregation Beth Sholom, this is my Rosh Hashanah Sermon,

 

      

One of the greatest gifts that Judaism has given to the world is the innovation of Monotheism. I have always found it strange that we can innovate theological concepts. Afterall if Adonai is the ineffable creator God as Genesis suggests then it’s impossible to invent something new out of God. But humanity is quite effable and much like scientists are discovering new things in our environment, so are people discovering new things about God.

 

Even as our belief travels along the distance of time itself until it reaches the creation of our universe, it still needed to be discovered by people. And as time famously moves linearly forward there must be theological concepts out there still not discovered. Monotheism didn’t just subvert the industry of ancient theology, it opened up the field for deeper discovery.

 

In our own tradition monotheism becomes consecrated through the sacred words of the Shema. Hear O’ Israel, says Moses to the Israelites, Adonai is our God, Adonai is one.

 

This perfectly simple moment, a declaration of the singular belief of a universal higher power, is completely derailed by a translation problem. This problem occurs with the translation of the last sentence: Adonai is one. At first it seems pretty straight forward, Adonai is one, sounds like a clear-cut translation. And yet the Rabbinic and scholarly comments on this two-word sentence is endless. Aha you may be saying to yourself, after all Adonai is one, is a three-word sentence. I’ll tell you; I wish this was just a problem with my counting. Alas my counting skills, at least up to 3 are pretty good. The problem, is that Hebrew does not need an “is.” Certainly, Hebrew has a “To Be” verb, often referred to as a copula for all you grammar nerds out there, but Hebrew just doesn’t find it all that necessary. Countless Hebrew sentences can be made with nary a copula to be found and the Shema is no exception. 
 

The question that most commentators ancient and modern alike are trying to answer is; what does an “is” do to a declaration of Monotheism? Allow me to offer you an example. In the 1917 official Reform Biblical translation, AKA the Old Jewish Publication Society or the OJPS, the translation of the Shema goes like this: “Hear O Israel: The Lord our God, The Lord is one.” And I apologize for the gendered language. I’m trying to be faithful to original translation.

 

Now let’s compare that to the 1985 version called the New Jewish Publication Society Translation also referred to as the NJPS: “Hear O Israel, The Lord is our God, The Lord alone.”

Hear the difference? I’ll repeat it, Old version: The Lord our God, The Lord is one. New version: The Lord is our God, The Lord Alone.  Fascinating that in 68 years a timeless and enduring declaration changed in the Reform movement’s official translation of the Shema.

 

Now as Jews any minute change in our understanding of theology is worthy of great debate because we love to argue. Let me tell you our commentators are a rowdy bunch when it comes to the Shema. So, allow me to explain why this issue is bigger than an “is”.

 

Whether God is one or God alone it continues to be a statement supportive of Monotheism. But the problem that all the commentators are having is whether this statement acknowledges the existence of other gods. For example, Scholar and commentator of the Jewish Study Bible, Bernard Levinson, writes, “The verse makes not a quantitative argument about the number of deities but a qualitative one, about the nature of the relationship between God and Israel.” Thus Bernard Levinson is a supporter of the New translation that says, Adonai Alone.

 

Exclusive Monotheism, the kind of Monotheism that we celebrate today, is actually one of many different kinds of Monotheism. If you have ever experienced my Judaism 101 class on God, you may remember that I list quite a few different versions of Monotheisms. The Israelites who at the time of their wandering around the Sinai, were relatively new at worshipping one God. So they were not considered to be exclusive monotheists, but in fact were Monolatrists. Monolatrism is the belief of one god with the understanding that there are other gods out there, just not worthy of worship.

 

Thus Professor Bernard Levinson’s quote now might make more sense. What he is suggesting is that the Israelites weren’t declaring that only one God exists when Moses presented them with the Shema, but that there was only one God worthy of worship. Thus, to some the Shema is not that statement that says there are no other gods, but a statement that says Adonai is the God that we choose to worship.

 

Furthermore, Adonai chooses us. This is the point that Rashi brings forth, who is by the way, an Adonai alone man. Rashi, an 11^th century Torah scholar, and considered the MVP of ancient commentators, states, “Adonai, who is now our God and not the God of the other nations, Adonai alone will in the future be God.” Rashi than furthers his point by quoting Zechariah 14:9 which states, “In that day there shall be one God with one name.” Rashi here suggests that the Shema is more than just about relationships but is also about exclusive access. We agree to worship just Adonai and Adonai agrees not to be the God of others nations. Which by the way is a thing, for example we know that the Edomites and possibly some Medianites were Adonai worshippers.

 

Nachmanides 13^th century Torah scholar and famous critique of Rashi, unsurprisingly takes contrarian route and plants his flag as a Adonai is One man. He writes, “This is a refutation of the heretics who claim there are two divine powers.” Nachmanides sees this as a quantitative statement. The Shema is a rejection of the existence of other gods.

 

Essentially all scholars whether ancient or modern argue on whether it’s Adonai alone or Adonai is one. My point here is even a slam dunk innovation like Monotheism becomes a source of argument in our tradition. The fact that our scholars cannot agree on this means there is so much more to understand. So much more to discover. Judaism didn’t just invent Monotheism out of nowhere, but slowly, methodically, with much arguing came to Monotheism, and did not stop. Going as far as pondering how an “is” can change our understanding of theology.

 

I happen to believe that it’s our responsibility to discover new ways to think about Monotheism as we rush past modernity and enter a post Covid world. It’s our job as Jews to reflect where we find Adonai’s relevance in our lives. So, I would like to present to you my personal translation of the Shema, and it goes like this: Take head Israel that Adonai is Our God, Adonai is lonely. At face value, you may think that I am suggesting that God is lonely because not enough Jews are coming to shul. That’s a fine take away if it guilts people to come to services more often. But, I happen to believe that Covid showed us what true loneliness looks like. Isolation, Quarantining, and masking are all necessary to survive this pandemic, but the cost was great, and we continue to pay. Thus, Adonai is experiencing loneliness because we are experiencing loneliness.

 

Just like Monotheism the Shema has evolved over time. At first it was a declaration that no other gods are worthy of worship, then it became a statement consecrating our relationship with Adonai and now I believe it’s an expression of empathy. It’s ok to admit that we are lonely. Whether it is fear, social anxiety, exhaustion, or a busy schedule driving this loneliness.

 

I may be a bit biased here, but I happen to be believe faith communities, like Judaism, is the salve to sooths loneliness’s wounds.  I believe that relationships are the sacred connections that make up a community. While these connections were damaged during Covid, Judaism offers the fastest and healthiest ways to reconnect. In this, I believe is our next understanding of Monotheism. It started from believing in one God out of many and has culminating into believing in the bonds that connect our community as a community of faith. This is a lesson we learned from Covid.

 

Covid changed us. It changed our relationship with technology. It changed our relationship with information. It changed our relationship with each other. It changed our relationship within ourselves. Many of these changes were not positive. Most changes are mourned. For those of us seeking meaning from these changes, I’m glad that you are here worshipping with our community. Because Monotheism isn’t just an individual’s relationship with Adonai, it’s a community’s relationship with each other. It’s place where we can feel safe to take a chance at mending those lonely feelings. It’s a home to heal from our fears, our insecurities, and our anger. It’s a house of mourning that helps us grieve what we have lost from Covid.

 

The pandemic changed my theology, The pandemic changed the way I experience monotheism. It changed the way I look at the Shema. While that change is hard, it’s not necessarily bad. Especially when I have so many people here to support each other among these changes. So, as we move further into a post covid world. I encourage you to come here, participate in our events, volunteer for this community, and help yourself and support others as we learn together what our world looks like in a post Covid. Thank you.

 

 

Rabbi Abram Goodstein