Shabbat Shalom!

The portion this week concerns the laws regarding the sanctuary. It says in Verse 20:

“And thou shalt command the children of Israel that they bring unto thee pure olive oil beaten for the light, to cause a lamp to burn continually.”

The eternal light in the sanctuary is represented by the Ner Tamid in the synagogue. The Rabbis interpret this light as a symbol of the Jewish people, whose mission it is to become “a light onto the nations.” This idea is usually referred to as the “chosen people.”

What should we think of this concept? In one sense we are, indeed, the chosen people, for Judaism has given birth to the two other major religions in the west - Christianity and Islam. But in a more important sense we have not been influential, for the Jewish ideas of compassion and moderation have hardly influenced the west. Witness the horrors of the 20th Century.

Some Jewish thinkers, including Mordechai Kaplan, do not like the concept of the “chosen people” because they believe that it implies that Jews think of themselves as superior, as people who can enlighten others and not as people who can be enlightened by others. Kaplan, for example, argues that all people are chosen. All people have an obligation to perfect the world (tikkun olom). I believe that there is some merit in this view.

And when we seek to perfect the world and ourselves we ought to recognize that some values of Judaism are useful for the modern world and some are not. The idea of resting one day a week, of not shopping that day, of spending the day with our family and renewing our mind and body is useful for us and for others. In contrast, the biblical idea that homosexuality is an abomination is something I believe we ought to reject.

Thus, perhaps, it is acceptable to attempt to be “a light onto the nations”, but as Jews we ought to pursue only those values which will clearly lead to a better world.