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June 27, 2025 - 2 Tamuz 5785
Dear Friends, There are phrases and cliches that people offer regularly, as though they are wise adages or credos that they and others subscribe to. One of the many we've all heard throughout our lives is this one: "Love what you do and never work a day in your life." On the one hand, I certainly understand the sentiment behind the saying, that we should all be so fortunate to have a vocation in life that is meaningful and fulfilling. But on the other hand, I think there is an underlying premise to this that I fundamentally disagree with: that "work" is something negative, something to be minimized, as though "work" is the opposite of "happiness" or "contentment." There are echoes of this as well in the term we hear so often these days, of having a "work-life balance." Frankly, I reject the false dichotomy of the term. Jewish tradition, it seems, would agree with me. Pirke Avot, the Ethics of the Fathers, famously offers us a passage many of us grew up singing in our shuls: Al shlosha d'varim ha-olam omeid: al ha-Torah, v'al ha-avodah, v'al g'milut chasadim. "The world stands on three things: on Torah, on avodah, and acts of lovingkindness." You'd be right to point out that avodah here refers primarily to service of God, i.e. worship. But beyond meaning "service" or "worship," avodah, especially in modern Hebrew, means "work" or "labor." Rather than viewing work as something to be avoided, work, service, and labor, are all important parts of our lives. They give us a sense of purpose, direction, and meaning like few things can. We are only here on earth for so much time, and placing such a high value on work and service, as our tradition does, enables and empowers us to do all we can in that short while to have an impact, to make a difference in the world around us. Which is why a passage from this week's Parasha, Korach, stood out to me. Numbers 18:6-7 shares these words with us:
וַאֲנִ֗י הִנֵּ֤ה לָקַ֙חְתִּי֙ אֶת־אֲחֵיכֶ֣ם הַלְוִיִּ֔ם מִתּ֖וֹךְ בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל לָכֶ֞ם מַתָּנָ֤ה נְתֻנִים֙ לַֽיהֹוָ֔ה לַעֲבֹ֕ד אֶת־עֲבֹדַ֖ת אֹ֥הֶל מוֹעֵֽד׃
The translation I have in front of me reads as follows: "I hereby take your fellow Levite males from among the Israelites; they are assigned to you in dedication to the Eternal, to do the work of the Tent of Meeting; while you and your sons shall be careful to perform your priestly duties in everything pertaining to the altar and to what is behind the curtain. I make your priesthood a service of dedication." But a closer look at the Hebrew provides more support for my argument on behalf of Jewish tradition. The phrase translated as "dedication to the Eternal" is, in Hebrew, matanah n'tunim l'Adonai, literally a matanah, a gift, given exclusively to the Levites! La'avod at avodat ohel moed, to do the work or service of the Tent of Meeting, is a present bestowed upon them, and only them, by God! To engage in avodah, then, is to commit ourselves to work, labor, service, and worship. To engage in avodah is a unique human opportunity to offer our talents, passions, and skills, in the service of making the world a better place, and improving the lives of our family, friends, and all humankind. When we look at work in this regard, we can shift our perspective of it away from being a burden, an obstacle in the way of enjoyment of life, towards the idea of avodah being a gift, a chance to commit our time and energy towards something beyond ourselves, something beyond the present moment. Indeed, when we view avodah in such a way, we transform work and service from a burden into a matanah, a true gift bestowed upon us. May we strive to see our work in life, whatever it may be, as avodah, as service in support of something higher than just ourselves, and as a matanah, a gift given exclusively to humanity. Shabbat Shalom, Rabbi Joshua Strom
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