Rabbinic Reflections: Issue 97

February 4, 2022 (3 Adar I 5782)

Lessons from a Legend

Dear Friends,

I hope this correspondence finds you well and in good health. We hope you will be able to join us for our hybrid services, this Shabbat morning at 10:30am, which will be held in our sanctuary and over our regular Zoom prayer link.

Also, please join us on the following two Monday evenings, February 7th and 14th, at 8PM, as we begin a new program called Amazing Authors. This Monday, we will meet Allen Lieberman, who is author of We Want Mashgiach Now: Tales From A Kosher Cop, which gives an insider’s look at what it's like to be a supervisor in the Kosher food business, while introducing us to a psycho chef, a crazed sushi-cook and other colorful characters. It’s a hysterical book and you don’t need to have read it to enjoy the program, so please join us. Please see below for more details.

This past week, the sports world was rocked by the announcement of the retirement of Tom Brady, who excelled as the quarterback of the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Brady, at age 44, led the league this year in numerous statistical categories, including most passing yards and most touchdown passes. Perhaps most remarkable is his ability to have kept playing on an extraordinary level, well past the age at which most quarterbacks begin to decline. Having led his teams to ten Super Bowl appearances and 18 AFC championship games, I have always taught my students, “Never bet against Brady!”

Now, you may ask why I would even be talking about Brady at a Jewish high school, so allow me to share some quotes from ESPN reporters and connect those “lessons from the legend” that resonate with Jewish philosophy!

• Lesson One: Adapting to Change

  Several years ago, Brady wanted to guard against the diminishing arm strength that dooms most quarterbacks as they age, so he devised a plan with his trainer to rebuild his motion and emphasize using more of his torso to drive the ball down the field. It revitalized his ability to throw deep. Similarly, we can ask, is our Jewish journey stagnant? Do we adapt to new challenges and opportunities? When we notice our prayers become too robotic, do we strategize how to make davening more meaningful? If a pocket of time opens up, do we fill it with a new mitzvah or study? Do we have a “spiritual trainer” we feel comfortable talking to?

• Lesson Two: We Are What We Eat

  Brady keeps to an incredibly strict diet that includes a lot of vegetables and lean meats. As he says, “If it’s not organic, I don’t use it. And whole grains: brown rice, quinoa, millet, beans . . . No white sugar. No white flour. I use Himalayan pink salt as the sodium. I never use iodized salt. No coffee. No caffeine. No fungus. No dairy.” Similarly, observing kashrut, reciting blessings before and after we eat family Shabbat meals, avoiding chametz on Passover, eating healthfully, eating for the right reasons: so many Jewish practices relate to mindful eating. It’s a way to bring sanctity to what is typically such a mundane part of life.

• Lesson Three: Know Your Opponent

  Tom Brady was well known for studying his opponents meticulously and watching film of them, even hours after a recent victory. Often security guards would be called in the middle of the night to the training facility as Brady was trying to get into the building to watch film.

Similarly, the Chabad classic work, the Tanya, teaches that we have two forces inside of us: our Godly soul, and its opponent, our animal soul. Life is the tale of two souls. There are times that we operate from our best selves and there are moments when we fall prey to our flaws and weak spots. How well do we really know this opponent? Do we understand ourselves well? Do we know how to respond when we feel anger or jealousy? Can we recognize the tools that lift us out from sadness and direct us to serve Hashem in full joy? The Tanya is all about understanding the struggle within and using that knowledge to win the game of life.

• Lesson Four: Never Stop Growing!

  Brady was known for always adding to his skill-sets and working as if he was a rookie and not the reigning MVP or a 7-time Super Bowl Champion. He was always working to improve his craft. Similarly, a famous Chassidic quote teaches that in material matters, a person who is content with his lot is an individual of the highest quality. In spiritual matters, however, to be complacent is the worst deficiency. As we reflect on our Jewish identities the determination to never feel that “we have arrived,” but rather, that we always aim to keep growing in Torah and Mitzvoth is central to our Jewish journeys.

As we enter into Shabbat, I pray that we will reflect on these lessons from the legend and challenge ourselves to adapt to change, treat the mundane as holy, learn about spiritual selves, and continue to grow as individuals and as a holy community.

Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Eric L. Wasser, EdD.
Elw613@gmail.com
201 562 5277

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