2.21.25 ~ Deal with it: How To
Good morning!
Do you know what holds people back from becoming rich? Would you like to be rich? This week's Torah portion informs us of a simple truth to increase our wealth spiritually, emotionally (psychologically), physically, relationally and financially.
"If a man shall give money or vessels to his fellow to safeguard, and it is stolen from the man's house, if the thief is found, he shall pay double."
(Ex. 22:6)
Simply put, the Torah states here the law that a thief need not only compensate the victim for the loss; he is also given a penalty and is obligated to pay double the sum that he took.
God grants each of us a body, a mind, a soul, a family, and a little fraction of His world's resources. He asks us to nurture them and protect them from inner and outer forces that threaten to undermine their splendor and wholeness. (Matt. 25:14,15; Lk. 19:13).
Yet, each of us also possesses an inner "thief" who schemes to steal these gifts and use them in an inauthentic way. This "thief" represents the "destructive inclination" our yetzer hara; that part of the human psyche that seeks to control my body and mind, hijacking these Divine resources and using them cheaply and superficially, abusing their identity, violating their integrity, and derailing them from their destiny and splendid mission, to channel the infinite Divine energy into our bodies and the world.
When an instinctive thought compels me to surrender to despair, to lose my temper, to binge, to gamble, to drink, to consume something destructive for my body, to fill me with anxiety, fear, envy, or insecurity, my inner "thief" has just "hijacked" part of my soul and my inner Divine and pure identity, making me believe that I am fragmented and disconnected.
When I lie for short-term convenience, or I numb my system to avoid living with full presence, my inner "thief" has robbed me from living in flow, using my energy and limbs to feed the 'kelipa' energy, the husks and shells that obscure my inner infinite light (Jn. 1:9). When I cheat in a business deal or behave dishonestly, when I surrender to gossip or slander, my inner "thief" manages to seize my beautiful energy and use it for something that is not real.
I know this isn't talking about your sacred space, so let's just assume we're talking about your neighbor (lol).
Enquiring minds want to know: How do we deal with it?
Some people feel that their battles against their inner thief are, in the end, destined for failure. They give up the fight, allowing the thief to take whatever he wants, whenever he wants. They develop a certain lightheadedness and cynicism toward living a life of dignity and depth.
Others, at the other extreme, become dejected and melancholy. Their failures instill within them feelings of self-loathing as they wallow in guilt and despair.
Scripture rejects both of these notions since both deprive us of living life to the fullest, appreciating our sacred Divine core, and leading us into the abyss, one through carelessness and the other through depression.
The Torah, in the above law, offers instead this piece of advice: "If a man shall give money or vessels to his fellow to safeguard, and it is stolen from the house of the man, if the thief is found, he shall pay double." Go out, suggest the Torah, and find the thief. Then you will receive double what you possessed originally!
Here we are introduced to, subtly, the exquisite dynamic known in Scripture as teshuvah/turning back, or psychological and moral recovery.
Instead of wallowing in your guilt and despair, and instead of surrendering to apathy and cynicism, you ought to identify and confront your "thief," those forces within your life that keep derailing you. Confront the pain and loneliness leading you to these thoughts and behaviors.
Then you will receive from the thief double the amount he took in the first place. The experience of falling and rebounding will allow you to discover your deepest beauty and light, and deepen your spirituality and dignity in a fashion double that of what it might have been without the thievery. By doing this, your willful sins can become virtues. Huh? Let me explain...When you, sadly, fail and allow your life to go to shambles, but then confront the thief and reclaim your authentic life as your own, those previous failures bestow upon you a perspective, an appreciation, a depth, and a determination that otherwise would not have been possible. How can this be? Because the very failure and its resulting frustration generate a profound and authentic passion and appreciation for the good and the holy.
As you head into this preparation day, whatever you may do today, the next time your inner thief hijacks your moral life, see it as a reclamation opportunity: reclaim your life with a double dose of light, love, holiness, and purity!
Happy preparation day and Shabbat shalom!
Want more insights? Join us on zoom tonight at 8:00 p.m. EST for a mishpatim/right ruling smorgashborg (Ex. 21-23) and ascend the mountain for greater intimacy (Ex. 24).
"If a man shall give money or vessels to his fellow to safeguard, and it is stolen from the man's house, if the thief is found, he shall pay double."
(Ex. 22:6)
Simply put, the Torah states here the law that a thief need not only compensate the victim for the loss; he is also given a penalty and is obligated to pay double the sum that he took.
God grants each of us a body, a mind, a soul, a family, and a little fraction of His world's resources. He asks us to nurture them and protect them from inner and outer forces that threaten to undermine their splendor and wholeness. (Matt. 25:14,15; Lk. 19:13).
Yet, each of us also possesses an inner "thief" who schemes to steal these gifts and use them in an inauthentic way. This "thief" represents the "destructive inclination" our yetzer hara; that part of the human psyche that seeks to control my body and mind, hijacking these Divine resources and using them cheaply and superficially, abusing their identity, violating their integrity, and derailing them from their destiny and splendid mission, to channel the infinite Divine energy into our bodies and the world.
When an instinctive thought compels me to surrender to despair, to lose my temper, to binge, to gamble, to drink, to consume something destructive for my body, to fill me with anxiety, fear, envy, or insecurity, my inner "thief" has just "hijacked" part of my soul and my inner Divine and pure identity, making me believe that I am fragmented and disconnected.
When I lie for short-term convenience, or I numb my system to avoid living with full presence, my inner "thief" has robbed me from living in flow, using my energy and limbs to feed the 'kelipa' energy, the husks and shells that obscure my inner infinite light (Jn. 1:9). When I cheat in a business deal or behave dishonestly, when I surrender to gossip or slander, my inner "thief" manages to seize my beautiful energy and use it for something that is not real.
I know this isn't talking about your sacred space, so let's just assume we're talking about your neighbor (lol).
Enquiring minds want to know: How do we deal with it?
Some people feel that their battles against their inner thief are, in the end, destined for failure. They give up the fight, allowing the thief to take whatever he wants, whenever he wants. They develop a certain lightheadedness and cynicism toward living a life of dignity and depth.
Others, at the other extreme, become dejected and melancholy. Their failures instill within them feelings of self-loathing as they wallow in guilt and despair.
Scripture rejects both of these notions since both deprive us of living life to the fullest, appreciating our sacred Divine core, and leading us into the abyss, one through carelessness and the other through depression.
The Torah, in the above law, offers instead this piece of advice: "If a man shall give money or vessels to his fellow to safeguard, and it is stolen from the house of the man, if the thief is found, he shall pay double." Go out, suggest the Torah, and find the thief. Then you will receive double what you possessed originally!
Here we are introduced to, subtly, the exquisite dynamic known in Scripture as teshuvah/turning back, or psychological and moral recovery.
Instead of wallowing in your guilt and despair, and instead of surrendering to apathy and cynicism, you ought to identify and confront your "thief," those forces within your life that keep derailing you. Confront the pain and loneliness leading you to these thoughts and behaviors.
Then you will receive from the thief double the amount he took in the first place. The experience of falling and rebounding will allow you to discover your deepest beauty and light, and deepen your spirituality and dignity in a fashion double that of what it might have been without the thievery. By doing this, your willful sins can become virtues. Huh? Let me explain...When you, sadly, fail and allow your life to go to shambles, but then confront the thief and reclaim your authentic life as your own, those previous failures bestow upon you a perspective, an appreciation, a depth, and a determination that otherwise would not have been possible. How can this be? Because the very failure and its resulting frustration generate a profound and authentic passion and appreciation for the good and the holy.
As you head into this preparation day, whatever you may do today, the next time your inner thief hijacks your moral life, see it as a reclamation opportunity: reclaim your life with a double dose of light, love, holiness, and purity!
Happy preparation day and Shabbat shalom!
Want more insights? Join us on zoom tonight at 8:00 p.m. EST for a mishpatim/right ruling smorgashborg (Ex. 21-23) and ascend the mountain for greater intimacy (Ex. 24).
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