To say that the human ability to utilize language to communicate is remarkable is an understatement! It would be hard - perhaps even impossible - to imagine what life would be like if we were simply left to "mmm" and "aaargh!" One of the early memories I have, serving in my first full-time pulpit in St. Paul, MN, was of a very bright, articulate woman who suffered a stroke when she was somewhere in her 40's that left her aphasic. The only sound she could utter was "Dee." Of course part of what made the situation so tragic for her and her family was the huge change in their lives. The level of frustration was unbearable despite the tremendous support her husband, children, and extended family tried to provide her. For all any of us could tell, her ability to reason, her memory, and other indications of intelligence were all intact; she simply couldn't express, to any sufficient level, all that was going on inside of her beyond her emotional state.
She had started life, like almost everyone else, with the full ability to express herself through language. However, I wonder had she not had this ability, where would that have left her in the process of being able to reason? At 19 months Helen Keller was stricken blind and deaf before she had learned to speak. According to Wikipedia, "At that time, she was able to communicate somewhat with Martha Washington, the six-year-old daughter of the family cook, who understood her signs; by the age of seven, she had over 60 home signs to communicate with her family." Subsequently, it took tremendous determination on the part of her teacher, Annie Sullivan, to help her discover how to form English words with which to express herself. Fortunately, Helen's brain was otherwise intact. Her disease had only destroyed the channels of sound and sight by which she could make herself aware of the reality beyond her inner consciousness. Miss Sullivan was able to use Helen's sense of touch and the limited vocabulary she had developed to that point. Once she was able to help Helen understand the connection between the liquid she was feeling and the word "water," she could start to develop a tactile code to teach her to create words, string them together syntactically, and utilize her speech organs to express herself.
There's a journey of a thousand miles or more between the ability to communicate one's apprehension of physical objects with a specific combination of sounds, and the ability to express and transmit to others profoundly complicated and abstract ideas. Yet the medium of language is all we have to serve both. It takes a process of moving from vague generality to well-understood specificity - a process that can take years - in order to understand any one of the many and far more complicated areas of human experience. We usually use the example of "rocket science" to illustrate the point. Attempting to understand what is meant by the term "god," especially "God," is no different.
Truth is, the same could be said about understanding ourselves! On the one hand we have an instinctive sense of who we are, on the other hand, it usually takes many years of experience to discover the "real" person lurking inside ourselves. In working with other people and seeing how we react under a host of situations we can start to recognize our strengths and weaknesses and our emotional and intellectual make-up, These can shed light on our essential personality. I believe that as young children we have an instinctive sense of the presence of an Ultimate Being. Perhaps it's simply an outcome of our pre and post natal experience with our parents as has been suggested. However, unless we are able to nurture that understanding, we run the risk of ignoring and cynically rejecting the reality or the significance of that instinctive sense. No matter what it's presumed psychological cause, we will have robbed ourselves of an opportunity to explore the ultimate cause and subsequent purpose of human - existence.
I want to take the opportunity to wish a belated happy 80th birthday to Marcia Sterneck. As she states herself, "There's no-one who loves BSKI more!" Whether it's attending services every Shabbat and Tuesday morning; actively participating in Sisterhood; volunteering and otherwise supporting many other BSKI functions as well as continuing to serve as an active synagogue board member, Marcia takes "honors!" I love her unique - often dry - sense of humor; the stories she can share about BSKI and its members over the years, and listening to her wisdom born of experience. She is amazing when it comes to attending to detail, and she has a sensitive, compassionate heart especially when it comes to those who might otherwise be ignored or neglected. She is certainly a pillar for our synagogue and her family. Along with our "mazel tovs" goes our wish to her for continued health and strength and many more years of devoted association with her beloved shul. "Ad me'ah v'esrim! - May you thrive to one hundred and twenty!"
On a personal note, Susan and I are delighted to announce the very recent engagement of our son, Micah to Tina Hughes of Manchester, CT. They originally met in their freshman year attending "List-Columbia" universities - better known as the "Joint Program" of the Jewish Theological Seminary. At this point Tina is in Israel in her first year attending HUC-JIR. She will then return to the HUC campus in New York City to pursue her desire to receive Rabbinic Ordination at the end of the five year course of study. Micah is currently in Chicago for five weeks of training to serve as a classroom teacher in the Teach for America program. He will be returning to St. Louis to teach at Columbia Elementary School in the city. He hopes to receive his Masters in Education in the process of determining his ultimate career choice. Micah and Tina are hoping to get married in the summer of 2012.
A final mazel tov to Saul Dien on attaining his 82nd birthday. Marilyn and Saul are making a donation to the St. Louis Jewish Food Pantry in honor of this simcha. Saul has been a tremendous support to Marilyn in the many volunteered positions she has taken at BSKI since her retirement. Beyond his many talents and skills I always look forward to enjoying Saul's culinary ability whenever he helps prepare "60's Plus" luncheons, particularly his meatballs. Many happy returns of the day, Saul!
... and, as always, may the Shabbat bring you joy and peace and added sense of God's Presence!
Rabbi Mordecai Miller