D’var Torah: Service of the Heart

Written by Rabbi Josh Levy — 28 August 2020

“Kaveih el Adonai, chazak v’ya’a’meitz libecha.”

So ends Psalm 27, which we read throughout this month of Elul as we prepare ourselves for the High Holy Days.  “Wait for God, be strong and let your heart take courage.”

 

It is one of many – hundreds – of places in Tanakh in which the language of heart is used in this way – presented as the centre of thought, of volition, of emotion.

The heart is presented as the centre of self-reflection: ‘may the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart’, as we just sang together.

It is the expresser of our most deeply felt needs: elsewhere in Psalm 27 the heart talks of its yearning for God.  “Lakh Amar libi – For you, my heart speaks’ it states.

The heart, biblically, is the location of our wisdom, our ability to relate to others:  God grants to Solomon “a wise and understanding heart.” (I Kings 3:12)

And it is the centre of emotion.  A text in Midrash Kohelet Rabbah (1:16) lists that which the heart does in the bible – the heart sees, hears, speaks, falls, stands, rejoices, weeps, comforts, grieves, repents, rebels.

In English, too, we use heart metaphors in this way: heart-warming, heart-wrenching, heart-broken.

At points over this last few months, our hearts have wept.

This week, wonderfully, my heart leapt.
When I went to visit SWAY – Summer with Alyth Youth – and saw an Alyth camp.  A very special, socially distanced camp, one that our Youth and Education team, roshim and madrichim had worked very hard to make happen.  It was different but distinctly Alyth, definitely our kids having camp together.

To be there and see it, my heart was filled with joy.  As indeed it has been on seeing our small communities gathering for prayer in the sukkah; on watching the honey cakes for our Rosh Hashanah care deliveries coming in to shul.

Lachein samach libi – Therefore my heart rejoices, to quote Psalm 16 (v9).

 

The language of heart is the language of deep emotions.

It is why when you receive the High Holy Day programme this coming week, you will see that we are calling our core service for this year, to be delivered live from this bimah and from members’ homes throughout Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, our HEART service.
It is expressive of all these emotions and needs – reflecting that biblical language of the heart speaking of our deepest needs and feelings.  Avodat HaLev – service of the heart.

Of course, there will be many other ways of engaging through the High Holy Days.  Our HEART service will be supplemented, as always, with other services, study, mindfulness and meditation sessions – for the SOUL, MIND, BREATH – everything created anew for this extraordinary year – as well as new offerings for the families of young people of all ages, and where we can, opportunities between the larger occasions, to gather in-person.

 

There is another kind of heart language that is important as we approach these Yamim Noraim.  We often use the metaphor of heart to speak about how we come to the world, our willingness, our openness, whether we are ready.  ‘Their heart wasn’t in it,’ we might say. Our hearts can be closed or open; whole or divided, warm or cold.

And these are in our control.

For these, extraordinary High Holy Days, we will need – each of us – to choose to come to them, b’levav shalem, with a whole heart.  Ready to engage in what will be very different, but can still be, will still be, a Yamim Noraim of joy, thoughtfulness and meaning.

And for the many among us who continue to grieve, to mourn, to feel loss, in the words of Psalm 27 with its final cry: chazak v’ya’a’meitz libecha.
May you – may we all – continue to be strong and may our hearts take courage.