That's What Happiness/Holiness Is

 


Dear Friends,

I gave a presentation recently where I talked about an old commercial for a cigarette company that was based upon a tune "that's what happiness is."  
1965 Ray Conniff Singers - Happiness Is (mono 45)
YouTube The45Prof
2 minutes, 15 seconds
Dec 17, 2021

As we read from  the Holiness Code this Shabbat, I asked the group a question about what holiness is?

We are taught that G-d told us we would become a holy people.  As I reflect on this, I do wonder what holiness means and whether holiness and happiness are tied together.

When I applied to rabbinical school, I wrote that I believed that a rabbinical career was avodat kodesh, a holy task.  As I approach the 42nd anniversary of my ordination, I do believe that rabbinic work is sacred.  

However, as I think about whether it made me happy, I have to pause.  Sometimes holy activity is so intense that it drains a certain amount of happiness from the one who is doing the work and one's loved ones who interact with them..  However, that certainly doesn't lessen the significance of what a difference holy activity can make.  At this stage of my life, I realize that the rabbinate did bring me happiness and fulfillment and that there were sacrifices made along the way in order to pursue holy work.

I encourage all of us to think about how our lives have changed since Covid.  We read the double portion this week "Acharei Mot, Kedoshim" which is after the death of Aaron's sons and as I mentioned earlier, the holiness code which is best known for the line "Love your neighbor as yourself."  We all were and are touched by covid including having to face the death of loved ones and friends and the things we didn't get to do, ranging from proms to attending funerals, to visiting loved ones, to visiting those who were sick, to retirement parties, and the list goes on.  

So, what does holiness mean to us now at this stage which we might call, "acharei covid?" Are we able to fulfill all the promises we made to keep in touch with those we love and are we seeking to accomplish things NOW  since we don't know what the future will bring?

I hope that as we wrestle with what helps us feel good about ourselves, our personal relationships with our neighbors, and how to  emerge from the pandemic, that we will choose our own avodat kodesh, doing something that is holy to us. 

Hopefully, when we do our holy work, (whatever it means to us) we will find happiness and fulfillment.

Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Bruce Aft

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