Parashat Ki Tavo offers a theological difficulty as the Levites exclaim the famous “blessings and curses” to the entire People of Israel: Your life will be full of blessings if you obey God, and curses if you disobey. The text then expounds upon the curses with a prophesy of horrendous conditions in which all our humanity is stripped away as we endure the most insufferable tortures. Presumably, all these curses will occur because we did not follow God’s ways. 

This way of thinking about God is incredibly challenging in our modern world. It is hard to imagine a reality in which God grants me blessings for following God’s ways and curses for not doing so. So how can we relate to this passage today? One of my teachers suggests a more metaphorical reading: 

To live in the real world means to experience a life full of ups and downs. And when life gets us down and darkness befalls us (as it does for everybody), each of us must ask, “What is my lifeboat? What is that thing that will keep me afloat amidst the stormy waters?” 

Judaism is my lifeboat. No matter what life may throw at me, I always have a tradition and Jewish community full of this goodness. The hardest part is noticing that our tradition is there amidst our distractions, calling out to us with love, grace, and compassion. As we approach the High Holidays, may each of us continue to support others – and be supported ourselves – by the breadth of our tradition and the life it carries. 

What is your lifeboat when there is too much pain in the world? 

How is your community helping others in times of darkness?