Rabbi Andrea C. London
Rosh Hashanah 5761 - September 30, 2000

Being the first New Year in the New Century, I'd like to talk to you about Judaism in the 21st century. But first, I'd like to tell you a story.

Once there was a king who owned the most beautiful, precious and PERFECT diamond. The king was enamored of his perfect gem and kept it carefully locked away. Despite his best efforts to protect his perfect diamond, one day when he took it out, he dropped it and a large scratch appeared on it. The king was devastated and didn't know what to do.

When he calmed down and could think clearly, he thought it best to turn to the best diamond cutters in the kingdom, thinking surely they would know how to get rid of the scratch. But try as they would, they could not remove it.

Don't worry, one of the diamond cutters said to the desperate king, I can't remove the scratch but I can make this diamond even more beautiful than it was before. Though skeptical, the king knew he had no choice but to give his once-perfect diamond to the diamond cutter. After many days working on the diamond, the diamond cutter returned the gem to the king, and where the scratch had been, a beautiful rose had been carved. Sure enough, the king saw that the diamond was even more beautiful now than when it was perfect.

As we welcome the new year and begin our process of teshuvah - looking inward and exploring our souls, making amends to those we hurt, and turning back to God's ways - the story suggests that we can see our faults in a different light, we can see them as potential. We all have the potential to grow and blossom like the rose that emerged on the flawed diamond. God doesn't expect us to be perfect but to face our imperfections and grow from them.

In the story, the transformation of the diamond happens quickly and seemingly effortlessly. But how does change really occur in our lives? First, we must notice our faults. For the king, it was obvious. He dropped the diamond and when he picked it up the scratch on it was pronounced. In our lives, however, it's not so easy to identify our faults. That's why we have ten days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur to do this. Our faults aren't always as transparent to us. However, I think there's another problem we have in identifying our faults. We're quick to identify "flaws" - we're not smart enough, we're not popular enough, we're not good looking enough.

Consider many of today's magazine articles - how to be thinner and sexier - that are really superficial. How hard is it to find these magazines? They're in the grocery store check-out line! These imagines bombard us.

In the A-to-Z confessional that we recite on Yom Kippur there are no sins for not having a perfect body, not being a genius, not being funny enough. I have news for you: I'm not here to tell you that you're perfect just the way you are. No, you're imperfect. We all are. But too often the imperfections we focus on are not the real ones- they are merely smudges on the diamond. Instead of confronting our real flaws, we hurt ourselves by focusing on superficialities. 

What happens once we identify real faults in ourselves? At first the king is frozen. He's so upset he doesn't know what to do. Once his initial reaction passes, he can think a little more clearly. So he calls the diamond cutter for help. 

What can we gain from this parable? You don't have to go it alone in life. Reach out to others for help and guidance. Our tradition teaches us that God did not free the Israelites from Egypt until they called out for help. If you saw the movie "The Prince of Egypt", you saw Moses approach Pharaoh alone. In fact, Moses had a severe speech impediment and had to have Aaron serve as his spokesperson. I know the filmmakers needed to take some liberties to make the movie work on the screen. But here's a great example of how changing the story really loses something important. Implying that Moses pleaded the case of the Israelites to Pharaoh alone perpetuates a harmful stereotype that we suffer from in our society today: that "real" leaders and heroes possess all the skills and talents they need to succeed alone without anyone else's help. Let me tell you something: I don't know a single successful person who operates in a vacuum, who figured out the secrets to success alone, makes decisions alone, writes their speeches alone. Pirke Avot 1:6 teaches "Get yourself a teacher, find someone to study with."

You need people in your life who know more than you, or, put another way, who know different than you -- parents, teachers, coaches, mentors, friends, of all stripes. And you need someone to study with. What does this mean? The word for study partner in Hebrew - Hevruta - contains the word friend, haver. Our friends help us not just with book learning but more importantly with understanding and navigating our way through life. Our family, our teachers and our friends give us perspectives that we can't see and can offer support and love when we need it. Likewise, we need to respond to others when they call for help, and be present to listen to them. 

If there's nothing else you glean from Judaism, I hope that this will be the lesson that stays with you. Ask for help when you need it and be a person who is ready and willing to be there for others.

After the king called the diamond cutter for help, how did the diamond cutter know that he could make a rose emerge from an unsightly scratch? I imagine the king holding the diamond close to his face and focusing all of his attention on the scratch, unable to see that the scratch could be something other than it was. The diamond cutter, on the other hand, I imagine, held the diamond at a distance, turning it over and over, trying to get some perspective on it so that he could see beyond the scratch. We often lead our lives like the king, focusing on the minutiae -- what we need to do in the next hour, day, week. Your lives are busy, filled with so many obligations and commitments that it seems impossible to focus on anything but the present. Exams, sports competitions, music lessons. These are all important, don't get me wrong. But when the sum total of our lives is focusing on the present, we don't have any perspective on what could be in the future. And all of the adults in the room can testify that the to-do lists in life just get longer as you get older.

I don't say this to depress you but to let you know that Judaism give us deep insights into how we can gain some perspective on our lives. The Shabbat and holiday cycle, life-cycle events take us away from our day-to-day concerns and 1) Help connect us to something larger than our own lives - to a community and to a tradition that is thousands of years old - and 2). Give us perspective on our daily lives. One day a week our tradition gives us a precious gift- today, no I don't mean Rosh Hashanah - I mean Shabbat. Shabbat means to cease, to stop doing what we normally do. It is a time to reflect on and spend time doing what's really important in our lives - being with those we love, thinking about the meaning of life, thereby connecting with the divine spark within each of us. 

Today, in conservative and orthodox synagogues they will not hear the shofar blown today. Do you know why? It's Shabbat. But why are Jews traditionally forbidden to blow the shofar on Shabbat? There are no real good halachic reasons not to. Rabbi Reuven Bulka, an orthodox rabbi, at a recent study session for rabbis in the Chicago area, gave the best explanation I've heard. He said, the only good reason not to blow the shofar when Rosh Hashanah falls on Shabbat is to remind us that Shabbat is more important than Rosh Hashanah. In a moment, you'll hear the shofar, but under one condition, you'll take it to heart that each Shabbat is more holy than Rosh Hashanah. Our tradition thousands of years ago anticipated the crazy pace of our world in the 21st century and the need for a day off. In a world that doesn't stop, that goes, as we say, 24/7, Shabbat is a needed respite. After Joseph Lieberman was nominated as Al Gore's VP candidate, someone quipped that he'll only be available to work 24/6! What a model for all of us! 

The last step the diamond cutter had to take was to carve the rose - something I imagine took careful planning and execution. We live in an incredibly fast-paced world and we are bombarded with messages that tell us that we should expect instant gratification. Take a pill to cure your ills, try a fad diet for instantaneous weight loss, work for a dot-com so that you can be a millionaire before you are thirty. The diamond cutter needed skill that he probably developed over the course of many years. He also had to work hard to achieve his goal. There are no shortcuts to achieving the things that are most meaningful and important in life. Be cynical of quick fixes.

So what can I say about Judaism in the 21st century? I think the story of the diamond sums it up for us. 

1. Be willing to look at yourself critically but lovingly, being careful to distinguish what is a real flaw from the superficial things that our society would make us believe are wrong with us. The good news is that we are not alone in being imperfect. We all are. Which leads to 
2. Don't travel the journey of life alone. We need each other. Be equally quick to ask for 
   help and to care about others. 
3. Take part in Jewish rituals, holiday celebrations, and life-cycle events. They allow you to put aside your daily concerns, focus on what's important in life, and connect with the divine presence. 
4. Be willing to work hard towards what's most meaningful in life. Remember that shortcuts often lead to dead ends. 

I believe that if each of us lives our life by these lessons and brings these qualities to the Jewish community, our lives will be rich and fulfilling and our community will be strong and vital. Like the diamond, each of us is a precious and unique person. Like the diamond in our story, each of us is imperfect but has great potential for personal growth and for transforming our flawed world into a better place. As each of us in the coming year strives to grow and blossom into our best selves, may the Jewish tradition and the Jewish community be sources of comfort, strength, and hope when times are hard, joy and celebration when times are good, and always places to find meaning and love. And may this first Jewish New Year in the new millennium be filled with the timeless blessings of positive change, loving people, meaningful work, and rejuvenating rest.