The Jewish Understanding of Time
By R. YK
Two key concepts that are fundamental to the Jewish understanding of time are
Rabbi Irving Greenberg's idea of "messianic perfection" and Abraham Joshua Heschel's idea of " the sanctification of time." The purpose of this paper is to explore and examine how Heschel's and Greenberg's understanding of "Jewish time" complement one another and provide a framework for Jewish life and practice.
The Conceptual Framework
The conceptual basis for Rabbi Irving Greenberg's notion of "messianic perfection" can be found in the writings of the Rambam.
" I believe with perfect faith in the coming of the Messiah; and, though he tarry, I will wait daily for his coming" (1)
" In the future, the Messianic King will arise and renew the Davidic dynasty, returning it to its initial sovereignty. He will build the Temple and gather the dispersed of Israel." (2)
" Anyone who does not believe in him or does not wait for his coming denies not only [the statements] of the other prophets, but [those of] the Torah and Moses our teacher." (3)
According to Greenberg "The messianic dream is the great moving force of Jewish history and of the Jewish role in the world." (4) For Greenberg the "fundamental unifying principle underlying all the Jewish holidays [as well Halachah - the Jewish way of life] is the central paradigm of [geula] redemption." (5) In the words of Rabbi Greenberg "Through the power of the calendar and the community, each individual life is linked to a cause that transcends it. Each action is given cosmic significance. [Messianic] Redemption is steeped in little acts that finally add up to a new heaven and a new earth."(6) The Rebbe echoes Greenberg's sentiments regarding "actions of cosmic significance". The Rebbe repeated time and again: Jews prepare and pave the way for the coming of Moshiach and the Geula by doing acts of goodness and kindness, in fact a single person performing a single mitzvah could be the deed that tips the scales and brings redemption to the entire world and all of creation. (7)
Each Jew by keeping the mitzvoth, engaging in Tikun Olam and by participating in the rhythms of Jewish life including the Holidays hastens the time of "messianic perfection."
The conceptual basis for Abraham Joshua Heschel's idea of "sacred time" can be found in the following statement.
"G-d blessed the seventh day and sanctified it because on it He abstained from all His work which G-d created to make." Bereshit 2:3
Heschel states " Judaism is a religion of time aiming at the sanctification of time." (8) He deduces this idea from Bereshit 2:3. He goes on to say "one of the most distinguished words in the Bible is the word qadosh, holy; a word which more than any other is representative of the mystery and majesty of the divine...the distinguished word qadosh is used for the first time ... and is applied to time [G-d sanctified- made the Sabbath holy] (9)). Art Scroll's Shabbos - The Sabbath - Its Essence and Significance supports Heschel's idea of Shabbat as sacred time. "The Sabbath is the soul of time. It infuses holiness into every aspect of creation: Va'y'kadesh oto, and He sanctified it (ibid.). G-d sanctified the Sabbath by making it the repository of so much of Creation's holiness and by making its content the essence of the universe." (10)
For Heschel, Shabbat is one of the aspects of the mystery of creation. Subsequently the celebration of Shabbat is the celebration of sacred time, "a time to become attuned to holiness in time and turn from the results of creation to the mystery of creation." (11)
Harmonizing Greenberg and Heschel
For Heschel, time is the process of creation and Shabbat enables one to share in the holiness, which is the heart of time. (12) For Greenberg, Shabbat is the twenty-four hour period that elevates one into the messianic realm and gives human beings a foretaste of the future messianic kingdom (13)
The following statement from the Talmud establishes a harmonious link between the ideas of "sacred time and "messianic perfection"
"Rab said: The world was created only on David's account. Samuel said: On Moses' account. R. Johanan said: For the sake of the Messiah." B.T. Sanhedrin 98b. 24-25
In other words, within the dimension of sacred time, HaShem's purpose in creating Shabbat was to enable his people to experience on a weekly basis a taste of me'ayn olam ha' bah (a semblance of the world to come) or, as Greenberg writes,"messianic perfection."
Final Thoughts and practical considerations
The Jewish understanding of time is primarily characterized by two key concepts: Rabbi Irving Greenberg's idea of "messianic perfection." and Abraham Joshua Heschel's idea of " the sanctification of time." Shabbat is both a paradigm of the sanctification of time and a paradigm of the Geulah - the time of "messianic perfection." Ha Shem created Shabbat as a weekly reminder to "Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom." (Mizmor 90:12) By numbering our days aright, we sanctify our time on earth for the purpose of hastening the coming of the Mashiach through gemulut chasidim, tikun olam, and participating in the life -cycle events of Judaism and its calendar.
Then "the Messianic King will arise and renew the Davidic dynasty, returning it to its initial sovereignty and as it is written "The Lord will be King over the entire earth; on that day the L-rd will be One and His Name One." Zech. 14:9
Endnotes
- Dr. Joseph H. Hertz, The Authorized Daily Prayer Book, New York: Bloch Publishing Company, 1948, p. 255
- Rabbi Eliyahu Touger, Hilchot Melachim U'Milchamoteihem, New York, Jerusalem: Moznaim Publishing Corporation, 1987, p. 222
- Rabbi Eliyahu Touger, p. 224
- Rabbi Irving Greenberg, The Jewish Way Living the Holidays, New York: Simon & Schuster, 1988 p. 19
- Rabbi Irving Greenberg, p. 18
- Rabbi Irving Greenberg, p. 22
- The Rebbe's words are an amalgamation of a variety of his statements, which are quoted on WWW. Chabad.org
- Abraham Joshua Heschel, The Sabbath It's Meaning For Modern Man, New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1951, p .8
- Abraham Joshua Heschel, p. 9
- Shabbos The Sabbath- Its Essence and Significance, Rabbi Nosson Scherman/ Rabbi Meir Zlotowitz General Editors, Brooklyn, N. Y.: Mesorah Publications, Ltd., 1990, p. 18
- Abraham Joshua Heschel, p.11
- Abraham Joshua Heschel p.100
- Rabbi Irving Greenberg, pps. 26-27