Shalom and Peace:
We will continue to look in depth at some of the many verses held in common by Judaism and Christianity, and at the same time, understand their Jewish Rabbinical roots.
Matthew 5:45 reads: '' He makes His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.''
500 years before in the Talmud's oral tradition, it states: ''The day when rain falls is greater than the day of the Revival of the Dead, for the Revival of the Dead is for the righteous only whereas rain is both for the righteous and for the wicked.(Ta'anit 7a).''
The Talmud (Bava Batra 10b) tells us that this is an "upside-down world" in which "rich, arrogant, powerful people are considered important." Things are not much different in our world today than in Babylon 2,500 years ago. People are the same. Houses of worship are the same. The way to God via Spiritual Renewal, including teshuvah (return), is the same. Bad and good things happen to the righteous as well as the spiritually disconnected.
We don't lead a good life for the sake of reward. We should not expect the world to treat us differently. It rains on everyone equally.
"Expecting the world to treat you fairly because you are a good person is like expecting the bull not to charge you because you are a vegetarian" (Rabbi M. Kaplan). "The virtue of angels is that they cannot deteriorate; their flaw is that they cannot improve. Humanity's flaw is that we can deteriorate; but our virtue is that we can improve" (Chasidic proverb).
"A person is born only for the purpose of perfecting his nature (Rabbi Elimelech ).'' "There is no real joy except joy of wisdom...if there is wisdom in a person, this person studies mussar (spiritual self-improvement)(Midrash).''
"It is harder to change one bad character trait than to learn the complete Talmud. It is a great distance from knowing something in your head to internalizing it into your heart. As long as one is still alive, one can still work on perfecting himself." said Rabbi Yisrael Salanter. When our heart is connected with our mind, we have become integrated and will know true shalom, shlema, wholeness, serenity, and Oneness with God.
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Jewish Spiritual Renewal
Jewish Renewal
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Hilton Head Island, SC; Bluffton, SC; Savannah, GA
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