SALE: G-d 50% off!

Did that subject line seem a bit off?  It may not be the way we usually think, but it's true.  The Talmud teaches, "Seek out G-d when He is close- these are the 10 days from Rosh Hashanah until Yom Kippur."  Sure G-d is always there and accessible.  We pray three times a day and are in constant contact with Him, but something is different in these ten days.


A couple days ago, I saw a couple minute clip of Robin Williams from 30 years ago on a late night TV show.  He was obviously very funny, but one of his jokes kinda struck me.  He was poking fun at how the priests can't even save the flower on the lapel of their jackets, but claim they can save you!

It sounds funny, and G-d is an easy target of cynical jokes, but in hindsight we know how meaningful & happy his life was without G-d.  (For us poor people, we can last longer without Him, but the rich guys' only chance at happiness is G-d)

The reason why G-d is such an easy target is because we can't see Him with our eyes.  True, the men of G-d can't even save the flower on their lapels (not sure if you count me as a "man of G-d", but I for sure can't save the flower).

I heard an answer once that G-d doesn't want us to see Him.  He wants us to know Him.

It's kind of ironic, but sight actually takes away from really "knowing."  For instance, try closing your eyes while listening to music.  The sound becomes so much more potent with closed eyes.  There is a Jewish tradition to make love with the lights off.  Think that's weird?  Research actually shows that blind people have better sex!  Why?  Because the sense of feeling isn't as powerful while you can see. 

This isn't rocket science, and you can try it out yourself if you don't believe me.  The bottom line is that seeing isn't too real for G-d.  On the contrary, G-d is too real for seeing!  A G-d only as real as our eyes, is probably not worth believing in. 

So what do we do instead?  We search, learn and work, in hope that someday, we'll know G-d. 

And this is what the sale is about.  Sure G-d is always here and accessible, but for the next five days, until after Yom Kippur, the work and learning and searching that we do will be more meaningful for us!  I'm not going to tell you how to search for Him unless you ask, but I can tell you that whatever effort you put in to find Him (preferably on His terms, not yours) will get you further than the same effort on a regular Monday or Thursday.

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