Celebrate Shavuot? What’s there to celebrate?
That’s the reaction I heard from some over the past week. You mean you’re asking me to celebrate the anniversary of the giving of the Torah? An event that limits my experience of this world; tells me when I can work and when I can’t; tells me what I can eat and what I can’t; makes me fast on Yom Kippur? Why should I celebrate these limitations?
Well, that’s one way to look at it.
On Shavuot, I celebrate the meaning that Torah provides in my life. I celebrate the structure and value the Torah provides. And I celebrate the sense of fulfillment and purpose that comes with it.
And yes, these advantages come with certain limitations. The best job will always be accomplished by someone who has discipline and focus; a successful person knows that they must keep a schedule and make deadlines. Limitations are not negative; in fact they bring out the best within us.
A great example of the benefits that come with limitation is from light. The nature of light is that as it travels from its source, it scatters and dissipates thereby weakening its effect. One of the great technological advances of recent history is the laser beam. It concentrates the lights rays in a straight line, thus enabling its use at great distance from its point of origin.
On the surface, any code of behavior would seem to limit and restrict us and therefore diminish our experience of the world. But in truth, a life without boundaries, a life without parameters, soon gets lost in the diverse and incongruous universe that we inhabit. Such a life will ultimately be devoid of the possibility to contribute.
So, is Torah limiting? No, it’s liberating! And that’s a reason to celebrate!