A gateway to heaven, everywhere - Parashat Toledot 5785
Every place in the world has the potential to be God’s entrance to the world. The question is not whether God is here or not but if we are tuning the right channel. Are we open to the experience of spirituality to receive the divine presence in different ways?
At the beginning of this Parasha, Jacob, the third of our patriarchs, dreams of a long stairway based on Earth, the upper part of which reaches the sky.
Immediately after this dream, the Torah tells.
“Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely Adonai is present in this place, and I did not know it!” Shaken, he said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the abode of God, and that is the gateway to heaven.”
(Bereshit / Genesis 28:16-17).
Suddenly, he discovered that God was present in that place. What? He didn’t know that before? What a weird statement! And even so, if Adonai was present in that place, how does it come that “this is none other than the abode of God…” but it is also “the gateway to heaven”?
Some strong believers think that since their faith is so big, they can even tell God where he will enter the world. Ya’akov was stunned by God’s presence, which he just discovered, through this particular stairway.
Do you remember any other high construction that aimed to reach the sky?
The Tower of Babel! Back then, that generation was punished because they attempted to reach the sky, commanding God how he would come to this world. In a beautiful article written by two Israeli scholars, Professors Yair Zakovitz and Avigdor Shinan, they believe that this story of Jacob’s stairway is none but a response to the Tower of Babel. As a matter of fact, the Hebrew word Bavel is very close to the Arabic wording, BAB (gate) and EL (God).
This idea teaches us that even when we are deviously religious and fulfill every detail of the law as expected, we can’t control God’s entrance into the world. Far from that! We are supposed to live spontaneously according to tradition, waiting and alert that any time and any place could be transformed into a place of worship or a gateway to heaven. A synagogue is a nice place to pray, and so can our houses.
A forest, a beach, a seashore, or a mountain can be inspiring places to connect with divinity. A nice dream, a peaceful night, and a moment of silence can help us find the spirituality we seek. But also, a crowded city, a traffic light, and a baby crying are part of the world God created. If we can find Ruaḥ in that bustling routine, we will certainly be capable of finding God in the inspiring and quiet moments.
Shabbat Shalom.