Rabbi David E. Ostrich, Congregation Brit Shalom
Clergy Column for The Centre Daily Times
Published Sunday May 18, 2025
There is a conceit among us in which complex subjects can be understood easily. No matter how large the situation, we believe that it can be summarized and understood in simple terms. We can “get a handle on it” and fix it quickly—and we speak about these simplifications in both jokes and proverbs. Think about how many begin with, “There are three kinds of people in the world…” or “two kinds of husbands/wives,” etc. The notion is that truth can be garnered by reducing great complexity into a few simple categories.
Movies are famous for this kind of simplification. One excellent example is Dave, the Kevin Kline/Sigourney Weaver film where Kline plays both a corrupt president and a look-alike small businessman who is hired as a presidential impersonator. When the real president has a stroke and falls into a coma, the look-alike’s role expands significantly, and he occupies the Oval Office. Frustrated with his political handlers and the complexity of the Federal budget, Dave and his small-business accountant (played by Charles Grodin) sit down at the kitchen table and “go through the government’s books.” It takes them several hours, but they finally figure things out and know how to fix everything.
It is very entertaining—and very alluring. Would it not be great if such complexities could be understood and solved after just a few hours of simple, honest, homespun common sense? These kinds of scenarios sound great but are ultimately of limited value. Subject to generalizations, platitudes, and missed details, they are better understood as symptoms of frustration and impatience—or fantasy. They make great stories but not great policy or management.
An alternative to such reductionist thinking can be found in the Torah, in Leviticus 19. Known as the Holiness Code, it begins with “You shall be holy, for I, the Lord your God, am holy,” and concludes with “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” It gives us a grand theme (being holy like God), but it fleshes it out with lots of specific actions. In other words, the Torah gives us a working definition of holiness:
“Revere your mother and your father.”
“When you reap the harvest of your land…leave some for the poor and the stranger.”
“You shall not steal, nor deal deceitfully or falsely with one another.”
“You shall not defraud your fellow or commit robbery.”
“The wages of a laborer shall not remain with you until morning.”
“You shall not insult the deaf or place a stumbling block before the blind.”
“You shall not render an unfair decision—neither favoring the poor nor showing deference to the rich; judge your kin fairly.”
“Love your neighbor as yourself.”
Notice how each mitzvah (commandment) breathes the spirit of God into our behavior.
There are also of course religious mitzvot which involve the conscious and active relationship God wants with us (“Keep My Sabbaths…do not turn to idols or molten gods…sacrifice your offerings with respect for God…revere the Lord your God…”), but, lest we think that Kedushah (Holiness) is just about religious observance, note that most of the mitzvot are ethical. God loves us and wants us both to be treated nicely and to treat each other nicely. A similar mix of ethics and religion can be found in the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5) —with the ethical commandments again outnumbering the ritual.
Kedushah (Holiness) is not just a feeling or a theme. It is a life-long succession of decisions and actions in which we build our godliness step by step, piece by piece, and moment by moment. The grand theme is important, but without the practical details—the bringing of godliness into every moment and place, the aspiration is empty. Holiness is for more than just bragging rights or photo-ops. Kindness, justice, mercy, and fairness: these are God’s action items for meaningful lives.