“In Judaism we sanctify the physical. We use our bodies to serve God. The reason is simple: God created us, and our physical world.” This teaching from Rabbi Sacks parallels another more common saying that we can’t attribute to any one source: “In Judaism, we sanctify the ordinary.”
What do we mean by these statements? From childbirth to digestive systems working everyday, that’s holy; we have blessings for eating and after we extract nutrients from the food we eat. When our systems work correctly we use god-language to express gratitude.
Blessed is Reality! Barukh Atah. Blessed is History! Adonai – that which was, is, and will be. Melekh haOlam – the Majestic One, the World! All the poetry of our blessings nods to a Creator and to creation itself. We use the metaphorical language to aggrandize our ideas about God, but God is pure oneness despite the differences and distinctions of the physical world we experience. And our blessings and liturgy and responsive rituals to appointed times and celebrations of our history are dances and expressions that help us make meaning in our minds and feel the sacredness of our existence.
In Judaism, the idea of sanctifying everyday life, history and a blessed future we work with God to create means elevating ordinary activities and moments and thoughts into living a holy life. This can be achieved through various actions, including observing mitzvot (commandments), engaging in prayer, and finding holiness in daily interactions, as well as using our unique skills to build the world we seek.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Bolton