In our morning service, we thank God for the wonder
of our bodies in a prayer known as n’kavim
n’kavim and follow it by a prayer thanking God for returning our souls to
us each morning (elohai n’shama).
Body and soul are separated in our liturgy and as a result it can be easy for
us as Jews to disconnect body and soul. Even a Rabbi splits the two off in the
Talmud:
Rav
Huna said to his son, Rabbah, “Why are you not to be found before Rav Hisda,
whose dicta are so keen?” “What should I go to him for,” he answered, “seeing
that when I go to him, he treats me to secular discourses?... He talks of
health matters.” He exclaimed, “And you call them secular discourses! All the
more reason for going to him!”[1]
While still
alluding to a differentiation between body and soul, 12th century
Moses Maimonides made it clear that a healthy body is essential for a healthy
soul:
“Since
by keeping the body in health and vigor, one walks in the ways of God – it
being impossible during sickness to have any understanding or knowledge of the
Creator – it is a person’s duty to avoid whatever is injurious to the body, and
cultivate habits conducive to health and vigor.”[2]
As profoundly
moving the Rabbinate can be, it is not a healthy profession. Rabbis tend to either
sit a lot (for example, when meeting people or when studying) or they stand
still a lot (such as when teaching or leading prayers). We eat a lot, too,
especially when celebrating Shabbat or festivals. I have come to realise that
during my Rabbinate so far that I have forgotten, to paraphrase Rav Kook, that
we have holy flesh no less than holy spirit. I intend to change that and for
the community to benefit from this change.
It is
therefore my intention to complete the Tour of Acoma, a 100-mile bike ride on September
18th 2016. It has been four years since I cycled properly and I have
never faced an endurance challenge like this for a number of reasons – (1) I
have never been this unfit before, (2) I have never cycled this far before, (3)
I am asthmatic, (4) I have never cycled at this kind of temperature before, (5)
I have never cycled at this altitude before. If I am to do this, I need your
serious support. The biggest way you can help me while training and on the actual
day itself is to sponsor me per mile cycled. The more I raise for the Temple,
the more likely I will be to finish this challenge.
My hope is to
become much healthier for my benefit, for the community’s benefit and also to
raise funds for the community at the same time. I will, essentially, be
changing pounds into dollars, and yes, I believe that joke alone deserves at
least some kind of sponsorship! This is without doubt the hardest physical and
mental challenge I have ever faced, and I really hope that members of the
community and beyond will sponsor me accordingly.
You will be able to follow my training exploits here, learn more about how to sponsor me and just send general words of encouragement on this blog.
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