This is the week when we read of the great Exodus. “Let my people go that they may serve Me” was the Divine call transmitted by Moshe Rabbeinu to Pharaoh. Now, if the purpose of leaving Egypt and Pharaoh’s whip was to be able to serve G-d, where is the freedom? We are still slaves, only now we are servants of the Almighty?
Indeed, countless individuals continue to question the merits of religion in general. Who wants to submit to the rigours of religion when we can be free spirits? Religion stifles the imagination, stunts our creative style, forever shouts instructions and lays down the law. "Thou Shalt" do this and "Thou Shalt (better) not" do that, or else! Do’s and don’ts, rules and regulations are the hallmark of every belief system but why conform to any system at all? Why not just be me?
Many Jews argue similarly. Mitzvahs cramp my style. Keeping kosher is a serious inconvenience. Shabbes really gets in the way of my weekend. And Pesach has got to be the biggest headache of the year.
Long ago, the Rabbis of the Mishna said it was actually the other way around. “There is no one as free as he who is occupied with the study of Torah.” But how can this possibly be true? Torah is filled with rules of law, ethics and even expectations and exhortations that we take the high road and behave beyond the call of duty. How can the Rabbis say that Torah makes us free? Surely it is inhibiting rather than liberating?
Malcolm Muggeridge, the former editor of Punch, the satirical British magazine was once interviewed by the BBC. Punch magazine was arguably England’s most irreverent publication. It mocked and ridiculed the royal family long before they did it to themselves. In his latter years, Malcolm Muggeridge became religious and the interviewer was questioning how the sultan of satire, the prince of Punch could make such a radical transformation and become religious? How could he stifle such a magnificent free spirit as his?
Muggeridge’s answer was a classic. He said he had a friend who was a famous yachtsman, an accomplished navigator of the high seas. A lesson he once gave him in sailing would provide the answer to the BBC man’s question. He taught him that if you want to enjoy the freedom of the high seas, you must first become a slave to the compass.
A young novice might challenge the experienced professional’s advice. But why should I follow that little gadget? Why can’t I go where I please? It’s my yacht! But every intelligent person understands that without the navigational fix provided by the compass we will flounder and sail in circles. Only by following the lead of the compass will the wind catch our sails so we can experience the ecstasy and exhilaration of the high seas. If you want to enjoy the freedom of the high seas you must first become a slave to the compass.
The Torah is the compass and navigator of life. It provides our navigational fix so we know where to go and how to get there. Without the Torah’s guidance and direction we would be lost in the often stormy seas of confusion. Without a spiritual infrastructure we flounder about, wandering aimlessly through life. Just look at our kids when they’re on vacation from school and are “free” from the disciplines of the educational system. Unless they have a program of some kind to keep them busy – like a summer camp – they become very frustrated in their “freedom.”
Within the Torah lifestyle there is still ample room for spontaneity and freedom of expression. Not all Rabbis are clones. To the untrained eye every yeshiva bochur looks identical – a black hat, glasses and a beard. The truth is that every one is distinctively different; an individual with his own tastes attitudes, personality and preferences. They may look the same but they are each unique.
We can be committed to the navigator and still be free spirits. Indeed, there are none as free as they who are occupied with Torah.