Central to
the biblical creation story, or at least one of the stories preserved in
Bereshit, is the Tree of Knowledge.
Smack dab in the middle of the garden grew both the Tree of Life and its
companion, the Tree of Knowledge. It is
the latter that comes to define the human condition. A contraction in the tale stands out and can
serve to inform us: At the start, God
makes it clear in his warning to Adam, “you can eat from any tree except this
one. You eat from the Tree of Knowledge,
and you die.”
But, that
isn’t what happens is it? Here the
serpent does know better. Neither Adam nor
Eve meet their end from touching or eating this tree’s fruit (at least not immediately or any time soon). The consequences were, perhaps, far more
complicated: their eyes were opened to a reality far beyond the idyllic
delights of Eden. It’s as if a switch
clicked on in their brains that made them suddenly aware, suddenly capable of
complex thinking and understanding. The
consequences of this awareness brings with it challenge and arguably
responsibility (it is knowledge of good and evil), but the very fact that the
story was written and preserved in the manner in which it was, included in the Torah, no less, highlights how much we value this awareness, how much we value the ability to
comprehend and evaluate, to distinguish between right and wrong. There is a clear assumption to this story:
we wouldn’t give up the so-called “curses” delivered, such as the need to toil
and labor throughout our days on earth, if it meant giving up the companion
gifts received from the ability to think and evaluate coherently.
We value our
brains and its functions. As liturgist Eugene
Kohn expressed so well in a poetic work included in the 1948 Liberal British mahzor, Petach Teshuva, and then adapted later by Chaim Stern for our
American mahzor, our mind and the way
it functions is what distinguishes us from the rest of God’s creations. After outlining the gifts bestowed on the
animal world, Kohn continues:
But upon one species, more than upon the others,
Thou hast lavish Thy gifts;
Upon one species whom Thy creative word called into
being
Among
the last
Of species still extant –
The species, [humankind].
Thou gavest him not the fangs and claws of the lion
and tiger;
Thou
gavest him not the thick hide of the elephant;
Or
the scaly armor of the alligator;
To
the gazelle, we were slow of foot,
To
the lioness, a weakling,
And
the eagle thought us bound to earth.
But,
Thou gavest us powers greater than all these,
A
skillful hand,
A
probing mind,
A
loving heart,
A
soul aspiring to know and to fulfill its destiny
as governed by [Divine] wisdom. (p.
368, Petach Teshuva, adapted)
Whether we
are better or not than the rest of the animal kingdom for it, we do value our
brain function. We even have an entire
academic discipline, the humanities, that concerns itself with human thought
and culture and does so with the analytical and critical processes central to our
brains and our human condition.
Imagine if
those processes slowly disappeared: the ability to remember even simple
details, the ability to reason through a problem or dilemma, the ability to
navigate in familiar surroundings – even in one’s own home, the ability to
remember the histories of beloved family and friends, the ability to take care
of basic personal needs. Having tasted
knowledge, I can assure you, it wouldn’t be a return to Eden. And, it isn’t for those suffering from
Alzheimer’s Disease and other forms of dementia.
This
Shabbat, in our Baltimore community, is Purple
Shabbat. Nothing to do with the
Ravens - really, Purple Shabbat marks the
Jewish Community’s joining with other faith communities who will mark Purple Sunday tomorrow, in an effort to
raise awareness of the work of the Alzheimer’s Association and to provide
access to materials and resources for those who are dealing with this
disease.
The facts
are stark. Alzheimer’s disease is an irreversible, progressive – currently uncurable -brain disease
that, according to the NIH, is the most common cause of dementia in older adults. It not only impacts the individual suffering
from the disease, but it brings with it extraordinary consequences and
conditions for caregivers who most often are also immediate family members who
are simultaneously dealing with the slow and progressive loss of their loved
one.
At the same
time, there is support and there are resources to help. One of the primary goals of the Alzheimer’s
Association beyond research is to provide support to individuals and
families. Information is available on
their website. Information is also
immediately available in our lobby. Take advantage of it. Share it.
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