In the Scriptures it is written: “You shall not worship the LORD your God in that way” (Deut. 12:4), which referred to various Canaanite practices of idolatry based on mystery, ignorance and superstition. Unlike religious cults that were based on vain speculations, however, Jews are duty-bound to carry out God’s will as expressed by the truth of divine revelation. Our father Abraham was given revelation of Torah (Gen. 26:5) and at Sinai moral truth was enshrined in the Ten Commandments (Exod. 24:12; Deut. 5:22).
A basic assumption of Torah is that “ought implies can,” or that we are genuinely responsible to know and to do moral truth (Rom. 1:18-20). Unlike the ancient “mystery religions” that abandoned themselves by “celebrating” the lower nature, God insists on overruling our base impulses and finding peace in the midst of the struggle to live in righteousness (Gal. 5:16-17). Therefore we do not understand the Hebrew word “shalom” (שָׁלוֹם), or “peace,” to mean the absence of strife, but rather “wholeness,” “completeness,” and “healing” — the integration of the heart and mind that comes through catharsis and personal struggle (Gen. 32:28). Faith does not mean passivity, but protest — “arguing” for (and sometimes with) heaven, reminding God of his promises, lamenting over the divine absence; finding courage to oppose the status quo, and repeatedly appealing to heaven “be’khol levaveinu” (בְּכָל־לְבָבֵנוּ) — with all our hearts — precisely because we believe that our prayers can affect even the divine decrees… True faith confesses to “move mountains into the sea” (Mark 11:23) and refuses to let go of God until it receives the promised blessing to become “Israel” (Gen. 32:26).
- Isaiah 32:17 Hebrew page (pdf)
Note: As many of you know, “tzedakah” (צדקה) refers to our duty to “do righteousness” (i.e., la’asot tzedakah: לעשות צדקה) which can take the form of good works or deeds (i.e., ma’asei tovim: מעשה טובים), doing acts of kindness (i.e., gemilut chassidim: גמילות חסדים), studying Torah (i.e., talmud Torah: תלמוד תורה), engaging in prayer (i.e., avodat ha’lev: עבודת הלב), and offering charity (i.e., mattan tzedakah: מתן צדקה). Living in accordance with the righteousness of Messiah (צדקת משיח) yields a life of peace, inner quiet, and confidence that comes from the Spirit of God.