T.S Elliot’s Teshuva, Tefillah and Tzedakah
T.S Elliot (1888-1965) — one of the greatest poets of all time said in his 1934 work “The Rock” — “Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?”
This instantly gives off three questions, some may be “pshat” and some may lead to deeper ideas that we can weave into the upcoming High Holy Days.
1. “Where is the knowledge of God we have lost in information?”
2. “Where is our knowledge of prayer we have lost in information?”.
3. “Where is the knowledge we have lost in being too consumed by opposite information outside of our religious identity?”
The prophet tells us to “Seek God while he may be found; call on him while he is near”(Isaiah 55:6-9). Ultimately, this is the goal of the High Holy Days and synchronises so accurately with our original quote. At this point in the year, we are seeking knowledge of and connection to God — that can be applied to our Teshuva, Tefillah and Tzedekah. We repent, we pray and we give, to be authentic and better people and evdei Hashem, and that can give us the knowledge we desire.
It is easy to struggle with Teshuva, Tefillah and Tzedekah — which can all impact our avodat Hashem. It can lead to guilt which is flawed into a negative snowball effect. In the age we live in, information overload is not always good for our minds and it may be easy to lose that drive to seek God and find him, and the right knowledge amongst all this outside information. That could be in the outside world, or even in Jewish education where we are being given too much and can’t find what speaks to us.
Information, knowledge and wisdom are three different terms that enhance our place in this world and are central to these ideas.
Knowledge is about having the information, facts and skills. Wisdom is about the ability to use that knowledge with understanding and experience to make good decisions. Too much information and too much knowledge can be damaging and limit growth and wisdom – especially in the context of now.
We can repent, pray and give charity, knowing what it might entail, but we must have the wisdom to understand what that means and for it to be authentic avodat Hashem or kavanah and that comes with consistency and dedication.
Chazal tell us that there was no ability, time or identity to speak in Mitzrayim (Egypt) with the torture that occurred. For us, no one is torturing us, but are we good communicators? Are we too drawn to technology or the outside world, meaning we are less likely to communicate with God and to gain that knowledge, wisdom and a strong desire to repent, pray or give charity?
Doing Teshuva, reciting Tefillah and giving Tzedekah can keep us anchored to being idealist evdei Hashem. We can’t always do everything with our schedule or attention span – though during Elul and the Aseret Yemei Teshuva, we can find at least one of these anchors in a healthy fashion. We should present ourselves and stand in front of God, be present in the moment and not let our minds be somewhere else.
We must not lose our knowledge of God in a world full of information.
