“10 Minutes to a Better Jew”

February 6, 2004
Rabbi Jeremy Barras

Last week I ordered a couple of books from a Jewish bookstore in New York. As I was placing the order, the man in the shop suggested that in addition to the two books I was buying, he thought he knew of a different book that I might be interested in. He did not know me, had never met me, and how no idea why I wanted the books I was ordering, but he was pretty sure I would like this other book he was pushing. Well, after listening to his explanation of the book including a reading of a “sample page,” I decided that I was not interested. He said no problem and took my order for the two books that I did want.

I was excited this past Monday when I walked into my office and I saw a box containing the books I had ordered. I quickly opened it and found within it the two books that I had ordered, plus the third book that the man had recommended. The book was only $14, so I was not too annoyed, and actually the book did look quite interesting. But in the future, when dealing with that store, I think I will use their inter-net site for book orders.

The third book that the man included happened to be called 10 Minutes to a Better Marriage, and after reading through some of it, I started to think how many different aspects in our culture can be cured in 10 minutes a day (or less). For instance, you can have great abs in eight minutes, you can become a world class manager in one minute, you could be an expert golfer in 10 easy steps, and now the Reform movement is offering a service in which you can receive a short Torah lesson through email – the name of the program – “10 minutes of Torah a day.”

If you think about it, in just 39 minutes a day, you can be happily married, a scratch golfer with great abs, have a great, high paying job, and attain spiritual satisfaction. But really, if you are like me, if you have tried any of these 10-minute miracle workers, you know that there is more to great achievement than simple gimmicks and sleek advertising schemes. Although I would suspect that if I had stuck with the eight-minute abs program, I would likely have somewhat better abs than I do now. But like most of these programs that I try, I usually do not stick with them – I lose interest or motivation, and the commitment that I promised at the beginning fizzles and eventually evaporates until eventually all that remains is the videotape of some good looking guy doing sit-ups gathering dust in a drawer.

In actuality, the secret behind these 10-minute or 10 step ploys are not the short amount of time they require, but the consistency that they demand. If you work out every day, you will get in shape. If you eat right every day - you will be healthier – if you work hard at your given trade you will improve your job performance.

It is that consistency in our efforts that allows us to achieve the goals we seek to achieve. This same fact rings true regarding our approach to Judaism. The more we come to Temple, the more mitzvoth we perform, the more values we pass on to our children, the more we think about God and what God wants from us, the more spiritually connected we will feel.

In the Mishnah there is a warning statement that says, “Do not say, when I have leisure, I will study – perhaps, you never will have that leisure.” In response to this statement, Maimonides recommends to the individual to make Torah study part of our daily routine because it is too important to be relegated to a function of leisure.

Similarly, if you take a close look, you will notice that everything in Jewish law is meant to provide us with a consistent means of conducting our lives and communicating and worshipping God. There is prayer three times a day – and for us as Reform Jews we emphasize prayer on Shabbat, which happens every week. There are blessings that we should say after meals and snacks. There is the mitzvah of loving our fellow neighbor like ourselves, which should occur every time we come into contact with our neighbor. And I can go on and on with different mitzvoth we should do on a daily basis – but instead of pointing out the benefits of each one, I simply would like us to appreciate that the only way we can use them to benefit our lives is if they become a regular and consistent part of our daily lives.

The where was once a man who sent to his rabbi a priceless pearl, along with the message, “Send me a precious object of equal value.” In return, the rabbi sent him a mezuzah.” When the man received the mezuzah, he was outraged. He went to the rabbi and said, “I sent you a priceless gift, and you sent me something worth virtually nothing.” The rabbi replied to him, “Our respective gifts cannot be compared. You have sent me something which I must guard at all times and will render me little satisfaction, but I sent you something that will guard you – when you lie down and when you rise up, when you go out and when you come in, it will lead you in this world and in the world to come.”

What the rabbi was teaching this man was that there is no present that can compare to something that adds consistency into our spiritual lives, something that we allow to watch over our souls at all times of our lives.

Ultimately it would be very easy for us to follow all of the mitzvoth and say that we are adding Jewish consistency to our lives. But that is unlikely to be an acceptable solution for the average Reform Jew. Instead we, as Reform Jews, might be apt to pick up a book at Barnes and Noble if it promised to make us better Jews in 10 minutes a day. Now that I think about it, maybe I should write that book. Well, people might buy it, but I could not write that book because I do not believe that the premise is logical or possible. Just like my abs did not improve in eight minutes, just like I cannot lose weight in 10 easy steps, just like I cannot make millions of dollars from home by watching a silly video, so I cannot live a better and more rewarding Jewish life in 10 minutes a day. To even suggest so would be an affront to God. I would not dare say to our Creator, thank you for creating this world us, thank you for sustaining us and breathing life into us, thank you everything in this world that you have provided for us – I can you squeeze you in for 10 minutes after lunch!

Making God a part of our daily lives is not as difficult or as daunting as it sounds. You do not have to be a Bible thumping, mitzvah machine that spends all his or her time meditating on the Supreme power in the universe. Rather we can lead satisfying spiritual lives if we simply thank God for all that we cherish in this world. When we look into the eyes of loved ones, we thank God for allowing them to be in our lives. When we eat food, we thank God for sustaining us, when we enjoy a walk in the park, we thank God for nature and all that it provides us – and when Shabbat arrives, we thank God for everything in life that God has created for us.

Being Jewish is not about 10 minutes a day – it is about 24 hours a day. It pervades everything we do whether we acknowledge it or not. When we find a way to add consistency to our spiritual aspirations, then like anything, will we consistently nurture our spiritual needs.

May we each strive to intertwine our spiritual lives with our physical needs so that we find a proper place for God’s Divine will in our daily lives.

Kein Yehi ratzon – May it be God’s will. Amen

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