A meta-reflection that I've had throughout this project is the challenge of inheriting each item in this Mishnah without protest or revision. I often feel like I might have constructed this Mishnah differently if I had held the ancient quill. It has humbled me to realize that this Mishnah is a part of my tradition, compelling me to feel deferential to it and to engage with its message directly.
Pirkei Avot opens with a condensed history of the transmission of the Torah:
"Moses received the Torah at Sinai and transmitted it to Joshua, Joshua to the elders, and the elders to the prophets, and the prophets to the Men of the Great Assembly. They said three things: Be patient in [the administration of] justice, raise many disciples and make a fence round the Torah" (Pirkei Avot 1:1).
To perpetuate this chain of transference, we need to place full faith not only in the tradition itself, but also in those responsible for passing it on.
We often value a critical eye over complacency, and individualism over hierarchy. While I do not promote blind faith, I do believe in the work of cultivating qualities of restraint and humility. Learning should push us and sometimes make us uncomfortable. Growth emerges from that tension and how we engage with it. We learned earlier about the value of listening, and today is a reminder to make ourselves into receptors, placing faith and trust and hope in the tradition that we inherit, and in those dedicated to its perpetuation.
Reflection:
Do you feel like you default to trusting teachers and authority figures, or do you feel like that needs to be earned?
What does it mean to hold on to a received tradition in a postmodern reality?
What does it mean to listen to tradition, when our tradition is far from monolithic?
Is there a limit to how much faith we put in the tradition?
Lived practice:
This is the post for Day 23, which corresponds to Shabbat. Print out some Shabbat learning from the voices of wisdom you most trust. Take their words in, and think about why you trust them as bearers of wisdom and tradition.
