Bondage to Redemption (Part One)

In Tennyson’s, Idylls of the King he references a story of a lance fashioned from wood that was “storm strengthened on a windy height.” It came from a tree standing lone and solitary on a deserted mountain, battered and beaten by the winds furry. Summer and winter it stood strong against the fiery blasts of summer heat and the snow and ice of the winters chill. Ice and snow, wind and rain, all were beaten back by this most sturdy of trees. The roots held fast; their grasp triumphed over every condition that sought to uproot them.

Here we have an important parable for life. Storms rise, vent their fury over our lives and leave for certain their tell-tale scars. But they also leave behind an impenetrable strength born in the crucible of life and create qualities of strength unimaginable. Stored deep within us, often beyond our own understanding is a fountain of strength that when pushed to the limits of our own comprehension, reaches out and grasps hold of us and carries us through the storm.

We as a people are far beyond our Christian neighbors when they say “turn the other cheek.” Had we simply turned away in our darkest moments, our people hood might have left and our culture would have been sublimated into the general society, forever ending the Jewish journey of life. Rather, our approach to dark days and difficult times is told by the philosopher Philo when he writes that “Blessed are they to whom it is given to resist with superior strength the weight that would pull them down.” (Philo - Special Laws)

Not only do the quiet fruitful times of life make us grow. More often than not, our inner growth comes from the battles in life’s ordeals and disasters. Storms are a natural component of life on this planet. Similarly they are a part of our own personal journey as the storms of life rage against our security and safety. Whether we, like Tennyson, can fashion a lance from the storms of our life, or fall victim by our lack of defense depends on the quality of our spiritual resources and the faith stories and practices that we are able to muster to our aid.