Rabbi Mendy Herson's Blog

Whooops.....I was there Sunday, and I am not sure I follow your thoughts, Mendy, re: the discussion.
Is this a continuation of Marty's question?
Help me (and Gary, who was not there.)

Marty asked a question (about the Halachic concept of Eiruv, which seemed to him and others as something of a dubious loophole in Rabbinic Jewish Law) which seemd to address a particular of Jewish Law, but was actually fundamental to the Jewish thought process.
Our conversation about Eiruv became a question of how we see the Oral Law and Rabbinic Law. One's perspective on that general question, will necessarily inform how one sees the 'details' of Jewish Law.

In one of our tangents, Wendy also brought up the idea of relevance as fundamental to the student's willingness and (therefore) capacity to connect with the lesson.
Hence my humble post.......

I will confess that until last Sunday, I did not know what an Eiruv was! Never even heard the word! Mendy, I feel like the Catholic girl you described in your “conversion” class…. “a blank slate.” That said, I couldn’t begin to form an opinion on the concept of an Eiruv. I guess because no one has ever told me what I should or shouldn’t do in terms of anything specifically Jewish, I find myself free to explore my Jewish heritage pretty unencumbered. Your last point regarding relevance and personal meaning….that’s how I am making sense of it all. And I think we talked about this two Sundays ago, that what really matters is the willingness to be honest with one’s self….to be reminded – by an Eiruv, a mezuzah, a container of tofutti! – of who you are, your responsibilities to yourself, your family, your community and to G-d. These are reminders to step outside yourself, understand yourself in a larger perspective and behave accordingly….with the knowledge that everything you do has an affect….

There's a lot to be said for the idea that all of Torah has a goal of bringing us to a higher level of consciousness. In Rachel's words, to remind us of who we are, our responsibilties etc.
Maimonides writes that "The entire Torah was only given to bring peace to the world", presumably through bringing us to higher planes of thinking and acting.
I need to note that, when you delve into the theology, you find that each Mitzvah has intrinsic value of its own, beyond the consciousness-benefit.
But for our purposes at this point, it's very helpful to see the Torah as a user's manual for life; with each Mitzvah bringing its own message to guide me toward being the best I can be - consciously.