Two weeks ago, Adam and I attended Center Theatre Group’s production of “Hadestown,” the 2019 Tony Award winner for best musical. We have listened to and enjoyed the cast recording many times, but there is something so unspeakably energizing about experiencing live music and theatre. I left the Ahmanson buzzing and inspired, and have continually heard the words and melody of the leading character, Orpheus, offering a toast to his friends: “To the world we dream about, and the one we live in now.”
Orpheus is an idealist, an optimist, a romantic, and a stargazer. He sees the world as it is, and—perhaps more importantly—is able to paint a picture of how he hopes it can be, if allowed to fully realize its true potential. Although the show is based on the ancient Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, there is a deeply Jewish message embedded in his words. Our tradition teaches that our world is beautiful, but broken, and that it is incumbent upon us to do everything that we can to put those broken pieces of God’s creation back together. The Aleinu prayer, part of our daily liturgy, reminds us that we are commanded to “fix the world under the rule of God” (“l’taken et haolam b malchut Shaddai”). We Jews are cautious optimists—we know that nothing is perfect, but we also recognize that by working diligently—even if ploddingly—to build up and to heal our families and our communities, we will begin to reclaim our broken world for ourselves, for God, and then—maybe someday—for all the world.
At times, we feel far from the world we dream about. Some days we will undoubtedly feel defeated, disappointed, or concerned about the state of the world as it is. And yet, we can never truly despair if we remember that, although the world is broken in so many ways, we have been given by God the opportunity and tools to do the work required to make our world better in whatever ways we can, to gather those elusive sparks of light, and see them shine through in our commitment to seeing lovingkindness extended to all humanity. This week (today!), make a commitment to bettering something that you know is in need of improvement, adjustment, rehabilitation, and love. May we be like Orpheus and so many of our Jewish ancestors, endlessly optimistic about the future, no matter how fractured our present may seem.
–Cantor Emma Lutz